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Good morning, guys.

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Good morning.

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Thank you for joining me today for Trinity Talks episode.

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This is our Trinity Talks podcast that we have in between our two services here at Trinity.

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And it's a pleasure to be joined with Susan and Diane and Linda.

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Thanks for agreeing to come into the show and miss your coffee hour.

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Thanks for having us.

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So I just wanted to let everyone who's watching know that these three women are all part of

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a life group.

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And if you don't know what a life group is, a life group is what some churches call small

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groups, which is where people meet regularly outside of the Sunday morning service.

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And as I said, it's regularly meeting.

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You grow together in friendship and in faith and encouragement, oftentimes going through

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some sermon questions or just developing in faith together and I assume just supporting

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one another.

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So today I was hoping that we could learn a little bit more about what your life group

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looks like, as well as maybe talk through some of the sermon questions from the sermon

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that we just heard.

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How does that sound?

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Great.

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All right.

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So let's find out a little bit more about your life group.

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I did a little research and right now I believe there's about eight people in your life group.

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All right.

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Yes.

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But I know that it's ever changing and ever evolving.

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But how long has it been running for your particular life group?

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Our group's been going about eight years.

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About eight years.

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Yeah.

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And we meet every Tuesday night from seven to nine in the basement of the church.

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Okay.

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It's for women only 55 years and over.

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And we usually talk about the questions from the service, but quite often, like when there's

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a session going on in the church, like the Sabbath that we're having right now, we'll

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come as a group to that.

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Instead of meeting Tuesday night, we'll meet to Wednesday night if the group decides that.

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And if they decide they don't want to do that, then we might even do the same course, but

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on the Tuesday night.

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Oh, okay.

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So I'm going to use this as an advertisement moment.

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Anyone 55 and older?

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Ladies?

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Yeah.

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We'd love to have you join our group.

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So there's another space at the table.

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There is.

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Always another space at the table.

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In fact, I've been down to that room.

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There's a lot of seating.

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Yes.

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Now, Diane, could you tell me a little bit about what the average session looks like?

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So you all meet together downstairs.

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Yeah, sure.

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So first we'll start off about chatting, how our week was.

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We give everybody a chance to share that.

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It's a nice way to open it up.

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Then we'll do a prayer, ask the Holy Spirit to come in and guide our questions in our

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session.

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Instead of going right to the questions, a lot of times we will start off with a discussion

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about what spoke to you during that sermon, or did something evoke a feeling?

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Or things like that.

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So we'll open it up that way and go around the room.

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Then we'll go to the questions, have a look at them, and see if there's something that

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we haven't talked about.

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And usually there is something to provoke some more discussion and great opportunity

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for learning.

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Yeah, so we'll do that.

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One of the nice things about our group is that we have lots of good humor.

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And our ability to laugh with each other, I should say, as we're growing, learning to

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change some of our ways and develop new character traits towards Jesus.

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So we have great boundaries in our group as well.

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So we like to have everybody have a time to share and to be heard.

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So that's really important for us.

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Whatever's said in our group stays in our group, so there's total amenity.

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And sometimes during the week, lots of times Sue might send something out, or Linda or

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another member, an inspiring scripture that they read during that week, and a prayer that

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they wanted to share.

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So we try and stay connected that way too.

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I mentioned that we have lots of great laughter, but we also sometimes have tears.

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And we have members sometimes going through difficult times.

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And our group will bring meals, say prayers, have Zoom meetings to get caught up if we

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need to, if the person can't attend.

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We'll go for dinner sometimes, meet up for movies or Christian concerts.

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We usually shut down during the summer, but we love to get together for dinners and we

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can't wait to get caught up.

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By the time September arrives, we can't wait to get started and connect again weekly.

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So that's our group.

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That's beautiful.

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So it actually extends beyond the weekly meetings.

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When you're speaking about those things that you do, it reminds me of something that we

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often say about our life groups is doing life together.

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So when you say you have tears, you have laughs, you stay connected through the week, you make

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allowances over Zoom, you do meals.

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That's beautiful.

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And that only comes, I think, from growing in relationship with one another.

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So it's really nice to hear.

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And it's so encouraging, I think, for other people who might be considering life groups

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to see that this is the type of experience you might be able to expect if you join a

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group like this.

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So Susan, what encouraged you to want to even join a life group in the first place?

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Okay, well, I've been part of a lot of life groups over the years.

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And then I went through a kind of season in my life where I was busy with other things.

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So I hadn't been part of a group for a number of years.

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So last year I took a course, an online course with Trinity called Be Still.

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And yeah, these ladies were in my breakout group.

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And during that time, I just realized how much I missed being in a life group and having

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people to share my faith with and my questions and to talk to.

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So I asked if I could join the group and they welcomed me.

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And they said yes.

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Yeah, yeah.

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And it's been great.

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Yeah, wonderful.

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And it's a place where we discuss our faith and we all seem to really just enjoy our discussions

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together.

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And as Diane said, we have laughter, lots of fun, and we also are there for each other

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in, you know, sad times as well.

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So yeah, it's been just great.

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So yeah.

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Wonderful.

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What a great story.

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I guess that you joined sort of within this past year.

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Yes.

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And it was the Be Still course.

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Well, Diane and Linda, you must have made quite the impression on us.

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Right now we're actually doing the Sabbath course, which I think you alluded to.

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And we have some people who are also looking to possibly join life groups.

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So I guess it's my prayer too that those people might find or walk into a group or a table

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and see some hope in a life group there.

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So that's great.

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Now, Diane, how did you, so you've been in the life group longer than Susan.

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How did you come to want to join a group, a small group?

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For me, I think it was, you know, years ago when I was searching, you know, new in my

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faith, I just kind of wanted to belong to something like a group to grow and understand

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and to grow spiritually in my faith.

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But what I found is that I really enjoy a study that has questions that are incorporating

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scriptures rather than just at that time learning to just read the Bible on my own.

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I didn't find I was finding that deep learning and understanding.

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So you know, I found it confusing sometimes.

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So when I joined the life group, it was a place to unpack the Bible or sermon study

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questions and being led by the Holy Spirit, that really drawed me to it as well.

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And deeper understanding developed, you know, the more I went in different groups and over

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the years.

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So it kind of happened after that.

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Wow.

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Yeah.

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Wow.

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That's really interesting.

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Thank you.

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And what about you, Linda?

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I think for me, I wanted to take my Christian journey a little bit deeper.

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I felt like I was part of the one and done crowd.

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You know, you go to church on Sunday and I'm done till next Sunday.

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So I sort of wanted to do a little bit more.

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So I felt Diane and I actually used to go to a different church on Wednesdays who would

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do the minister would do like a little bit of a Bible study.

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And I thought, well, that's what we need something in the middle of the week.

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So then when they started doing the life groups again, and everything was getting up, I thought,

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you know, this is exactly what we need.

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And it's been a great, great venture.

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That's wonderful.

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Well, then you mentioned that you guys do walk through the sermon questions, which are

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posted every week here at Trinity, usually just right after the sermon.

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And sometimes they're more challenging and sometimes they're a little easier to go through.

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But for anyone who hasn't had a chance to see those sermon questions yet, you can actually

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find them on our website.

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They're under services and sermon questions.

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And there's always a link to the most recent sermon questions that's right up there at

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the top of the page.

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You can also request from our office and we will actually send them to you as well.

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Now I have a copy of the sermon questions that our guest preacher, Reverend Peter Mills,

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sent out.

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And we were actually just chatting for the audience.

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We were just chatting before about this topic being a little bit heavy.

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And we are just going to walk through some of these questions and sort of try our best

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just the way you would, I think, in your own groups.

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So the very first question that Peter suggested that some churches overlook the significance

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of the cross.

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In fact, I think during his sermon, he talked about that he gave us a percentage of how

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much of the gospels are actually dedicated to the passion.

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So that final week of Jesus's life, it's considerably significant.

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It's almost like time just slows down and so much is recorded.

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And yet we probably don't speak as much about that during our church days.

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And when we're looking at the scriptures.

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So why do you think, maybe not so much why do you think churches overlook the cross,

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but how can we ensure maybe that the cross stays central in our faith?

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Well, I had written down here in advance, Christ offered himself to God through external

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spirit and his resurrection.

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Jesus crucified Christ has become a life giving spirit for us all to receive.

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Jesus didn't only die for our sins, he was crucified to terminate every negative thing,

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including our bad habits, old ways, addictions, whatever our stumbling blocks are.

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And the powers received when we turn to him in his spirit and all the time inviting him

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into the areas of our lives that we're struggling in.

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And I guess there's different ways that we can keep the cross central in daily life.

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For me, it's praying in prayer, asking God into every situation, sometimes journaling,

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having a gratitude list, being thankful, but always keeping him front and center.

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Which I like that you said having lists and journals.

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So that's some discipline involved in actually ensuring that that happens.

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Yeah.

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Now any other thoughts on that?

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I thought Peter touched on that a little in the sermon in that on the cross, Jesus is,

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that's where we meet Jesus more or less on our level because he is suffering.

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Because we suffer and so that is central to our faith.

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That humanness of him.

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Now our sermon series that we've been working through is the famous last words.

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So in this sermon, we focused around the words, my God, my God, why have you forsaken me?

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Which is actually a quote from Psalm 22, which some people may not have known if they've

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just heard this, but Jesus is actually quoting scripture.

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And I'm wondering what you think the significance of Jesus quoting scripture in this moment

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of despair is.

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I thought too, he touched on that like firstly that he, when he mentioned that, why didn't

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he quote Psalm 23, you know, but he said that like, and I thought this is honest prayer

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of one who has experienced complete separation from God and that honest prayer is good.

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And so it's also a light to us when we're in our darkest hours that, and we feel separated

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from God that, you know, this is what we do.

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We cry out to him.

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Yes.

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So he, Jesus, what you're saying is he, he was honest and he also gave us a model for

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how to pray in that moment as well in despair at all.

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Wow.

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Thank you.

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Thank you.

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Now, Peter also mentioned that there's this tension between seeing Jesus as a possible

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superhero.

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In fact, he mentioned Batman, which was just show of hands.

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Who remembers the Batman cartoon, TV show.

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And also, so there's this tension between seeing him as the superhero, but then also

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seeing him as enduring this profound suffering where we know as Christians that Jesus had

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the power to take himself down from the cross and demonstrate this superhero like power.

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And yet he chooses to endure this intense and insane suffering.

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So how do you think that this tension between seeing Jesus's two different types of powers

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that he ops, that he kind of has to choose between, help us understand Jesus's character

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more?

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I think for me, I think it helps us to remember that Jesus was human.

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I mean, quite often we think of Jesus, he's on a pedestal, he's healing people, he's doing

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everything, but he was a human being and he was treated like a human being shunned and

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scorned for his beliefs, having to go through this agony.

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So by us seeing that helps us relate that he is human and that if he can do it, that

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we can try to do it also when we're in suffering in our life.

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Yeah.

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Can you imagine if Jesus had gotten down from the cross?

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We would say, wow, look at that power, but ultimately what good would that have done?

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Right.

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It wouldn't have done us any good.

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Too bad we couldn't do it.

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We sure can.

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So maybe we can consider now, there's one question that says, consider times in your

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life when you felt abandoned or rejected by others.

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And we don't have to share too many personal experiences, but how does Jesus experience

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of abandonment on the cross by his own father offer comfort and hope in these moments to

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us?

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Well, I have to say that there's been many times, and I'm sure a lot of us have felt

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abandonment in our lives.

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And in being honest with myself, I've even felt abandoned by God himself in times.

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And when that usually happens, I'll wallow in self-pity for a bit and I'll get mad at

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God and I'll pray, even why have you left me?

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Because I just felt like I'm just by myself, but always in the middle of that, it's like

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my inner faith just seems to bubble to the surface and it's like, don't forget I'm here.

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And that just sort of refocuses me.

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And sometimes I think we need to feel this anguish just to realize when things get better,

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what we've accomplished and how we've made it through it.

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And I think of Jesus on the cross and how much he believed in God, but he also had a

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moment where he hung there in agony and didn't know what to do and had the same feelings

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that we have in our time when we just can't seem to get out of this pit.

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And like I said, he just seems to give us a strength to feel that if he can do it, then

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at least we can try.

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I mean, we may not be able to do what he's done, but at least we can try to pull ourselves

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out.

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Yep, absolutely.

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And that he's there with us.

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Yes, yes.

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I love that.

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But it's amazing how our Christianity, when you think you've lost it, all of a sudden

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it's like a little whisper in your ear, I'm still here.

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I'm still here.

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And I understand.

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Yeah.

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That's really nice.

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I love it.

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I love it.

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And let's discuss as well, just sort of finally to wrap up the implications of Jesus's sacrifice

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on the cross for our own lives.

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So he made this huge sacrifice.

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How does his willingness to endure abandonment and suffering inspire us to persevere in our

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own faith journeys?

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And I think Linda, you sort of touched on this already.

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Well, I'd probably add in there that, well, Jesus embraced his death with grace and dignity

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and keeping his focus on the Father.

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And when, you know, when Christians face problems, feel lonely, abandoned, suffering, Jesus fixes

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us or invites us to fix our mind on him and to keep focused on him in all situations and

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to keep coming to him until the answer, you know, is there.

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So for me, one of the things is I don't like to make decisions until I have that peace.

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So I found that is the guidance that he provides for me when there's a major thing where I

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don't know what to do.

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And it's a peace.

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Yes.

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That's beautiful.

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Or an answer.

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An answer.

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I don't know if it's a peace all the time, but it's an answer or direction.

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That's awesome.

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Wonderful.

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I love that.

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So any other thoughts on this, guys?

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I assume that you're going to meet this coming Tuesday to talk about it even further.

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Or do you take a break for the March break?

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We're doing the Sabbath course.

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Oh, you're doing the Sabbath course.

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Oh, hey, right.

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So you'll restart up after the Sabbath.

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How are you finding the Sabbath course?

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Oh, it's great.

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Yeah, it's really good.

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I'm learning some new habits.

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And probably getting rid of some old ones, at least myself personally.

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Yes.

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Had you practiced the Sabbath previous to this in any ways?

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I would say in bits and pieces during the week for me.

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Okay.

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You know, church Sunday mornings is always that important.

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But I think now Sunday's becoming more that day where rest is.

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Yeah.

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And really, you know, that's the whole thing of the course, how important it is for that

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rest on Sunday.

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Yeah.

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Yeah.

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Yeah.

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It's definitely a challenge.

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And for anyone who's not aware of the Sabbath course, we actually have over 100 people who

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have registered for this course.

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Some people are doing it online.

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You're doing it in person.

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That's correct, right?

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Yeah.

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So you're working together.

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And it's a video series, four sessions, where we are talking and learning about this rest,

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like you said, Diane, designed by God so that we can reconnect with Him, find a light and

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worship Him ultimately.

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Certainly, not something our culture has structured us to do, is set us up to do.

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So like you said, it's breaking old habits and then forming new ones.

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But I just want to take a moment to thank you for joining me for this conversation.

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Thank you.

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Thank you for having us.

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And it was a pleasure.

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I'd love to have you back again sometime.

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Maybe we'll go through a sermon that maybe isn't quite as heavy.

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Or maybe even heavier.

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Who knows?

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It was actually a lot of fun chatting with you.

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And I'd love to just hear your wisdom and insight again.

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So thanks again for joining me for Trinity Talks.

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Thank you.

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Thanks for having us.