WEBVTT 00:00:10.839 --> 00:00:14.140 Welcome to Hub City Vineyard. To get connected 00:00:14.140 --> 00:00:17.760 or to give online, please go to hcv .church slash 00:00:17.760 --> 00:00:21.960 connect or hcv .church slash give. If at any 00:00:21.960 --> 00:00:24.179 point during this message you feel called to 00:00:24.179 --> 00:00:27.059 make a change in your life, text change me to 00:00:27.059 --> 00:00:31.239 97000. Now enjoy the message. I'm thankful that 00:00:31.239 --> 00:00:32.859 he did those announcements because I could have 00:00:32.859 --> 00:00:36.539 not done that. I'm thankful for Rick. Rick Vance 00:00:36.539 --> 00:00:40.000 is amazing. He's such a gift to us, and he's 00:00:40.000 --> 00:00:43.420 so good. So happy fall, guys. It's so good seeing 00:00:43.420 --> 00:00:47.600 you. Oh, my gratitude hat. Thanks, Rudy. I wanted 00:00:47.600 --> 00:00:49.039 to have that on. I was going to put my gratitude 00:00:49.039 --> 00:00:51.829 hat on. Okay, perfect. All right, well, happy 00:00:51.829 --> 00:00:54.090 fall. I missed you. It's been a while since I've 00:00:54.090 --> 00:00:57.750 been here. I was... Oh, compassion. Yeah, I have 00:00:57.750 --> 00:00:59.170 to talk about that today, too. Okay, compassion. 00:00:59.390 --> 00:01:01.609 I'm going to hold these. Okay, got it. All right, 00:01:01.649 --> 00:01:05.370 so, yeah, we went on the mission trip this summer 00:01:05.370 --> 00:01:07.870 to the DR. It was really... All right, okay, 00:01:08.010 --> 00:01:10.109 yeah, thanks, Tracy. Appreciate it. All right, 00:01:10.109 --> 00:01:12.730 thanks. I got it. I got it. Okay, got this, got 00:01:12.730 --> 00:01:17.569 this, got that. All right. Okay, so like I was 00:01:17.569 --> 00:01:22.439 saying that... Oh, Kelsey, it's so good seeing 00:01:22.439 --> 00:01:25.879 you. Oh, thank you. I love you, too. Oh, thank 00:01:25.879 --> 00:01:28.799 you. Thanks. Appreciate it. Okay. All right. 00:01:28.900 --> 00:01:32.500 Okay. Well, yeah. So it's been a while since 00:01:32.500 --> 00:01:35.200 I've been present with you guys, but it's, yeah, 00:01:35.400 --> 00:01:37.180 it's hard to be present when you have so many 00:01:37.180 --> 00:01:40.180 things in your hand, right? So I'm going to just 00:01:40.180 --> 00:01:42.519 take a second. I'm going to lay all these important 00:01:42.519 --> 00:01:44.560 things down because I have so many amazing staff 00:01:44.560 --> 00:01:47.260 members. I'm going to lay these here. Put this 00:01:47.260 --> 00:01:51.489 down. And here. And my hair looks pretty good 00:01:51.489 --> 00:01:53.469 today, so I'm going to take off the hat. All 00:01:53.469 --> 00:01:55.349 right. But I still have gratitude even though 00:01:55.349 --> 00:01:56.390 I'm putting the hat down. There we go. Perfect. 00:01:56.530 --> 00:02:01.150 Okay. So what I wanted to say is I'm so glad 00:02:01.150 --> 00:02:03.569 to be present with you guys. And this week I 00:02:03.569 --> 00:02:06.250 was struggling with gratitude, and I had a friend, 00:02:06.269 --> 00:02:09.310 and I come in, and I laid it out to her. I was 00:02:09.310 --> 00:02:11.090 just crying and all over the place, and she's 00:02:11.090 --> 00:02:14.009 like, Jessica. You're holding too many things 00:02:14.009 --> 00:02:17.150 in your hand. So one of the things I'm going 00:02:17.150 --> 00:02:19.849 to talk about today is just gratitude and why 00:02:19.849 --> 00:02:22.330 don't we have gratitude sometimes and why do 00:02:22.330 --> 00:02:24.610 we beat ourselves up about it because sometimes 00:02:24.610 --> 00:02:29.560 we just have a lot going on, right? So... So 00:02:29.560 --> 00:02:33.780 I'm so glad to be here. I was away, like I said, 00:02:33.780 --> 00:02:35.580 I went on the DR Mission trip this summer, and 00:02:35.580 --> 00:02:37.539 I was away a lot this summer with my different 00:02:37.539 --> 00:02:40.800 kids playing travel sports, and we just had the 00:02:40.800 --> 00:02:43.360 Compassion Weekend last weekend, and what an 00:02:43.360 --> 00:02:46.539 amazing, amazing, amazing day. You guys, everybody 00:02:46.539 --> 00:02:50.099 who ran, thank you so much. Thank you so much 00:02:50.099 --> 00:02:52.680 for all the volunteers. Yeah, clap for yourselves. 00:02:52.740 --> 00:02:55.979 Thank you so much for all the Compassion kids 00:02:55.979 --> 00:02:58.419 that were sponsored. Thank you for opening your 00:02:58.419 --> 00:03:01.110 hearts. that weekend and going out and worshiping. 00:03:01.110 --> 00:03:03.289 It was an amazing worship night. So I'm just 00:03:03.289 --> 00:03:06.210 so thankful for that. But sometimes it's so hard 00:03:06.210 --> 00:03:07.830 to be thankful, like I said, because we carry 00:03:07.830 --> 00:03:12.370 too many things around. And so I really want 00:03:12.370 --> 00:03:14.669 to explore the topic today. Why can't I be grateful? 00:03:14.969 --> 00:03:17.469 And sometimes we struggle with not being grateful 00:03:17.469 --> 00:03:19.789 because there's a clue that something's wrong 00:03:19.789 --> 00:03:21.830 in our lives, right? There's a stress or concern 00:03:21.830 --> 00:03:24.590 we have. So say when we were... If we were in 00:03:24.590 --> 00:03:26.449 the jungle, which I know we're not in the jungle, 00:03:26.569 --> 00:03:30.069 and there's a puma running after us, right? We're 00:03:30.069 --> 00:03:31.129 going to be stressed. You're not going to be 00:03:31.129 --> 00:03:33.150 grateful, like, thank you, God, for the amazing 00:03:33.150 --> 00:03:35.289 plants and trees and all this when you're running 00:03:35.289 --> 00:03:38.219 from a deadly cat. right? You're not going to 00:03:38.219 --> 00:03:40.240 be grateful. So sometimes in our lives, we've 00:03:40.240 --> 00:03:42.219 got so much going on. We've taken on so many 00:03:42.219 --> 00:03:44.780 stresses and so many anxieties, and we're running. 00:03:44.780 --> 00:03:46.819 We're in a difficult situation, so it's hard 00:03:46.819 --> 00:03:49.400 to be grateful because we're in that stress, 00:03:49.580 --> 00:03:52.300 right? And so we have to recognize that I'm stressed 00:03:52.300 --> 00:03:54.360 out right now. I'm running from this thing in 00:03:54.360 --> 00:03:56.400 my life, or something's attacking me right now, 00:03:56.479 --> 00:03:59.159 and I need to stop, and I need to pray. I need 00:03:59.159 --> 00:04:02.900 to put it all down, and then I can embrace gratitude, 00:04:03.020 --> 00:04:04.500 right? Because we don't want to put a gratitude. 00:04:05.129 --> 00:04:06.830 Love, remind ourselves, put a gratitude on like 00:04:06.830 --> 00:04:08.650 a hat. But a gratitude should be something that 00:04:08.650 --> 00:04:10.789 just comes out of our spirits. It should be something 00:04:10.789 --> 00:04:13.069 that's natural, that just comes from our relationship 00:04:13.069 --> 00:04:15.509 with God, right? And then sometimes you have 00:04:15.509 --> 00:04:17.910 an unmet physical or emotional need that makes 00:04:17.910 --> 00:04:20.189 you feel ungrateful. Like sometimes I'm like, 00:04:20.250 --> 00:04:25.069 why am I so hangry, right? I forgot to eat. I'm 00:04:25.069 --> 00:04:27.110 hangry. I get in a fight with Chris. I get in 00:04:27.110 --> 00:04:29.560 a fight with my kids because I'm. I haven't eaten, 00:04:29.660 --> 00:04:31.560 right? Or I haven't taken a drink of water. Or 00:04:31.560 --> 00:04:33.220 I haven't taken the time to go to the bathroom. 00:04:33.759 --> 00:04:35.379 Does anybody ever do that? I don't know. You 00:04:35.379 --> 00:04:38.420 moms? Like, I can pee. I can hold pee for hours, 00:04:38.560 --> 00:04:40.829 people. I mean, I got up here for a service, 00:04:40.870 --> 00:04:42.189 and I had to pee. I still think I haven't gone 00:04:42.189 --> 00:04:44.930 yet. So if I run off the stage fast, you guys 00:04:44.930 --> 00:04:46.949 are like, I'm going to the bathroom, so it's 00:04:46.949 --> 00:04:49.069 no big deal. But we just are in a stressful situation, 00:04:49.449 --> 00:04:51.170 or we need to take care of our emotional needs. 00:04:51.230 --> 00:04:54.410 You need to know what makes you tick. You need 00:04:54.410 --> 00:04:56.870 to know what brings you life and joy, and you 00:04:56.870 --> 00:04:59.470 need to give yourself permission to step away. 00:05:00.600 --> 00:05:02.779 Spend time with God and take a breath, right? 00:05:02.899 --> 00:05:05.180 This is a beautiful, beautiful, beautiful fall 00:05:05.180 --> 00:05:08.100 day. So hopefully after you come in here and 00:05:08.100 --> 00:05:09.360 you eat your lunch and you take care of your 00:05:09.360 --> 00:05:11.180 physical needs, you'll go out in nature and take 00:05:11.180 --> 00:05:13.199 care of your spiritual needs, right? Go out and 00:05:13.199 --> 00:05:16.500 see the beautiful environment that we have. But 00:05:16.500 --> 00:05:18.660 you also may be like a child. So part of us, 00:05:18.699 --> 00:05:20.839 I think, we become like children, right? Children 00:05:20.839 --> 00:05:23.519 don't... They don't recognize when they're fed, 00:05:23.600 --> 00:05:26.399 when we put the food on the table after church, 00:05:26.819 --> 00:05:28.259 they don't recognize we had to go to the grocery 00:05:28.259 --> 00:05:30.839 store, we had to shop, we had to work a job to 00:05:30.839 --> 00:05:32.639 pay for that, right? We had to go and get gas 00:05:32.639 --> 00:05:34.019 to put in our car to go to the grocery store 00:05:34.019 --> 00:05:35.379 to pay for it. We had to chop the vegetables, 00:05:35.500 --> 00:05:37.259 we had to do this, right? They just see the food 00:05:37.259 --> 00:05:40.120 on the table. And they say, like, you're my mom, 00:05:40.199 --> 00:05:42.660 you're my dad, meet my needs, right? I'm hungry. 00:05:43.290 --> 00:05:45.069 I need food. And if you're like Phoenix, you'll 00:05:45.069 --> 00:05:46.810 just keep eating and eating and eating and eating 00:05:46.810 --> 00:05:49.110 and eating. Like, we had, like, shrimp last night 00:05:49.110 --> 00:05:51.209 with this, and then he had fries, and he had 00:05:51.209 --> 00:05:52.750 this, and he was hungry after dinner, so he had 00:05:52.750 --> 00:05:54.930 to do an apple and then yogurt. Then I was like, 00:05:54.949 --> 00:05:58.649 no, you're cut off, right? Sometimes we can be 00:05:58.649 --> 00:06:01.389 like that, right? And so they don't understand 00:06:01.389 --> 00:06:03.629 that they're just hungry and they're just enjoying 00:06:03.629 --> 00:06:06.610 eating. So this first step in gratitude is being 00:06:06.610 --> 00:06:11.149 come conscious that we have so much to be grateful 00:06:11.149 --> 00:06:13.959 for. We have so much to be grateful for, and 00:06:13.959 --> 00:06:15.939 sometimes we don't recognize. We live in America, 00:06:16.040 --> 00:06:18.300 and we have plenty of food and water sometimes. 00:06:18.439 --> 00:06:20.420 Some of us don't, right? I'm not saying everybody 00:06:20.420 --> 00:06:24.079 does, but that's why I sponsor my Compassion 00:06:24.079 --> 00:06:26.920 Children, right? Because I know that I can't 00:06:26.920 --> 00:06:30.240 change the world. I can't feed everybody in Africa. 00:06:30.319 --> 00:06:32.439 I can't feed everybody around the world, but 00:06:32.439 --> 00:06:36.319 I can change the life of one person. Right? I 00:06:36.319 --> 00:06:38.000 can change the life of one family and I can speak 00:06:38.000 --> 00:06:39.699 into this kid's life and I can tell them how 00:06:39.699 --> 00:06:41.879 valuable they are and how much God loves them. 00:06:42.000 --> 00:06:43.959 And I can give them a little bit of extra food 00:06:43.959 --> 00:06:45.860 in their stomach so that they can learn about 00:06:45.860 --> 00:06:47.899 Jesus and they can grow and they can become, 00:06:48.139 --> 00:06:50.720 like Catherine talked about last week, a person 00:06:50.720 --> 00:06:53.420 that gets out of poverty, that's able to be successful 00:06:53.420 --> 00:06:55.860 because they know who they are and their value 00:06:55.860 --> 00:06:58.860 in God. And so I just, I'm so grateful that I 00:06:58.860 --> 00:07:01.579 have my two compassion kids. I have Mercy and 00:07:01.579 --> 00:07:04.699 I have Guadalupe. And it's so amazing if you 00:07:04.699 --> 00:07:07.279 don't... have a compassion child yet, they have 00:07:07.279 --> 00:07:09.579 an app. So all you have to do to write letters 00:07:09.579 --> 00:07:11.480 for them is write it in your app. They have a 00:07:11.480 --> 00:07:13.899 card you can write. And then I hadn't even written 00:07:13.899 --> 00:07:15.819 them since the spring. So I was feeling very 00:07:15.819 --> 00:07:18.360 guilty about that. So that was taking away my 00:07:18.360 --> 00:07:19.980 gratitude because sometimes guilt takes away 00:07:19.980 --> 00:07:22.379 gratitude. So yesterday I stopped and I just 00:07:22.379 --> 00:07:24.579 wrote them both a letter, did it on my phone, 00:07:24.620 --> 00:07:27.000 took like a couple minutes. downloaded all my 00:07:27.000 --> 00:07:28.680 pictures from the summer, sent him a bunch of 00:07:28.680 --> 00:07:31.040 pictures of the family, and prayed for him, right? 00:07:31.300 --> 00:07:34.120 It takes like 15 minutes, and you're blessing 00:07:34.120 --> 00:07:36.060 the life of somebody around the world. So thank 00:07:36.060 --> 00:07:38.639 you for those who have already sponsored, that 00:07:38.639 --> 00:07:40.899 have a child right now. If you didn't get a chance 00:07:40.899 --> 00:07:44.220 last week to sponsor a child, then we have the 00:07:44.220 --> 00:07:46.160 rest of the children out in the lobby if you 00:07:46.160 --> 00:07:49.879 want to do that too. So yeah, so that's amazing. 00:07:50.100 --> 00:07:53.339 So that makes me feel grateful. So according 00:07:53.339 --> 00:07:56.040 to Mark, T. Mitchell, professor of political 00:07:56.040 --> 00:07:59.060 science at Patrick McHenry College in Virginia, 00:07:59.279 --> 00:08:03.240 gratitude is born out of humility, for it acknowledges 00:08:03.240 --> 00:08:06.379 the giftedness of creation and the benevolence 00:08:06.379 --> 00:08:09.399 of a creator. This recognition gives birth to 00:08:09.399 --> 00:08:11.519 acts marked by attention and responsibility. 00:08:12.779 --> 00:08:15.300 Ingratitude, on the other hand, is marked by 00:08:15.300 --> 00:08:18.420 hubris, which denies the gift and always leads 00:08:18.420 --> 00:08:21.319 to inattention, irresponsibility, and abuse. 00:08:22.699 --> 00:08:26.480 So I wanted to learn why aren't we grateful? 00:08:26.660 --> 00:08:29.160 Why am I not grateful at times? I know that there's 00:08:29.160 --> 00:08:31.339 things that we just talked about. So I was led 00:08:31.339 --> 00:08:34.179 to the Bible, and I was led to the story of the 00:08:34.179 --> 00:08:36.740 Israelites coming out of slavery in Egypt. So 00:08:36.740 --> 00:08:38.179 we're going to read that together, and we're 00:08:38.179 --> 00:08:40.580 just going to explore the things we struggle 00:08:40.580 --> 00:08:42.960 with as humans and the things that God wants 00:08:42.960 --> 00:08:45.320 to remind us that he's going to provide for us. 00:08:45.559 --> 00:08:49.779 So point one is we are entitled, and entitled 00:08:49.779 --> 00:08:54.100 means selfish and full of pride. God rescues 00:08:54.100 --> 00:08:58.279 us, though, and leads us into new life. God rescues 00:08:58.279 --> 00:09:00.659 us and leads us into new life. Even though we're 00:09:00.659 --> 00:09:04.100 selfish, entitled, and full of pride, God doesn't 00:09:04.100 --> 00:09:06.639 care. He loves us anyway. And he wants to rescue 00:09:06.639 --> 00:09:09.080 us and lead us out of slavery, out of ourselves, 00:09:09.299 --> 00:09:12.700 into new life. So let's read Exodus 13, 17 through 00:09:12.700 --> 00:09:15.279 18. It says, when Pharaoh finally let the people 00:09:15.279 --> 00:09:18.080 go, God did not lead them along the main road 00:09:18.080 --> 00:09:20.679 that runs through the Philistine territory, even 00:09:20.679 --> 00:09:22.399 though that was the shortest route to the promised 00:09:22.399 --> 00:09:25.620 land. God said, if the people are faced with 00:09:25.620 --> 00:09:27.639 a battle, they might change their minds and return 00:09:27.639 --> 00:09:30.860 to Egypt. So God led them in a roundabout way 00:09:30.860 --> 00:09:35.000 through the wilderness towards the Red Sea. And 00:09:35.000 --> 00:09:37.279 I want to propose to you today that I believe 00:09:37.279 --> 00:09:40.340 that God led the Israelites through the wilderness 00:09:40.340 --> 00:09:43.159 in a roundabout route because they were not ready 00:09:43.159 --> 00:09:45.820 for the promised land. The Israelites were not 00:09:45.820 --> 00:09:49.580 ready. for the promised land. Sometimes we have 00:09:49.580 --> 00:09:52.139 to go through the wilderness to experience the 00:09:52.139 --> 00:09:55.129 promised land. right? And I don't know about 00:09:55.129 --> 00:09:58.450 you, but I hate, hate, hate wasting time, right? 00:09:58.669 --> 00:10:00.789 And I like to put in all my different maps. So 00:10:00.789 --> 00:10:02.230 when Chris and I go on a thing, we're like, okay, 00:10:02.250 --> 00:10:04.230 what's the fast track? Did you touch Waze? Did 00:10:04.230 --> 00:10:06.070 you check this? Did you check this? Oh, there's 00:10:06.070 --> 00:10:08.190 traffic here. We'll avoid it, right? And so I 00:10:08.190 --> 00:10:10.110 know that if I was one of those Israelites, I'd 00:10:10.110 --> 00:10:12.750 be like, where are we going? Why are we not going 00:10:12.750 --> 00:10:15.289 through this area in the Sinai Peninsula and 00:10:15.289 --> 00:10:17.690 up over here? Like, why are you doing this, God, 00:10:17.809 --> 00:10:20.570 right? We want God to take us on a direct route 00:10:20.570 --> 00:10:23.159 somewhere. We don't want to go through the wilderness. 00:10:23.340 --> 00:10:26.740 We don't want to experience anything else besides 00:10:26.740 --> 00:10:30.679 the promised land, right? And so God says, I 00:10:30.679 --> 00:10:33.080 know what's best. I saved you, and I'm in control. 00:10:33.259 --> 00:10:35.179 So if you've given your life to Jesus, if you 00:10:35.179 --> 00:10:36.720 said, okay, God, you're going to take the steering 00:10:36.720 --> 00:10:39.059 wheel in my life, and I'm going to trust you 00:10:39.059 --> 00:10:41.919 for the rest of my life, we, as humans, keep 00:10:41.919 --> 00:10:44.620 grabbing the wheel back. And I can imagine this 00:10:44.620 --> 00:10:46.399 week I was thinking about it, me just grabbing 00:10:46.399 --> 00:10:48.120 the wheel, Chris is driving, and I'm just grabbing 00:10:48.120 --> 00:10:49.000 the wheel and saying, no, we're going to go in 00:10:49.000 --> 00:10:50.759 this direction, and we're going to go in this 00:10:50.759 --> 00:10:53.039 direction. And I think that's what we do as people 00:10:53.039 --> 00:10:55.279 is we take the steering wheel from God, who is 00:10:55.279 --> 00:10:56.980 directing our life. We're sitting in the passenger 00:10:56.980 --> 00:10:58.159 seat, and all of a sudden I'm like, eh, this 00:10:58.159 --> 00:10:59.980 isn't the fastest route. Hop over. I'm going 00:10:59.980 --> 00:11:01.919 to get in the driver's seat, right? I don't like 00:11:01.919 --> 00:11:03.279 the way this is going. God, I don't like this 00:11:03.279 --> 00:11:05.740 job here. Hey, God, I don't like, I don't trust 00:11:05.740 --> 00:11:08.299 you, right? Because we're entitled. We think 00:11:08.299 --> 00:11:11.919 we deserve the best. We deserve to, you know, 00:11:11.960 --> 00:11:15.860 we deserve it. And so, but God says, you know 00:11:15.860 --> 00:11:18.500 what? I love you, and I'm going to, and trust 00:11:18.500 --> 00:11:21.419 me. Trust me, I know what you mean. Philippians 00:11:21.419 --> 00:11:24.659 2, 3 through 4 says, don't be selfish and try 00:11:24.659 --> 00:11:27.200 to impress others. Be humble. Thinking of others 00:11:27.200 --> 00:11:29.559 is better than yourselves. Do not look out for 00:11:29.559 --> 00:11:31.860 your own interests, but take interest in others 00:11:31.860 --> 00:11:34.620 too. Because, you guys, maybe it's not about 00:11:34.620 --> 00:11:40.279 you. Maybe it's not about you. Maybe it's about 00:11:40.279 --> 00:11:43.259 somebody else. Maybe it's about somebody else. 00:11:43.279 --> 00:11:45.590 I know in my life I get... frustrated with myself. 00:11:45.690 --> 00:11:48.029 I start yelling. Why did I? I can't find the 00:11:48.029 --> 00:11:50.450 keys. Where are they at? I'm late. Get in here, 00:11:50.490 --> 00:11:52.009 Phoenix. Get on your shoes. I told you to get 00:11:52.009 --> 00:11:53.350 on your shoes a hundred times. Why are you not 00:11:53.350 --> 00:11:55.070 getting on your shoes? Here's your shoes. Go 00:11:55.070 --> 00:11:56.710 back. You're still on your shoes. The dogs pee. 00:11:56.870 --> 00:12:00.769 Clean the car. I'm late, right? I'm embarrassed. 00:12:01.250 --> 00:12:03.970 I'm full of pride, right? But God, maybe it's 00:12:03.970 --> 00:12:06.429 not about me. Maybe it was about Phoenix needed 00:12:06.429 --> 00:12:08.669 an extra minute to get his shoes on. Maybe it 00:12:08.669 --> 00:12:10.269 was about the person I was going to meet in the 00:12:10.269 --> 00:12:13.149 grocery store line because I was late. Maybe 00:12:13.149 --> 00:12:15.799 it was about God being in control of my life 00:12:15.799 --> 00:12:18.139 and not me being so perfect. Maybe God is saying, 00:12:18.179 --> 00:12:20.659 Jessica, you're not in control, so quit pretending 00:12:20.659 --> 00:12:24.840 anyway. Right? Right? And so we need to submit 00:12:24.840 --> 00:12:27.960 our lives to God every day so that we say, God, 00:12:28.100 --> 00:12:30.019 you're in control. Right? You're in control. 00:12:30.080 --> 00:12:32.840 Whatever happens today, God, whether it's good 00:12:32.840 --> 00:12:36.220 or it's bad, if it's beautiful or it's ugly, 00:12:36.360 --> 00:12:38.580 God, you're in control of it. Right? Because 00:12:38.580 --> 00:12:40.820 it's not about me. It's about God. You, it's 00:12:40.820 --> 00:12:42.259 about the person I'm going to encounter because 00:12:42.259 --> 00:12:44.899 they need the peace that comes from God. They 00:12:44.899 --> 00:12:46.980 don't need Jessica to be perfect. They just need 00:12:46.980 --> 00:12:50.740 the love of Jesus in their life, right? Proverbs 00:12:50.740 --> 00:12:53.840 16, 18 says, pride goes before destruction and 00:12:53.840 --> 00:12:56.220 haughtiness before the fall. And, you know, I've 00:12:56.220 --> 00:12:57.879 been really trying to work on my pride. It was 00:12:57.879 --> 00:12:59.360 one of those things, like last year, I'm like, 00:12:59.379 --> 00:13:01.000 okay, I need to work on my pride because every 00:13:01.000 --> 00:13:02.779 time my husband and I would get in a fight, it's 00:13:02.779 --> 00:13:05.000 like, what? He's like, Jessica, why do you need 00:13:05.000 --> 00:13:07.059 to know? Like, what's your issue? Do you not 00:13:07.059 --> 00:13:08.679 trust me? I'm like, no, I trust you. I just want 00:13:08.679 --> 00:13:11.250 to be in control. I just want to know. Because 00:13:11.250 --> 00:13:13.070 if somebody asks me and if I don't know, then 00:13:13.070 --> 00:13:15.889 I look stupid, right? And so it's about our pride, 00:13:16.070 --> 00:13:18.309 right? It's not about trusting my husband, trusting 00:13:18.309 --> 00:13:21.809 the process. I want to be in control. I want 00:13:21.809 --> 00:13:23.470 to look like I have it together. And I kind of 00:13:23.470 --> 00:13:25.669 keep laying it down like, no, it's not about 00:13:25.669 --> 00:13:27.350 this. I'm going to simplify, simplify. But as 00:13:27.350 --> 00:13:29.210 soon as I go out, like, oh, man, I've got to 00:13:29.210 --> 00:13:31.309 go to Florida now. And I've got to meet Lily's 00:13:31.309 --> 00:13:32.730 new coach and all of her stuff. So I've got to 00:13:32.730 --> 00:13:34.529 look good, right? I've got to put on my mask. 00:13:34.549 --> 00:13:36.649 I've got to dress up because I don't think these 00:13:36.649 --> 00:13:38.850 people are going to accept me for who I am, right? 00:13:39.549 --> 00:13:41.250 The Jessica that wears the sweatpants and runs 00:13:41.250 --> 00:13:43.929 around and wears a hat most days, right? I need 00:13:43.929 --> 00:13:45.750 to look good and have it together for people 00:13:45.750 --> 00:13:48.990 to accept me. But that's not what God says. I 00:13:48.990 --> 00:13:51.090 need somebody approachable, full of love and 00:13:51.090 --> 00:13:53.269 joy and peace. I need to put on the fruit of 00:13:53.269 --> 00:13:55.190 the Spirit, not worry about what I'm wearing, 00:13:55.450 --> 00:14:00.990 right? Yeah. So point two, we are afraid and 00:14:00.990 --> 00:14:05.110 we have unrealistic expectations. But guess what? 00:14:05.169 --> 00:14:08.440 God fights our battles. God fights our battles. 00:14:08.500 --> 00:14:12.080 We don't have to live in fear anymore because 00:14:12.080 --> 00:14:17.759 God fights our battles. But we, as humans, don't 00:14:17.759 --> 00:14:20.100 believe that. Listen to what happened in Exodus. 00:14:20.320 --> 00:14:24.039 Exodus 14, 13 through 14 says, but Moses told 00:14:24.039 --> 00:14:26.659 the people, don't be afraid. Just stand still 00:14:26.659 --> 00:14:30.580 and watch. The Lord will rescue you today. The 00:14:30.580 --> 00:14:32.899 Egyptians you see today will never be seen again. 00:14:32.980 --> 00:14:36.320 The Lord himself will fight for you. Just stay 00:14:36.320 --> 00:14:40.320 calm. Just stay calm. And it's funny, the New 00:14:40.320 --> 00:14:42.720 Living Translation there, it kind of is a trigger 00:14:42.720 --> 00:14:45.799 word for me. I don't know. Just stay calm. Because 00:14:45.799 --> 00:14:48.299 when my husband tells me just to chill or relax 00:14:48.299 --> 00:14:50.799 when I'm upset, he's like, just chill, just relax. 00:14:50.899 --> 00:14:53.659 It's going to be okay. I'm like, don't tell me 00:14:53.659 --> 00:14:56.639 to relax or chill. I can be upset if I want to 00:14:56.639 --> 00:14:58.899 be upset because this is it. You know, it just 00:14:58.899 --> 00:15:01.120 goes. So I'm like, how can the Bible put a trigger 00:15:01.120 --> 00:15:06.029 word in there for me? Stay calm. So maybe the 00:15:06.029 --> 00:15:08.289 Bible is telling me I need to stay calm. Maybe 00:15:08.289 --> 00:15:11.169 my husband understands that this too will pass, 00:15:11.450 --> 00:15:14.210 right? Sometimes the things we get upset about 00:15:14.210 --> 00:15:16.549 or we want to go off about are things that God 00:15:16.549 --> 00:15:18.409 wants to take care of or handle in a completely 00:15:18.409 --> 00:15:20.809 different way, right? And sometimes we need to 00:15:20.809 --> 00:15:22.990 receive from somebody that says, that loves us, 00:15:23.029 --> 00:15:25.269 just chill. Just chill. It's going to be okay. 00:15:26.069 --> 00:15:28.110 I asked him to use stay calm because it's in 00:15:28.110 --> 00:15:30.309 the Bible. So I'll see if he changes his word. 00:15:30.409 --> 00:15:32.629 But you know what? I'm from Williamsport. I don't 00:15:32.629 --> 00:15:34.090 know if anybody else is from Williamsport. So 00:15:34.090 --> 00:15:36.070 I'm in between a river rat and a wildcat. So 00:15:36.070 --> 00:15:38.549 I don't like to chill. Yeah, there you go. Let's 00:15:38.549 --> 00:15:40.529 go, Williamsport. So I'm just like, you know, 00:15:40.549 --> 00:15:42.710 I got the wildcat fighter and I'm the river rat. 00:15:42.769 --> 00:15:44.710 So I'm just like, no, I'm going to get this done, 00:15:44.750 --> 00:15:47.389 you know? And so sometimes where we come from, 00:15:47.409 --> 00:15:50.210 our culture and our family, you know, I want 00:15:50.210 --> 00:15:52.269 to get it done because I can do it. I can do 00:15:52.269 --> 00:15:56.639 it. I can do it. and I can make you submit, and 00:15:56.639 --> 00:15:58.940 I can make you like me, right? But maybe that's 00:15:58.940 --> 00:16:00.940 not what God wants. Maybe that's not what God 00:16:00.940 --> 00:16:04.820 wants. Isaiah 41 through 10 says, Do not be afraid, 00:16:05.039 --> 00:16:07.720 for I'm with you. Don't be discouraged, for I'm 00:16:07.720 --> 00:16:09.940 your God. I will strengthen you and help you. 00:16:09.980 --> 00:16:13.399 I will hold you up with my victorious hand. And, 00:16:13.440 --> 00:16:15.539 you know, I struggle with fear a lot, and I was 00:16:15.539 --> 00:16:18.080 trying to figure out with God, like, when did 00:16:18.080 --> 00:16:21.340 my... When did my fear start? And I was praying 00:16:21.340 --> 00:16:23.019 about it, and God showed me, like, when you were 00:16:23.019 --> 00:16:25.519 a kid, you were afraid. Like, when you're a kid, 00:16:25.600 --> 00:16:28.220 you just want to please everybody. And I wanted 00:16:28.220 --> 00:16:30.139 to make sure everybody was happy, and I was getting 00:16:30.139 --> 00:16:32.220 it right and being perfect. I mean, they used 00:16:32.220 --> 00:16:34.000 to shame you in school. I don't know about you 00:16:34.000 --> 00:16:35.460 guys, but they would shame you in school if you 00:16:35.460 --> 00:16:36.860 didn't get the answer correct. You would read 00:16:36.860 --> 00:16:39.620 out loud, and kids would laugh at you, right? 00:16:40.299 --> 00:16:41.980 And, like, I wasn't like Chris. Chris had to 00:16:41.980 --> 00:16:43.600 go out. He actually had to go out in the hallway 00:16:43.600 --> 00:16:45.200 and read because he didn't know how to read, 00:16:45.299 --> 00:16:47.659 right? So I didn't want to go out in the hallway. 00:16:48.519 --> 00:16:51.240 But he's like, he's amazing now, right? So that 00:16:51.240 --> 00:16:54.139 obviously is great. But the thing is, in school, 00:16:54.159 --> 00:16:57.559 they used to just don't stand out. Don't make 00:16:57.559 --> 00:17:00.240 up a scene, right? Do everything right. Your 00:17:00.240 --> 00:17:02.700 parents will like you. Don't mess up. And you're 00:17:02.700 --> 00:17:04.099 constantly teaching your kids. You're trying 00:17:04.099 --> 00:17:06.000 to teach everybody to be perfect. And so that's 00:17:06.000 --> 00:17:08.779 instilling fear. I can't be accepted if I mess 00:17:08.779 --> 00:17:11.339 up. I can't be accepted if I trip or fall or 00:17:11.339 --> 00:17:13.619 if I spell this word incorrectly or if my coloring 00:17:13.619 --> 00:17:15.980 page doesn't look good as my neighbor's. You're 00:17:15.980 --> 00:17:18.359 not a good artist, right? But that's not the 00:17:18.359 --> 00:17:21.440 truth. That's not how God sees you. So we get 00:17:21.440 --> 00:17:23.279 afraid because we find our identity in other 00:17:23.279 --> 00:17:26.339 things and not in Jesus. Because that's not what 00:17:26.339 --> 00:17:29.619 he says. He says, fear not. I am with you always. 00:17:30.160 --> 00:17:32.680 I will never leave you or forsake you. I'm going 00:17:32.680 --> 00:17:35.480 to be with you, even in the desert, even in the 00:17:35.480 --> 00:17:37.480 wilderness. He's a God that goes with his people. 00:17:37.559 --> 00:17:39.700 He doesn't send them out alone. He goes with 00:17:39.700 --> 00:17:44.400 them. So we have nothing to fear. John 16, 33 00:17:44.400 --> 00:17:46.579 says, I have told you this so you may have peace 00:17:46.579 --> 00:17:49.160 within me. Here on earth you're going to have 00:17:49.160 --> 00:17:52.099 many trials and sorrows, but take heart because 00:17:52.099 --> 00:17:56.730 I have overcome the world. And so what we have 00:17:56.730 --> 00:17:58.309 to do is we have to accept that in the world 00:17:58.309 --> 00:17:59.789 we're going to have troubles. We're going to 00:17:59.789 --> 00:18:01.549 have sorrows. Bad things are going to happen. 00:18:01.589 --> 00:18:04.430 We can't fix it. We can't make it perfect. I 00:18:04.430 --> 00:18:06.829 know I would like to. I was like, another part 00:18:06.829 --> 00:18:08.630 when I started to become fearful is when I had 00:18:08.630 --> 00:18:11.289 kids, right? Okay, I can make a huge bubble around 00:18:11.289 --> 00:18:13.970 them and protect them, right? I can raise our 00:18:13.970 --> 00:18:15.769 own water. We can live here. We can stay protected. 00:18:16.809 --> 00:18:19.470 But no, you can't protect your kids from everything. 00:18:19.829 --> 00:18:22.250 They're going to get sick. Bad things are going 00:18:22.250 --> 00:18:24.589 to happen. People are going to be mean some days. 00:18:25.569 --> 00:18:29.069 We can't protect them. There's disease, there's 00:18:29.069 --> 00:18:30.910 sickness, there's poverty. There's all these 00:18:30.910 --> 00:18:34.789 things in the world that make me so sad. But 00:18:34.789 --> 00:18:38.869 be of good cheer, Jessica. I have overcome the 00:18:38.869 --> 00:18:42.410 world. I was here. I experienced rejection. I 00:18:42.410 --> 00:18:46.250 experienced heartache and pain. I experienced 00:18:46.250 --> 00:18:48.490 friendships, and I experienced loss, and I experienced 00:18:48.490 --> 00:18:52.430 grief, and I cried. And that's what life's about. 00:18:53.509 --> 00:18:56.430 It's not always about the good times. It's about 00:18:56.430 --> 00:18:59.170 finding God in the good times. It's about holding 00:18:59.170 --> 00:19:02.730 on to people you love in the hard times, right? 00:19:03.150 --> 00:19:05.990 We can't make this world perfect, but we can 00:19:05.990 --> 00:19:08.690 accept that God is taking care of us, and all 00:19:08.690 --> 00:19:10.769 things work together for good for those who love 00:19:10.769 --> 00:19:12.369 God and are called according to his purpose. 00:19:13.259 --> 00:19:16.480 So we need to normalize suffering. We're all 00:19:16.480 --> 00:19:18.220 going to suffer. We're all going to go through 00:19:18.220 --> 00:19:20.460 something someday, right? And when your friend's 00:19:20.460 --> 00:19:23.559 going through it, be there for them. You know, 00:19:23.579 --> 00:19:25.799 be there for them. Some days I'm going to have 00:19:25.799 --> 00:19:27.359 good days. Some days I'm going to have bad days. 00:19:27.420 --> 00:19:29.220 But God's with me every day. And sometimes I 00:19:29.220 --> 00:19:31.140 need to call Christy. Or sometimes I need to 00:19:31.140 --> 00:19:33.359 call Scott. Or sometimes I need to call my mom 00:19:33.359 --> 00:19:36.180 or my dad, right? And you need other people. 00:19:36.440 --> 00:19:38.359 I know on Friday I was just calling whoever would 00:19:38.359 --> 00:19:41.019 answer so they would pray for me. Because I was 00:19:41.019 --> 00:19:42.799 so afraid because I'm like, oh, no, I don't have 00:19:42.799 --> 00:19:45.099 this. But, God, you've got it. I know God had 00:19:45.099 --> 00:19:48.019 it. I just didn't know what it was. But so you 00:19:48.019 --> 00:19:52.400 just need other people, right? Point three, we 00:19:52.400 --> 00:19:56.180 complain and are discontent, but God provides 00:19:56.180 --> 00:20:01.029 our needs. God provides our needs. Exodus 15, 00:20:01.349 --> 00:20:03.970 24 through 25 says, Then the people complained 00:20:03.970 --> 00:20:07.089 and turned against Moses. He's getting them out 00:20:07.089 --> 00:20:09.170 of Egypt. He's getting them out of slavery. But 00:20:09.170 --> 00:20:10.349 guess what they're saying? What are we going 00:20:10.349 --> 00:20:13.329 to drink? They demanded. So Moses cried out for 00:20:13.329 --> 00:20:15.609 the Lord for help. And then the Lord showed him 00:20:15.609 --> 00:20:17.750 a piece of wood, and Moses threw it in the water, 00:20:17.849 --> 00:20:22.049 and this made the water good to drink. God had 00:20:22.049 --> 00:20:24.849 a plan. God knew he wanted the people to rely 00:20:24.849 --> 00:20:27.569 on him, not on what they had around them, right? 00:20:27.789 --> 00:20:30.150 Sometimes we get so used to, like, turning on 00:20:30.150 --> 00:20:32.410 the tap water, right? And then you're like, or 00:20:32.410 --> 00:20:34.589 filtered water, I'm sorry, filtered bottled water, 00:20:34.710 --> 00:20:36.529 and our filter's broken, and we don't have any 00:20:36.529 --> 00:20:38.809 water to drink, except for the water at the top 00:20:38.809 --> 00:20:41.150 that's already been tested by somebody. You know, 00:20:41.170 --> 00:20:46.410 we were blessed. We're so blessed. We're so blessed 00:20:46.410 --> 00:20:49.130 with water. And so these people needed water. 00:20:49.269 --> 00:20:51.829 So they had a legitimate complaint. But they 00:20:51.829 --> 00:20:54.109 didn't trust that God was going to do it, right? 00:20:54.369 --> 00:20:56.369 They didn't trust that God was going to do it. 00:20:56.450 --> 00:20:58.529 But God had a plan, and he wanted to show them, 00:20:58.589 --> 00:21:01.549 hey, you're not in control. You don't have to 00:21:01.549 --> 00:21:03.509 complain. I'm in control. I'm going to provide 00:21:03.509 --> 00:21:09.589 for you. 1 Thessalonians 5 .18 says, or actually 00:21:09.589 --> 00:21:12.089 I'm going to start with 16. Be joyful. Never 00:21:12.089 --> 00:21:14.890 stop praying. Be thankful in all circumstances, 00:21:15.130 --> 00:21:17.430 for this is God's will for you who belong to 00:21:17.430 --> 00:21:20.069 Christ Jesus. And I love this. That's why I added. 00:21:20.610 --> 00:21:23.750 17 in there, it says be joyful in 16, but in 00:21:23.750 --> 00:21:27.710 17 it says never stop praying. Never stop praying. 00:21:27.789 --> 00:21:30.009 And then it says be thankful in all circumstances. 00:21:30.569 --> 00:21:33.269 So what they're telling us is we can be thankful 00:21:33.269 --> 00:21:36.029 because we're praying. We can be joyful because 00:21:36.029 --> 00:21:38.490 we're praying. It doesn't say that everything 00:21:38.490 --> 00:21:40.670 is going to be good, but it says in all circumstances. 00:21:41.329 --> 00:21:44.650 Can you guys say all? All. All. Can you say it 00:21:44.650 --> 00:21:46.829 with a country? All? No, I'm just messing with 00:21:46.829 --> 00:21:49.410 you. Never mind. I'm just messing with you. In 00:21:49.410 --> 00:21:51.930 all circumstances, for this is God's will for 00:21:51.930 --> 00:21:55.009 you who belong to Christ Jesus. Hebrews 13 .5 00:21:55.009 --> 00:21:59.329 says, Don't love money. Be satisfied with what 00:21:59.329 --> 00:22:02.750 you have. For God said, I will never fail you. 00:22:02.769 --> 00:22:07.609 I will never abandon you. So God's with us in 00:22:07.609 --> 00:22:11.710 it. God's with us in it. Point four, we focus 00:22:11.710 --> 00:22:15.690 on our circumstances, but God blesses our life. 00:22:16.839 --> 00:22:19.900 We focus on our circumstances, but God's already 00:22:19.900 --> 00:22:25.960 blessed our lives. Exodus 16, 3 -4 says, If only 00:22:25.960 --> 00:22:29.180 the Lord had killed us back in Egypt, they moaned. 00:22:29.460 --> 00:22:31.779 There they sat around in pots filled with meat. 00:22:31.859 --> 00:22:34.039 We had meat, and we had bread, and we could get 00:22:34.039 --> 00:22:36.599 fat. But now you've brought us out into the wilderness 00:22:36.599 --> 00:22:41.400 to starve us all and be dead. Then the Lord said 00:22:41.400 --> 00:22:44.930 to Moses, Look. I'm going to rain down food from 00:22:44.930 --> 00:22:47.309 heaven for you each day that people can go out 00:22:47.309 --> 00:22:49.450 and pick up as much food as they need for that 00:22:49.450 --> 00:22:53.109 day. I will test them to see whether or not they 00:22:53.109 --> 00:22:57.109 follow my instructions. So God's providing food 00:22:57.109 --> 00:22:59.450 in the wilderness for them. They're complaining 00:22:59.450 --> 00:23:01.829 they were happy in slavery. God, why did I lose 00:23:01.829 --> 00:23:03.990 my job? Why did I lose my job? You hated your 00:23:03.990 --> 00:23:08.390 job. You asked God to take away your job. Your 00:23:08.390 --> 00:23:10.839 job, you didn't get your job, right? Done with 00:23:10.839 --> 00:23:13.220 your job. God's saying, I have another way. But 00:23:13.220 --> 00:23:16.059 we complain, right? Oh, I lost my job. I don't 00:23:16.059 --> 00:23:18.259 know what to do. Just going to sit around. No, 00:23:18.319 --> 00:23:22.089 God. is providing a way in the wilderness god 00:23:22.089 --> 00:23:24.130 is taking you out of slavery to something so 00:23:24.130 --> 00:23:26.529 you can have something better god closes the 00:23:26.529 --> 00:23:28.630 door one place he's going to open another door 00:23:28.630 --> 00:23:32.029 that wasn't the best option right god is trying 00:23:32.029 --> 00:23:34.309 to move in your behalf and all you see are the 00:23:34.309 --> 00:23:36.750 circumstances in front of you right we have this 00:23:36.750 --> 00:23:40.529 amazing dishwasher rhett when we probably like 00:23:40.529 --> 00:23:42.589 15 years ago 10 or 15 years ago i don't know 00:23:42.589 --> 00:23:45.210 when it was blessed me and chris our dishwasher 00:23:45.210 --> 00:23:48.069 was broken and blessed us with a new dishwasher 00:23:48.069 --> 00:23:51.559 right And so 15 years, lots of kids, six kids, 00:23:51.640 --> 00:23:54.759 lots of dishes later, our dishwasher leaks. Our 00:23:54.759 --> 00:23:56.480 dishwasher leaks. I fixed it a couple, it's probably 00:23:56.480 --> 00:23:58.400 because I fixed it. I fixed the hinge on the 00:23:58.400 --> 00:24:00.819 door and fixed all the racks and I kick it sometimes. 00:24:01.420 --> 00:24:04.759 But it's leaking now. It has a little drip, right? 00:24:04.920 --> 00:24:07.460 But it's a dishwasher, man. Like there were years 00:24:07.460 --> 00:24:09.680 I didn't have a dishwasher. My son is in Kenya 00:24:09.680 --> 00:24:11.779 right now. He has a pot. I don't even know if 00:24:11.779 --> 00:24:13.380 he has a pot to wash stuff, but he has a pot 00:24:13.380 --> 00:24:16.759 where he washes his. Dishes added, right? Many 00:24:16.759 --> 00:24:18.599 of you, some of you probably don't have dishwashers, 00:24:18.599 --> 00:24:20.079 and you're like, don't be complaining about your 00:24:20.079 --> 00:24:22.619 dishwasher, Jessica. But I have a rag, so every 00:24:22.619 --> 00:24:24.660 day I walk into the puddle of water, I'm like, 00:24:24.700 --> 00:24:27.019 yeah, I have a rag. So I take my rag, I don't 00:24:27.019 --> 00:24:28.619 have one in my bag right now, put it down on 00:24:28.619 --> 00:24:31.079 my feet, dishwasher fixed, and then I just keep 00:24:31.079 --> 00:24:34.339 walking, right? Right? I am blessed. I am blessed. 00:24:34.359 --> 00:24:36.160 We look at our circumstances and we complain, 00:24:36.420 --> 00:24:40.299 but I've got a dishwasher, right? I look at my 00:24:40.299 --> 00:24:42.180 husband and complain, but I have a husband, right? 00:24:43.000 --> 00:24:45.819 Right? I look at my kids, I'm like, oh, I prayed 00:24:45.819 --> 00:24:49.700 for you. Yes, yes. I look at my body, I'm like, 00:24:49.779 --> 00:24:52.619 oh, I have a body. Oh, I forgot to tell you guys, 00:24:52.640 --> 00:24:54.420 I'm hot today. I just wanted to let you know 00:24:54.420 --> 00:24:57.420 how hot I am because I'm 50, and I'm in my autumn 00:24:57.420 --> 00:25:00.420 season. No, listen, and I'm in menopause, so 00:25:00.420 --> 00:25:03.980 menopause is the new hot. So I'm supposed to 00:25:03.980 --> 00:25:06.119 be blessed. They're trying to split menopause, 00:25:06.119 --> 00:25:08.279 so it's not, you know, like a bad word anymore. 00:25:08.319 --> 00:25:11.410 So it's hot. So we're like hot. So I wanted to 00:25:11.410 --> 00:25:13.150 let you know, like, I'm in an autumn season of 00:25:13.150 --> 00:25:15.210 my life and I'm in menopause and I'm hot. So 00:25:15.210 --> 00:25:17.230 if I take off my coat, it's okay. But listen, 00:25:17.329 --> 00:25:19.730 I could say, I could complain about it, right? 00:25:20.130 --> 00:25:21.769 I could tell you all the things that go wrong 00:25:21.769 --> 00:25:23.589 with me every day. I could tell you the pile 00:25:23.589 --> 00:25:26.490 of supplements I take now and consume in the 00:25:26.490 --> 00:25:30.210 morning to combat my body who is in the autumn 00:25:30.210 --> 00:25:32.579 of life, right? So you've got to know what season 00:25:32.579 --> 00:25:34.980 you're in, and you've got to celebrate each season 00:25:34.980 --> 00:25:37.279 and the joys that come with it. Man, I loved 00:25:37.279 --> 00:25:39.579 it when I had little kids, and I was home by 00:25:39.579 --> 00:25:41.539 myself, but I would complain all the time. Man, 00:25:41.900 --> 00:25:44.720 I just want to get dressed and get a shower. 00:25:44.880 --> 00:25:46.619 Now I have kids, and they're all different ages, 00:25:46.859 --> 00:25:48.759 and I just want to get dressed and get a shower. 00:25:49.180 --> 00:25:51.059 You know what I mean? But it's just different 00:25:51.059 --> 00:25:52.940 in every season. So you know that there's going 00:25:52.940 --> 00:25:54.759 to be seasons of busyness. There's going to be 00:25:54.759 --> 00:25:57.220 seasons of stress and striving. But guess what? 00:25:57.259 --> 00:25:59.839 Now I can pay my bills. There were seasons I 00:25:59.839 --> 00:26:02.140 couldn't pay my bills, and I'd just pray, and 00:26:02.140 --> 00:26:04.319 God would bring checks in the mail, and I'd know 00:26:04.319 --> 00:26:07.420 God supplies all my needs. Now I can pay my bills, 00:26:07.480 --> 00:26:09.359 and I don't remember that God supplies all my 00:26:09.359 --> 00:26:12.740 needs, right? Right? You guys have all been there. 00:26:12.859 --> 00:26:15.240 Know what season you're in. Know what God's taking 00:26:15.240 --> 00:26:20.279 you through. Romans 8 .28 says, God causes everything 00:26:20.279 --> 00:26:22.460 to work together for good for those who love 00:26:22.460 --> 00:26:24.420 God and are called according to his purpose. 00:26:24.720 --> 00:26:26.460 So if you meet with me, I'll probably say that 00:26:26.460 --> 00:26:28.319 scripture to you over and over and over again 00:26:28.319 --> 00:26:31.700 because we know that God's a good God and he's 00:26:31.700 --> 00:26:33.960 going to work it out and he's with you in it, 00:26:34.180 --> 00:26:38.599 right? And he's cried and he's grieved and God's 00:26:38.599 --> 00:26:40.500 going to make it good because he's a good, good 00:26:40.500 --> 00:26:43.900 father and he loves you completely. 2 Corinthians 00:26:43.900 --> 00:26:47.119 12, 9 says, each time he says, my grace is all 00:26:47.119 --> 00:26:51.650 you need. My power works best in weakness. So 00:26:51.650 --> 00:26:54.130 now I'm glad to boast about my weaknesses so 00:26:54.130 --> 00:26:56.470 that the power of Christ may work through me. 00:26:56.970 --> 00:26:58.990 I don't know about you, but I'm boasting about 00:26:58.990 --> 00:27:02.130 my weaknesses, right? That's what gets rid of 00:27:02.130 --> 00:27:04.509 pride. Hey, confess your weaknesses. Be vulnerable. 00:27:04.809 --> 00:27:09.049 Be vulnerable. Embrace grace, right? Nobody wants 00:27:09.049 --> 00:27:11.549 a good Christian to tell them what to do. They 00:27:11.549 --> 00:27:13.829 want a grace -filled Christian that loves them 00:27:13.829 --> 00:27:16.130 where they are. They want somebody that comes 00:27:16.130 --> 00:27:19.190 alongside of them and listens to them and prays 00:27:19.190 --> 00:27:22.170 with them and is full of grace and love and mercy. 00:27:22.490 --> 00:27:24.670 And you can't embrace grace for somebody else 00:27:24.670 --> 00:27:27.210 if you've never embraced it for yourself. Quit 00:27:27.210 --> 00:27:29.890 trying to be perfect. Quit trying to have it 00:27:29.890 --> 00:27:31.690 all together. It's not going to work, people. 00:27:32.250 --> 00:27:34.710 It's not. You just got to embrace God's grace 00:27:34.710 --> 00:27:37.789 for you and laugh. Laugh at yourself. I remember 00:27:37.789 --> 00:27:39.690 there was a season in life I stopped laughing. 00:27:39.789 --> 00:27:41.089 And I was like, God, I want to start laughing 00:27:41.089 --> 00:27:43.549 again. And then all these... Crazy things started 00:27:43.549 --> 00:27:45.529 to happen to me, and I'm like, why am I? And 00:27:45.529 --> 00:27:48.230 I was like, oh, I asked to laugh again, so I 00:27:48.230 --> 00:27:49.910 guess I needed some goofy things to happen in 00:27:49.910 --> 00:27:52.309 my life, right? Or, you know, have a five -year 00:27:52.309 --> 00:27:54.869 -old, have a baby at 45, and then you start laughing 00:27:54.869 --> 00:27:59.250 too. So, yeah. But, yeah, embrace grace for yourself. 00:27:59.609 --> 00:28:02.650 Embrace grace for other people, right? So you 00:28:02.650 --> 00:28:04.750 have to extend the same love that you give to 00:28:04.750 --> 00:28:06.230 other people. You have to do that for yourself. 00:28:06.710 --> 00:28:09.789 Give yourself permission to take a break, to 00:28:09.789 --> 00:28:12.650 take a drink. to spend time with God in the morning. 00:28:13.109 --> 00:28:15.430 One of my friends just gave me a coloring book, 00:28:15.490 --> 00:28:17.410 and she said, what if you got up and just did 00:28:17.410 --> 00:28:23.509 nothing? I'm like, what? What if you just got 00:28:23.509 --> 00:28:28.589 up and you just colored? That's for losers. I 00:28:28.589 --> 00:28:31.829 would never do that. Just try it. So the last 00:28:31.829 --> 00:28:35.000 week I've been getting up and coloring. Because 00:28:35.000 --> 00:28:36.880 I can't just sit there. So I'm coloring. But 00:28:36.880 --> 00:28:39.119 it's been so freeing to color these affirmations 00:28:39.119 --> 00:28:41.559 that are saying, God's grace is sufficient for 00:28:41.559 --> 00:28:44.960 you. His power works best in weakness. Right? 00:28:45.099 --> 00:28:47.900 I'm coloring, as the deer pants forth streams 00:28:47.900 --> 00:28:50.740 of living water, so my soul pants for you, oh 00:28:50.740 --> 00:28:54.779 God. That's my favorite scripture. Just want 00:28:54.779 --> 00:28:58.160 to know the living God. And I want to give myself 00:28:58.160 --> 00:29:01.559 permission to know him and be known by him. And 00:29:01.559 --> 00:29:04.500 that only happens when we extend grace. to ourselves. 00:29:06.339 --> 00:29:09.940 Point five, we want to be in control, but God's 00:29:09.940 --> 00:29:14.339 in control. We want to be in control, but God's 00:29:14.339 --> 00:29:17.700 in control. Exodus 17, one through six says, 00:29:17.799 --> 00:29:20.059 quiet, Moses replied. Why are you complaining 00:29:20.059 --> 00:29:22.799 against me? Why are you testing the Lord? But 00:29:22.799 --> 00:29:24.940 tormented by thirst. There it is again, another 00:29:24.940 --> 00:29:27.559 need that the people had, right? And they're 00:29:27.559 --> 00:29:30.940 tormenting Moses, who's taken him out of Egypt, 00:29:31.000 --> 00:29:32.700 taken him out of slavery, right? But they still 00:29:32.700 --> 00:29:35.319 have needs. They continued to argue with Moses. 00:29:35.420 --> 00:29:37.240 Why did you bring us out to Egypt? Are you trying 00:29:37.240 --> 00:29:39.180 to kill us, our children and our livestock with 00:29:39.180 --> 00:29:41.359 thirst? Then Moses cried out to the Lord, what 00:29:41.359 --> 00:29:42.880 should I do with these people? What should I 00:29:42.880 --> 00:29:44.259 do with these kids? What should I do with this 00:29:44.259 --> 00:29:49.380 church? All these problems, right? But Moses 00:29:49.380 --> 00:29:52.539 goes to God. That's what he does. He's modeling 00:29:52.539 --> 00:29:56.859 that for us. He's got a huge responsibility here. 00:29:57.000 --> 00:29:58.940 But what does he do first? He goes to God and 00:29:58.940 --> 00:30:01.539 he says, God, I know you got it because I don't, 00:30:01.539 --> 00:30:04.619 right? And he says, walk out in front of the 00:30:04.619 --> 00:30:06.960 people, Moses. Take your staff, the one you used 00:30:06.960 --> 00:30:08.559 when you struck the water in the Nile, and call 00:30:08.559 --> 00:30:10.920 some of the elders of Israel to join you. I will 00:30:10.920 --> 00:30:12.740 stand before you on the rock of Mount Sinai. 00:30:12.740 --> 00:30:15.319 Strike the rock, and the water will come gushing 00:30:15.319 --> 00:30:17.400 out. Then the people will be able to drink. So 00:30:17.400 --> 00:30:21.079 Moses struck the rock, as he was told, and the 00:30:21.079 --> 00:30:25.539 water gushed out, and the elders looked on. God 00:30:25.539 --> 00:30:29.319 had a plan. Moses didn't know the plan. You don't 00:30:29.319 --> 00:30:30.819 know the plan every day that God has, right? 00:30:30.980 --> 00:30:32.839 And so how can you take care of the things around 00:30:32.839 --> 00:30:35.359 you, the people around you, all this stuff, if 00:30:35.359 --> 00:30:37.160 you haven't gone to God and said, God, what do 00:30:37.160 --> 00:30:39.779 you want me to do? Because we can do it in our 00:30:39.779 --> 00:30:41.059 own strength, but what happens when you're in 00:30:41.059 --> 00:30:43.180 a desert and there's no water around, there's 00:30:43.180 --> 00:30:44.779 nothing you can give? What happens when you've 00:30:44.779 --> 00:30:47.160 lost your job and you don't have water for your 00:30:47.160 --> 00:30:48.640 kids, right? What happens when you're homeless, 00:30:48.839 --> 00:30:53.440 right? But God's got a plan. God's got a plan. 00:30:53.740 --> 00:30:56.500 And he provides water out of this rock. And what 00:30:56.500 --> 00:30:58.759 I think it's saying here is sometimes in those 00:30:58.759 --> 00:31:00.779 hard situations when we feel like we're banging 00:31:00.779 --> 00:31:04.599 our head on the rock and we're praying for water, 00:31:04.660 --> 00:31:07.940 we're praying for something, right? And we cry 00:31:07.940 --> 00:31:10.720 out to God, he's going to provide for us. He's 00:31:10.720 --> 00:31:16.400 going to provide for us, right? It says, Proverbs 00:31:16.400 --> 00:31:19.700 19, 21 says, you can make many plans, but the 00:31:19.700 --> 00:31:23.849 Lord's plans will prevail. The Lord's plans were 00:31:23.849 --> 00:31:27.009 prevailed. Chris and I were reading the Bible 00:31:27.009 --> 00:31:29.089 in a year plan, and this is like our second or 00:31:29.089 --> 00:31:31.069 third year doing it. And every time we do it, 00:31:31.069 --> 00:31:34.549 I'm like, man, God's in control. God's in control. 00:31:34.609 --> 00:31:36.150 People think that they know what they're doing, 00:31:36.190 --> 00:31:39.750 but God's in control. So it doesn't matter, right? 00:31:40.569 --> 00:31:42.529 God wants to love me and pour his grace on me, 00:31:42.549 --> 00:31:44.769 and he wants the best for me, but God's in control. 00:31:45.369 --> 00:31:47.849 And so my job is just to get in his presence, 00:31:48.009 --> 00:31:50.750 to know what he's doing, to be his grace and 00:31:50.750 --> 00:31:52.849 mercy and strength to the world. They don't need 00:31:52.849 --> 00:31:57.410 Jessica to be in control, to hold all these things 00:31:57.410 --> 00:32:01.910 all the time, right? He's in control. But we 00:32:01.910 --> 00:32:03.309 want to be in control because it makes us feel 00:32:03.309 --> 00:32:08.150 safe. It says, Jeremiah 10, 23, it says, I know, 00:32:08.369 --> 00:32:12.309 Lord, that our lives are not our own. We are 00:32:12.309 --> 00:32:15.700 not able to plan our own course. Genesis 50, 00:32:15.799 --> 00:32:18.400 20 says, you intended to harm me, but God intended 00:32:18.400 --> 00:32:21.339 it for good. He brought me to this position so 00:32:21.339 --> 00:32:23.539 he could save the lives of many people. You guys 00:32:23.539 --> 00:32:26.019 know the story of Joseph. You know that he was 00:32:26.019 --> 00:32:28.839 thrown in a pit, beat up by his family. Some 00:32:28.839 --> 00:32:31.119 of you have been beat up by your family, thrown 00:32:31.119 --> 00:32:39.019 in a pit, in slavery, in prison. You don't know 00:32:39.019 --> 00:32:40.480 what you've done or why you're going through 00:32:40.480 --> 00:32:43.799 it, but God has a plan. God always has a plan. 00:32:46.480 --> 00:32:48.680 Man intended to harm me, but God intended it 00:32:48.680 --> 00:32:52.539 for good, right? You never know what God can 00:32:52.539 --> 00:32:56.059 do. You've got to trust his plans. All right, 00:32:56.079 --> 00:32:57.799 I want you guys to watch this video with me. 00:33:01.940 --> 00:33:07.720 Yeah. I didn't do that. He did. We need to take 00:33:07.720 --> 00:33:09.880 on the struggle. We need to know that the struggle 00:33:09.880 --> 00:33:13.099 is the struggle. It's not your identity. The 00:33:13.099 --> 00:33:15.059 struggle is a struggle. It's not your identity. 00:33:15.200 --> 00:33:17.839 If you can say good, you can say God, right? 00:33:18.200 --> 00:33:20.460 The Israelites had to go through the wilderness 00:33:20.460 --> 00:33:23.440 because they weren't ready for the promised land. 00:33:24.420 --> 00:33:26.599 We have to go through suffering. We go through 00:33:26.599 --> 00:33:30.079 pain, and God makes it good. He makes it good. 00:33:31.259 --> 00:33:35.240 Jesus chose the wilderness. Why did Jesus choose 00:33:35.240 --> 00:33:36.640 the wilderness? Because he knew he was going 00:33:36.640 --> 00:33:39.480 to face the devil, right? He was going to face 00:33:39.480 --> 00:33:42.180 problems, right? So Matthew 4 says, Then Jesus 00:33:42.180 --> 00:33:45.140 was led by the Spirit into the wilderness to 00:33:45.140 --> 00:33:47.900 be tempted by the devil. Why would Jesus go out 00:33:47.900 --> 00:33:50.039 into the desert in a place of loneliness and 00:33:50.039 --> 00:33:52.839 barrenness to hear from God? Well, you guys know 00:33:52.839 --> 00:33:56.680 in Hebrew, the word desert and the word speaks 00:33:56.680 --> 00:34:00.200 is the same word. It's got the same consonants. 00:34:00.200 --> 00:34:05.099 So the word Midbar is desert, M -I -D -B -A -R, 00:34:05.359 --> 00:34:09.539 and speaks is M -E -D -B -E -A -R. But it's got 00:34:09.539 --> 00:34:12.119 the same consonants, right? So the same word 00:34:12.119 --> 00:34:15.980 God speaks in the desert. And then there's also 00:34:15.980 --> 00:34:19.280 a root word in the Hebrew, which means the holy 00:34:19.280 --> 00:34:23.179 of holies. When you're going through that rough 00:34:23.179 --> 00:34:24.659 time, when you're going through that tragedy, 00:34:24.719 --> 00:34:27.800 God is ever -present. And that's when the gratitude 00:34:27.800 --> 00:34:30.619 happens. That's when the gratitude eludes from 00:34:30.619 --> 00:34:36.159 our spirits. God speaks in the wilderness. Hosea 00:34:36.159 --> 00:34:39.019 2 .14 says, The Lord's love for unfaithful Israel. 00:34:39.280 --> 00:34:41.340 But then I will winter back once again. I will 00:34:41.340 --> 00:34:43.599 lead her in the desert and speak to her tenderly 00:34:43.599 --> 00:34:46.800 there. And what I want to ask you today, what 00:34:46.800 --> 00:34:49.199 is your wilderness? If you're going through a 00:34:49.199 --> 00:34:51.320 hard time today, are you like David? David was 00:34:51.320 --> 00:34:53.679 called away from people, but he couldn't even 00:34:53.679 --> 00:34:56.579 escape his problems in the wilderness. Saul kept 00:34:56.579 --> 00:34:58.639 coming after and after and after him. Do you 00:34:58.639 --> 00:35:00.800 feel like you can't escape your problems today? 00:35:01.460 --> 00:35:04.579 You might be like David. Are you like Abraham, 00:35:04.699 --> 00:35:06.960 who God caused you to lead people? He doesn't 00:35:06.960 --> 00:35:09.760 even have a child, right? And he gets lost. He's 00:35:09.760 --> 00:35:13.280 not sure where to go or what to do. He's just 00:35:13.280 --> 00:35:16.699 lost. And he's supposed to be the father of many 00:35:16.699 --> 00:35:20.230 nations. Maybe you're like Moses and you're overwhelmed 00:35:20.230 --> 00:35:22.969 with responsibility. You feel like you've got 00:35:22.969 --> 00:35:25.670 so many things you're holding on to and you can't 00:35:25.670 --> 00:35:29.550 even find God's peace or presence. What did Moses 00:35:29.550 --> 00:35:31.929 do? He went to the rock that was higher than 00:35:31.929 --> 00:35:35.670 I. God led him away so he could speak to him. 00:35:36.909 --> 00:35:41.289 We need to spend time with God every day, people. 00:35:42.070 --> 00:35:45.569 We need to get up and spend time with him. Take 00:35:45.569 --> 00:35:47.289 creative ways to spend time with him because 00:35:47.289 --> 00:35:50.090 we want our thoughts to be his thoughts and his 00:35:50.090 --> 00:35:52.590 ways to be our ways. Maybe you're like Elijah 00:35:52.590 --> 00:35:55.010 and you're just burnt out. You've been serving 00:35:55.010 --> 00:35:57.250 for so long. You've been in a dead -end place 00:35:57.250 --> 00:36:00.510 for so long. You just need to rest. You just 00:36:00.510 --> 00:36:02.289 need to rest this morning. And this is okay. 00:36:02.489 --> 00:36:06.039 It's okay to be in these places. because gratitude 00:36:06.039 --> 00:36:10.199 is revealed in hard times. Psalms 23, three through 00:36:10.199 --> 00:36:12.699 four says, he guides me along right paths, bringing 00:36:12.699 --> 00:36:15.280 honor and glory to his name. And even though 00:36:15.280 --> 00:36:17.659 I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, 00:36:17.900 --> 00:36:20.860 I will not be afraid for you are close beside 00:36:20.860 --> 00:36:23.699 me. Your rod and your staff, they protect and 00:36:23.699 --> 00:36:26.599 they comfort me. You know, maybe you're in a 00:36:26.599 --> 00:36:28.920 season of grief and grief is real pain, people. 00:36:29.610 --> 00:36:31.869 We have grief share. We have places here to get 00:36:31.869 --> 00:36:34.449 into groups. We're going to be doing a surviving 00:36:34.449 --> 00:36:36.489 the holidays. If this is your first holiday and 00:36:36.489 --> 00:36:40.469 you've lost a loved one, you know, we want to 00:36:40.469 --> 00:36:42.750 come around side of you and support you and encourage 00:36:42.750 --> 00:36:44.369 you. We're going to have that on Sunday evening 00:36:44.369 --> 00:36:51.590 in November. Get some prayer. And then point 00:36:51.590 --> 00:36:53.730 five is, you know, we have to accept that there's 00:36:53.730 --> 00:36:56.630 duality in life. There's going to be good with 00:36:56.630 --> 00:37:00.349 the bad, right? There's going to be joy in the 00:37:00.349 --> 00:37:05.489 pain. In seasons of craziness, I found the most 00:37:05.489 --> 00:37:07.909 joy because I've said, okay, God, show me peace 00:37:07.909 --> 00:37:11.829 in this. Show me joy in this. I'm getting up. 00:37:11.849 --> 00:37:13.690 I'm spending time with God. I'm just looking 00:37:13.690 --> 00:37:16.610 for him every day. And I've laughed more than 00:37:16.610 --> 00:37:19.889 I've laughed in a long time. And my plate hasn't 00:37:19.889 --> 00:37:21.429 gotten any lighter. My load hasn't gotten any 00:37:21.429 --> 00:37:23.349 lighter. But God's saying, here, Jessica, I'll 00:37:23.349 --> 00:37:30.239 take your load for a while. John 16, 33 says 00:37:30.239 --> 00:37:33.219 again, I have told you all this that you may 00:37:33.219 --> 00:37:35.380 have peace in me. Here on earth you will have 00:37:35.380 --> 00:37:38.500 many trials and sorrows, but take heart. I have 00:37:38.500 --> 00:37:42.940 overcome the world. See, I think it's necessary 00:37:42.940 --> 00:37:47.860 to experience pain. You don't know what it's 00:37:47.860 --> 00:37:51.800 like when you have a kid who's sick. And then 00:37:51.800 --> 00:37:56.000 they get well. You appreciate your spouse. You 00:37:56.000 --> 00:37:58.840 appreciate your family. When you go through seasons 00:37:58.840 --> 00:38:02.519 of difficulty, you understand your blessings. 00:38:04.059 --> 00:38:05.719 When you go through a rough season with your 00:38:05.719 --> 00:38:09.079 spouse, and you're barely going to make it, but 00:38:09.079 --> 00:38:11.699 you're there for each other, and then you understand 00:38:11.699 --> 00:38:16.300 what true love is. It happens through the pain. 00:38:17.960 --> 00:38:22.550 And God can make it good. But if you've never 00:38:22.550 --> 00:38:24.429 experienced the love of Jesus, if you've never 00:38:24.429 --> 00:38:26.809 accepted God, we have a simple prayer, and I 00:38:26.809 --> 00:38:29.090 want you to pray that with me now. Everybody 00:38:29.090 --> 00:38:30.929 can join if they want, or you don't have to, 00:38:31.010 --> 00:38:37.889 but let's pray. Jesus, I'm broken, full of doubt, 00:38:38.050 --> 00:38:44.789 fear, insecurity, and I want to be in control. 00:38:46.730 --> 00:38:50.550 God, I give you control. God, I give you this 00:38:50.550 --> 00:38:58.219 stuff. I believe that you're God's son. I believe 00:38:58.219 --> 00:39:04.880 that you died for me. Change my life. Make me 00:39:04.880 --> 00:39:11.199 new. Help me follow you today and for the rest 00:39:11.199 --> 00:39:16.000 of my life. Amen. Amen. If you said that for 00:39:16.000 --> 00:39:20.300 the first time, just change me to 97000. I don't 00:39:20.300 --> 00:39:23.190 know. There's a lot of zeros there. If you just 00:39:23.190 --> 00:39:24.929 have something that you just need to leave with 00:39:24.929 --> 00:39:27.630 God today, I invite you to just stand and to 00:39:27.630 --> 00:39:29.469 worship with us right now. We're going to sing 00:39:29.469 --> 00:39:33.210 gratitude one more time. If you have, there's 00:39:33.210 --> 00:39:35.510 a couple words of knowledge, pain or cramping 00:39:35.510 --> 00:39:37.809 in the right calf, pain in the right side of 00:39:37.809 --> 00:39:40.849 your neck, late stage cancer near your stomach 00:39:40.849 --> 00:39:42.949 or inner thigh pain, we're here to pray for you. 00:39:43.630 --> 00:39:45.909 Don't leave today without getting prayer up here. 00:39:46.289 --> 00:39:48.769 So everybody can stand with us and we're just 00:39:48.769 --> 00:39:50.650 going to sing gratitude one more time together. 00:39:52.889 --> 00:39:56.809 Thank you, guys. Thank you for opening your minds 00:39:56.809 --> 00:39:59.190 and your hearts to all that God has for you in 00:39:59.190 --> 00:40:01.809 this area of gratitude. And practice gratitude 00:40:01.809 --> 00:40:21.429 this week in the pain. I was deep, I was deep, 00:40:21.489 --> 00:40:23.489 I was I was deep in the dark, he didn't leave 00:40:23.489 --> 00:40:25.610 me there Now I step in the light, I don't need 00:40:25.610 --> 00:40:28.590 a fear Had to die to myself just to see it clear