WEBVTT 00:00:10.809 --> 00:00:14.189 Welcome to Hub City Vineyard. To get connected 00:00:14.189 --> 00:00:17.750 or to give online, please go to hcv .church slash 00:00:17.750 --> 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 --> 00:00:27.000 make a change in your life, text CHANGEME to 00:00:27.000 --> 00:00:31.780 97000. Now enjoy the message. We have a winter 00:00:31.780 --> 00:00:34.439 wonderland now. Is everyone excited for Christmas? 00:00:34.640 --> 00:00:37.880 Your anticipation a little higher? Who wants 00:00:37.880 --> 00:00:42.159 to go to Florida? Yeah, me too. Thank you for 00:00:42.159 --> 00:00:44.799 your honesty. If you're joining us from home, 00:00:44.899 --> 00:00:48.070 thank you for welcoming us into your space. So 00:00:48.070 --> 00:00:50.130 we are in a series, as many of you know, called 00:00:50.130 --> 00:00:52.609 Christmas Lights. We're talking about Advent. 00:00:53.189 --> 00:00:57.770 Advent helps us to refocus and put Jesus into 00:00:57.770 --> 00:01:01.649 this season of our lives. For our community of 00:01:01.649 --> 00:01:04.530 faith, we've actually done Advent celebrations 00:01:04.530 --> 00:01:06.829 and the lighting of the candles for probably 00:01:06.829 --> 00:01:10.790 10 out of our 20 years of being a church community. 00:01:11.390 --> 00:01:14.310 And I've always found that this is a great reflective 00:01:14.310 --> 00:01:17.930 moment to be able to bring Jesus to the center 00:01:17.930 --> 00:01:21.329 of Christmas, to focus our minds and hearts on 00:01:21.329 --> 00:01:24.930 God for these final four weeks of the year before 00:01:24.930 --> 00:01:30.230 we jump into 2026. This being the third Sunday 00:01:30.230 --> 00:01:34.430 of Advent is the Joy Sunday. And I believe that 00:01:34.430 --> 00:01:37.590 joy is something all of us long for, right? Who 00:01:37.590 --> 00:01:41.799 doesn't want to be filled with joy? Unfortunately 00:01:41.799 --> 00:01:45.560 though, joy can be a little confusing. We can 00:01:45.560 --> 00:01:50.959 easily confuse joy with happiness. Now joy and 00:01:50.959 --> 00:01:55.140 happiness do overlap, but we must remember that 00:01:55.140 --> 00:02:01.079 joy often produces happiness. Unlike joy, happiness 00:02:01.079 --> 00:02:05.680 is fleeting and ever -changing, which means the 00:02:05.680 --> 00:02:08.139 pursuit of happiness can be seen all throughout 00:02:08.139 --> 00:02:11.120 our world. We see it as people are ending marriages, 00:02:11.400 --> 00:02:14.319 getting into uncontrollable debt, changing professions, 00:02:14.680 --> 00:02:18.620 changing schools, moving to other cities or countries 00:02:18.620 --> 00:02:22.280 even. Why? Well, it isn't always the case, but 00:02:22.280 --> 00:02:24.740 in many times at the end of the day, it's because 00:02:24.740 --> 00:02:28.939 they believe that they can be happier in a different 00:02:28.939 --> 00:02:33.300 situation. Now, let me be clear. Happiness isn't 00:02:33.300 --> 00:02:36.620 a bad thing. I'm not saying that. But where that 00:02:36.620 --> 00:02:40.319 happiness comes from is very important. I was 00:02:40.319 --> 00:02:44.060 recently in an article this week about the differences 00:02:44.060 --> 00:02:47.900 between joy and happiness. And I found this description 00:02:47.900 --> 00:02:51.580 from a psychologist to be very helpful. Joy and 00:02:51.580 --> 00:02:54.620 happiness are wonderful feelings to experience, 00:02:54.780 --> 00:02:59.039 but they're very different. Joy is more consistent 00:02:59.039 --> 00:03:03.250 and is cultivated internally. It comes when you 00:03:03.250 --> 00:03:06.129 make peace with who you are, why you are, and 00:03:06.129 --> 00:03:09.469 how you are, where areas happiness tends to be 00:03:09.469 --> 00:03:13.009 externally triggered and is based on other people, 00:03:13.069 --> 00:03:17.650 things, places, thoughts, and even events. So 00:03:17.650 --> 00:03:20.590 I felt that was a very helpful differentiation 00:03:20.590 --> 00:03:24.210 between the two. However, it presents a challenge. 00:03:24.750 --> 00:03:30.240 If joy is cultivated internally, then suddenly 00:03:30.240 --> 00:03:33.280 people can feel like they are responsible to 00:03:33.280 --> 00:03:36.259 be the source of joy. And that is not the case. 00:03:36.960 --> 00:03:41.939 God is the source of all joy. God, who is external 00:03:41.939 --> 00:03:45.580 and externally exists in the persons of the Father, 00:03:45.620 --> 00:03:48.780 Son, and the Holy Spirit, the Trinity, are the 00:03:48.780 --> 00:03:51.580 originators and the true sources of all joy. 00:03:52.419 --> 00:03:55.629 Today, We're going to go into the Bible to determine 00:03:55.629 --> 00:04:00.530 what the joy of Advent is all about. So we must 00:04:00.530 --> 00:04:03.069 remember, in week one, I talked about the candle 00:04:03.069 --> 00:04:08.210 of hope. I used the movie Red One to explain 00:04:08.210 --> 00:04:12.590 to us that hope is a desire that all of us need 00:04:12.590 --> 00:04:15.550 to have to move forward. Last Sunday, we lit 00:04:15.550 --> 00:04:18.850 the candle of peace, and Rudy shared about experiencing 00:04:18.850 --> 00:04:22.759 peace in the midst of chaos. We're going to be 00:04:22.759 --> 00:04:26.620 lighting the candle of joy. Now please notice 00:04:26.620 --> 00:04:30.579 that the candle of joy is the pink candle. And 00:04:30.579 --> 00:04:34.560 the difference is that many scholars believe 00:04:34.560 --> 00:04:38.720 that this is the turn of our hearts. Where Christmas 00:04:38.720 --> 00:04:43.120 is much closer now. So the anticipation grows. 00:04:43.500 --> 00:04:47.879 And the bleakness of purple is now transformed 00:04:47.879 --> 00:04:55.920 into the pink of joy. Joy. So let's open in prayer 00:04:55.920 --> 00:05:00.420 as we ask the Holy Spirit to come and to change 00:05:00.420 --> 00:05:06.980 us. Holy Spirit, come. Jesus, we invite you to 00:05:06.980 --> 00:05:11.759 walk into this room. I just pray, God, that you 00:05:11.759 --> 00:05:16.439 move up and down the rows, God. You open our 00:05:16.439 --> 00:05:20.399 minds, our hearts, our ears to receive your truth 00:05:20.399 --> 00:05:24.860 today. God, I silence distractions in Jesus' 00:05:25.040 --> 00:05:29.019 name. And I ask, God, that you would have your 00:05:29.019 --> 00:05:33.560 way. That joy would be released in this place 00:05:33.560 --> 00:05:38.120 today. That hearts would be set ablaze to draw 00:05:38.120 --> 00:05:45.279 closer to you. In Jesus' name, amen. So I can't 00:05:45.279 --> 00:05:49.519 begin talking about joy. without telling you 00:05:49.519 --> 00:05:53.279 about my preschool Sunday mornings at Faith Chapel. 00:05:53.939 --> 00:05:56.720 So if you don't know, I gave my life to Jesus 00:05:56.720 --> 00:06:00.740 roughly 30 years ago or so this past fall. And 00:06:00.740 --> 00:06:04.120 immediately upon giving my life to Jesus, began 00:06:04.120 --> 00:06:07.579 to help my friend Jessica teach her preschool 00:06:07.579 --> 00:06:13.120 class. Now it was interesting, for about a month 00:06:13.120 --> 00:06:16.120 we taught the class together. Now I don't know 00:06:16.120 --> 00:06:19.759 if this was her strategy, To help me to grow 00:06:19.759 --> 00:06:23.579 into being a pastor. But after about a month 00:06:23.579 --> 00:06:29.139 or so, she kind of started to sleep in. And I 00:06:29.139 --> 00:06:33.060 found that teaching preschoolers on Sunday morning 00:06:33.060 --> 00:06:37.139 became Chris's responsibility. And we were no 00:06:37.139 --> 00:06:40.839 longer a partnership. It was all about Chris. 00:06:40.939 --> 00:06:44.839 And listen, I could work a felt board like nobody's 00:06:44.839 --> 00:06:48.639 business. Okay? And if you know what I'm talking 00:06:48.639 --> 00:06:51.920 about, you know what I'm talking about, right? 00:06:52.019 --> 00:06:55.399 You know the little felt character that was Joseph 00:06:55.399 --> 00:06:59.139 for Christmas and was Daniel in a lion's den 00:06:59.139 --> 00:07:02.879 and was David destroying Goliath. I mean, that 00:07:02.879 --> 00:07:05.720 felt board guy was incredible. It was like the 00:07:05.720 --> 00:07:12.839 IMAX, right? Now, during the context of the Advent 00:07:12.839 --> 00:07:16.620 season, I would always have the kids sing a little 00:07:16.620 --> 00:07:19.680 jingle. And if you happen to know this jingle, 00:07:19.759 --> 00:07:21.800 I'm going to welcome you to join in and sing 00:07:21.800 --> 00:07:24.420 it with me. If not, I don't have a problem being 00:07:24.420 --> 00:07:28.079 a fool for Christ because I do it every single 00:07:28.079 --> 00:07:31.560 Sunday. So as I stand up here and sing, I'm going 00:07:31.560 --> 00:07:33.660 to invite you to join me, if you know it, of 00:07:33.660 --> 00:07:36.680 course. It kind of goes a little like this. I 00:07:36.680 --> 00:07:44.459 got the joy, joy, joy, joy. Where? Where? I got 00:07:44.459 --> 00:07:48.920 the joy, joy, joy, joy down in my heart. Down 00:07:48.920 --> 00:07:56.600 in my heart to stay. And we're so, so very, I've 00:07:56.600 --> 00:08:02.480 got the love of Jesus in my H -E -A -R -T. Wow. 00:08:05.459 --> 00:08:10.100 And some of you must have attended my preschool 00:08:10.100 --> 00:08:17.089 class. Good job. But what we need to know is 00:08:17.089 --> 00:08:20.269 when we walk through difficult things or difficult 00:08:20.269 --> 00:08:25.189 seasons, especially during Advent, because during 00:08:25.189 --> 00:08:26.930 the Christmas season, everything gets busier. 00:08:27.209 --> 00:08:29.129 Everything gets bigger. Everything gets more 00:08:29.129 --> 00:08:33.350 important. And quite often, we lose our joy. 00:08:33.909 --> 00:08:36.870 So how are we able to keep it? Well, the answer 00:08:36.870 --> 00:08:38.970 is actually in the lyrics to that little kid's 00:08:38.970 --> 00:08:42.149 song we just sung. We got the joy, joy, joy, 00:08:42.330 --> 00:08:47.629 joy down in our hearts. It's because we got the 00:08:47.629 --> 00:08:51.210 love of Jesus in our hearts that we can experience 00:08:51.210 --> 00:08:56.250 his joy. And that is actually, in sum, the total 00:08:56.250 --> 00:08:59.029 to the answer of the question we're seeking to 00:08:59.029 --> 00:09:00.990 find this morning. And that's where we're going 00:09:00.990 --> 00:09:05.210 to end up. But let's take the scenic route and 00:09:05.210 --> 00:09:08.090 let's look at, especially during this season, 00:09:10.460 --> 00:09:13.100 brings upon us so much pain and heartbreak and 00:09:13.100 --> 00:09:16.600 anxiety. You know, maybe you feel alone because 00:09:16.600 --> 00:09:19.580 you have a broken relationship. Maybe you feel 00:09:19.580 --> 00:09:24.399 alone because your gift list is one gift less. 00:09:25.200 --> 00:09:28.120 Maybe you feel stressed out and full of anxiety 00:09:28.120 --> 00:09:30.059 because you don't have enough money to buy the 00:09:30.059 --> 00:09:32.919 gifts. Or you don't have a party that you've 00:09:32.919 --> 00:09:36.480 been invited to. See, there's all these reasons 00:09:36.480 --> 00:09:40.240 that there's pain and heartache and stress during 00:09:40.240 --> 00:09:42.460 the Christmas season. But I want you to realize, 00:09:42.700 --> 00:09:46.240 I believe many of the biblical characters understand 00:09:46.240 --> 00:09:50.320 exactly what many of you are going through. I 00:09:50.320 --> 00:09:53.480 mean, imagine being married. You're walking around 00:09:53.480 --> 00:09:56.600 living in Nazareth, a really small, small community. 00:09:57.080 --> 00:09:59.620 And all of a sudden, the angel Gabriel appears 00:09:59.620 --> 00:10:04.019 and tells you, you're going to have a baby. And 00:10:04.019 --> 00:10:09.220 it's not from Joseph. And she has to go and tell 00:10:09.220 --> 00:10:15.740 her fiance that she's pregnant. And we've already 00:10:15.740 --> 00:10:18.919 established that that would be very difficult 00:10:18.919 --> 00:10:22.279 for Joseph. Imagine him hearing the news and 00:10:22.279 --> 00:10:24.299 the heartbreak over the relationship. It has 00:10:24.299 --> 00:10:29.340 to end. He decides to end it quietly. And then 00:10:29.340 --> 00:10:33.490 an angel visits him. And they start talking and 00:10:33.490 --> 00:10:36.950 they figure it all out. And it's as if their 00:10:36.950 --> 00:10:39.549 minds now begin to go towards, okay, we're going 00:10:39.549 --> 00:10:42.590 to have this baby who is the savior of the world. 00:10:42.629 --> 00:10:45.909 And suddenly rumors in that little town begin 00:10:45.909 --> 00:10:50.350 to get louder as Mary's belly grows. And the 00:10:50.350 --> 00:10:53.149 gossip begins and the finger pointing. But as 00:10:53.149 --> 00:10:54.990 a young couple, they have to begin to think, 00:10:55.049 --> 00:10:57.350 where are we going to have this baby? What are 00:10:57.350 --> 00:10:59.899 we going to do? And they start to plan, well, 00:10:59.940 --> 00:11:02.000 maybe we could have it at my mom's house, or 00:11:02.000 --> 00:11:04.340 maybe we'll go to your uncle's house. And they 00:11:04.340 --> 00:11:07.139 begin to plan, but then everything gets messed 00:11:07.139 --> 00:11:10.879 up. How does it get messed up? Well, Caesar Augustus 00:11:10.879 --> 00:11:14.220 determines, hey, it's a good time to take a census 00:11:14.220 --> 00:11:17.299 of the whole Roman world. And everybody had to 00:11:17.299 --> 00:11:20.460 return to their place of original heritage. So 00:11:20.460 --> 00:11:23.200 Joseph, being in the line of David, has to go 00:11:23.200 --> 00:11:26.909 to Bethlehem. But there's a problem. Bethlehem 00:11:26.909 --> 00:11:32.210 is 90 miles away. And there's no woman who has 00:11:32.210 --> 00:11:35.450 ever had a baby or is pregnant right now that 00:11:35.450 --> 00:11:37.789 we wouldn't sign up to ride on the back of a 00:11:37.789 --> 00:11:42.350 donkey for 90 miles. It's just not going to happen. 00:11:43.029 --> 00:11:45.830 And I promise you there's no guy who wants to 00:11:45.830 --> 00:11:49.350 take the lead rope and take her from Nazareth 00:11:49.350 --> 00:11:52.570 to Bethlehem on a donkey stopping at every bush 00:11:52.570 --> 00:11:57.279 along the way. Like it's just not gonna happen. 00:11:59.039 --> 00:12:02.639 But I could imagine as they're walking, they're 00:12:02.639 --> 00:12:04.740 getting a little closer and a little closer to 00:12:04.740 --> 00:12:06.440 Bethlehem and then they're off in the horizon. 00:12:06.440 --> 00:12:10.370 They see a palace. They see the palace of Herod 00:12:10.370 --> 00:12:12.929 and I wonder if they began to think and they 00:12:12.929 --> 00:12:15.669 began to talk to one another. Hey, we're having 00:12:15.669 --> 00:12:17.690 the creator of the world. We're having God's 00:12:17.690 --> 00:12:21.289 son. Maybe somebody will invite us into the palace. 00:12:21.330 --> 00:12:23.649 I'm sure they have an extra room that our baby 00:12:23.649 --> 00:12:28.070 can be born in a place of royalty. But as they 00:12:28.070 --> 00:12:30.509 walk by, no one comes out and invites them in. 00:12:31.820 --> 00:12:34.120 They continue on towards Bethlehem, and they 00:12:34.120 --> 00:12:37.279 see it off in the horizon, and maybe Joseph was 00:12:37.279 --> 00:12:39.879 like, hey, Mary, I'm sure somebody will notice 00:12:39.879 --> 00:12:42.960 you're pregnant, that we're in need of a place 00:12:42.960 --> 00:12:46.519 to stay, and they'll invite us in to stay in 00:12:46.519 --> 00:12:49.340 their extra room. I mean, you are pregnant and 00:12:49.340 --> 00:12:53.419 expecting, but nobody did that. And then Joseph's 00:12:53.419 --> 00:12:55.620 like, well, okay, it's not a problem. I'll just 00:12:55.620 --> 00:12:58.440 pay for a room at the end. We'll be okay. However, 00:12:59.289 --> 00:13:01.710 If you know the Christmas story, there's no room 00:13:01.710 --> 00:13:05.169 there either. But at least the innkeeper was 00:13:05.169 --> 00:13:08.269 kind enough to say, well, you could stay out 00:13:08.269 --> 00:13:12.629 here with my animals in the barn. And of course, 00:13:12.629 --> 00:13:16.149 that's every girl's dream, right? To deliver 00:13:16.149 --> 00:13:18.750 a baby right there with the cows and the sheep 00:13:18.750 --> 00:13:22.029 and everything that comes along with cows and 00:13:22.029 --> 00:13:26.559 sheep. So no, that's not exactly what Mary thought 00:13:26.559 --> 00:13:28.460 the plan was going to be. And I don't even believe 00:13:28.460 --> 00:13:31.419 that Joseph thought that as well. When God told 00:13:31.419 --> 00:13:34.720 her she would be birthing the Savior of the world, 00:13:34.759 --> 00:13:38.700 my son. And today, maybe you find yourself with 00:13:38.700 --> 00:13:42.899 a whole lot of unmet expectations. Just like 00:13:42.899 --> 00:13:47.059 Mary and Joseph. But I want you to take heart 00:13:47.059 --> 00:13:50.559 this Advent season because things can change 00:13:50.559 --> 00:13:53.019 suddenly, which leads us to our first thought. 00:13:54.049 --> 00:13:59.210 circumstances can change suddenly with God. When 00:13:59.210 --> 00:14:01.389 reading through the Bible, we see how God can 00:14:01.389 --> 00:14:05.169 suddenly change an entire situation. Maybe you've 00:14:05.169 --> 00:14:07.669 been in a place for years where you've been grinding 00:14:07.669 --> 00:14:11.409 in a very difficult struggle in a tough relationship. 00:14:12.230 --> 00:14:14.730 Maybe your marriage is failing. Maybe you've 00:14:14.730 --> 00:14:17.049 had unanswered prayers that have gone on for 00:14:17.049 --> 00:14:19.610 years. Maybe you're struggling with an addiction 00:14:19.610 --> 00:14:23.720 that you feel cannot be broken. But this Advent 00:14:23.720 --> 00:14:26.379 season, take heart because things can change 00:14:26.379 --> 00:14:29.799 suddenly. And we see that in today's scripture, 00:14:30.080 --> 00:14:33.919 Luke 2, verse 13. Suddenly, everyone say suddenly. 00:14:34.659 --> 00:14:37.840 The angel was joined by a vast host of others, 00:14:37.960 --> 00:14:41.259 the armies of heaven, praising God and saying. 00:14:42.639 --> 00:14:47.799 Suddenly, God broke in. Then in Acts 2, 2, talking 00:14:47.799 --> 00:14:50.860 about the day of Pentecost, we read, suddenly. 00:14:51.820 --> 00:14:53.720 There was a sound from heaven like the roaring 00:14:53.720 --> 00:14:55.860 of a mighty windstorm, and it filled the house 00:14:55.860 --> 00:14:59.559 where they were sitting. Or you can look at Acts 00:14:59.559 --> 00:15:02.019 chapter 9 and the story of Saul. He's traveling 00:15:02.019 --> 00:15:05.039 on the Damascus road, and we read this in verse 00:15:05.039 --> 00:15:08.519 3. As he was approaching Damascus on this mission 00:15:08.519 --> 00:15:12.120 to kill Christians, a light from heaven suddenly 00:15:12.120 --> 00:15:17.000 shone around him. And today I want you to hear 00:15:17.000 --> 00:15:19.779 that your circumstances can change suddenly. 00:15:20.879 --> 00:15:24.720 Advent brings forth a season, a belief, an expectation, 00:15:25.259 --> 00:15:30.720 a longing for more. More of God. More of Jesus. 00:15:30.820 --> 00:15:34.759 A desperation for God to speak into the context 00:15:34.759 --> 00:15:37.860 of our brokenness, our loneliness, and our darkness. 00:15:38.740 --> 00:15:42.899 That maybe a joy would burst forth within our 00:15:42.899 --> 00:15:46.259 hearts. And that is exactly what happened to 00:15:46.259 --> 00:15:50.139 a group of shepherds. The angel burst forth for 00:15:50.139 --> 00:15:52.919 the shepherds. We see that God proclaimed the 00:15:52.919 --> 00:15:57.159 good news. In fact, we even heard it. The angel 00:15:57.159 --> 00:15:59.639 said, I bring you good news of great joy that 00:15:59.639 --> 00:16:04.240 was for all people. And what the angel proclaimed, 00:16:04.340 --> 00:16:08.440 God demonstrated clearly by delivering this message 00:16:08.440 --> 00:16:12.940 to a group of shepherds. All people. In this 00:16:12.940 --> 00:16:15.379 culture, shepherds would have been a very common 00:16:15.379 --> 00:16:18.860 or low task. In fact, within the Jewish culture, 00:16:18.919 --> 00:16:22.000 they would have been considered outcast. They 00:16:22.000 --> 00:16:24.480 definitely would have been considered unclean 00:16:24.480 --> 00:16:27.279 because of their jobs and dealing with the sheep. 00:16:27.860 --> 00:16:29.960 In fact, they wouldn't have been able to even 00:16:29.960 --> 00:16:33.120 go into the outer court of the temple without 00:16:33.120 --> 00:16:36.399 walking through various ceremonial rituals to 00:16:36.399 --> 00:16:40.019 cleanse them from their dirtiness. And I find 00:16:40.019 --> 00:16:42.700 it interesting, though, that God chose some lowly 00:16:42.700 --> 00:16:46.639 shepherds. who were just finishing up a long 00:16:46.639 --> 00:16:49.860 day. They were sitting around a campfire at night. 00:16:49.960 --> 00:16:53.100 They had the sheep all put away. And then the 00:16:53.100 --> 00:16:56.139 angel suddenly appears and says, I'm bringing 00:16:56.139 --> 00:17:01.360 you guys some good news of great joy. It's for 00:17:01.360 --> 00:17:06.299 everybody. Everyone. And those people whom the 00:17:06.299 --> 00:17:09.039 religious society and the world would have said, 00:17:09.119 --> 00:17:13.299 unclean, unclean, God says, no, no, no, no, no, 00:17:13.420 --> 00:17:18.710 no. You're chosen. You're just the one I need 00:17:18.710 --> 00:17:23.970 to go. I need you, shepherds, to go over to Bethlehem. 00:17:24.210 --> 00:17:27.069 And I want you, now think about this. These shepherds, 00:17:27.069 --> 00:17:31.170 they're going to go stand in the very presence 00:17:31.170 --> 00:17:37.230 of God's son, the Messiah, the Lord, the one 00:17:37.230 --> 00:17:41.589 named Jesus, which leads us to our next all. 00:17:42.700 --> 00:17:48.599 See, God uses us, nobodies, to share the good 00:17:48.599 --> 00:17:52.779 news. And I want to speak to you today, and I 00:17:52.779 --> 00:17:56.180 want to challenge you. You can share the good 00:17:56.180 --> 00:18:00.180 news. Even if you feel a little bit awkward or 00:18:00.180 --> 00:18:03.000 unworthy or that you're not ready. Well, Chris, 00:18:03.039 --> 00:18:05.000 I haven't checked all the boxes. I haven't gone 00:18:05.000 --> 00:18:07.400 through the flower of power. How can I share 00:18:07.400 --> 00:18:13.299 the good news? God can use you. To share the 00:18:13.299 --> 00:18:16.119 good news. Because I believe the shepherds would 00:18:16.119 --> 00:18:18.539 have felt the exact same way. But you know what 00:18:18.539 --> 00:18:23.339 God said? I've checked them all through the context 00:18:23.339 --> 00:18:27.019 of my son's birth and the salvation that he's 00:18:27.019 --> 00:18:29.140 going to bring to the world because this is good 00:18:29.140 --> 00:18:32.539 news of great joy for you. And the shepherds, 00:18:32.539 --> 00:18:35.119 they go and they arrive and they proclaim this 00:18:35.119 --> 00:18:37.720 good news. But I want you to notice how they 00:18:37.720 --> 00:18:41.309 do it. Luke chapter 2 verses 15 through 19. When 00:18:41.309 --> 00:18:45.009 the angels had returned to heaven, the shepherds 00:18:45.009 --> 00:18:49.910 said to each other, let's go. Notice, the shepherds 00:18:49.910 --> 00:18:51.849 didn't look at each other and have a discussion 00:18:51.849 --> 00:18:55.410 and make a plan. They didn't discuss, well, are 00:18:55.410 --> 00:18:57.750 you worthy? Am I worthy? Should you speak? Should 00:18:57.750 --> 00:19:00.589 I speak? You're the leader. No, I'm the leader. 00:19:00.869 --> 00:19:07.299 None of that. Let's go to Bethlehem. Let's see 00:19:07.299 --> 00:19:09.039 this thing that has happened, which the Lord 00:19:09.039 --> 00:19:11.319 has told us about. And then notice what they 00:19:11.319 --> 00:19:15.539 did. They hurried. They didn't walk. They didn't 00:19:15.539 --> 00:19:19.960 skip. Right? They hurried. They were expecting. 00:19:20.160 --> 00:19:23.799 They wanted to see this promise that had been 00:19:23.799 --> 00:19:27.099 given to them. And see, quite often for us, we 00:19:27.099 --> 00:19:30.039 don't hurry. We don't go because we second guess 00:19:30.039 --> 00:19:34.170 in our minds. We question. Well, I'm not good 00:19:34.170 --> 00:19:35.990 enough, Chris. I haven't read enough of the Bible. 00:19:36.089 --> 00:19:37.910 I don't understand Greek. I don't understand 00:19:37.910 --> 00:19:42.990 Hebrew. Neither do I. You're okay. But you're 00:19:42.990 --> 00:19:45.109 going to learn a little bit in a few minutes. 00:19:45.869 --> 00:19:48.150 They hurried to the village, found Mary and Joseph, 00:19:48.269 --> 00:19:50.849 and there was the baby lying in the manger. After 00:19:50.849 --> 00:19:55.049 seeing him, the shepherds told everyone. And 00:19:55.049 --> 00:19:58.529 why did they tell everyone? Because this was 00:19:58.529 --> 00:20:03.480 good news for all people. What had happened and 00:20:03.480 --> 00:20:05.559 what the angel had said to them about this child. 00:20:06.980 --> 00:20:09.640 All who heard the shepherd's story were astonished, 00:20:09.640 --> 00:20:13.259 but notice this part. Mary kept all these things 00:20:13.259 --> 00:20:17.319 in her heart and thought about them often. I 00:20:17.319 --> 00:20:21.000 wonder, as Mary sat and listened to this group 00:20:21.000 --> 00:20:29.259 of outcasts, to these shepherds, I wonder, as 00:20:29.259 --> 00:20:32.750 she was hearing their story, Her nerves began 00:20:32.750 --> 00:20:37.829 to lessen. Her questions began to be answered. 00:20:38.609 --> 00:20:41.849 Because as I thought about this story, I thought 00:20:41.849 --> 00:20:45.089 about Mary and Joseph. And think about it. Mary, 00:20:45.230 --> 00:20:48.410 here's this teenage girl. She gets visited by 00:20:48.410 --> 00:20:50.390 an angel. You're going to be pregnant. It's not 00:20:50.390 --> 00:20:53.589 from Joseph. It's from God. Suddenly she's pregnant. 00:20:55.230 --> 00:20:58.470 Think about her mind. Think about those hormones. 00:21:00.490 --> 00:21:05.950 Is this really God? Can this really be God's 00:21:05.950 --> 00:21:09.430 son? Can this be the Messiah, the Savior? Why 00:21:09.430 --> 00:21:15.529 me? This can't be. I was dreaming. And then Joseph. 00:21:16.809 --> 00:21:19.130 Think about Joseph and all the struggles and 00:21:19.130 --> 00:21:22.490 the questions in his mind. Is this really happening? 00:21:22.509 --> 00:21:26.930 Is this real? How can this happen? All these 00:21:26.930 --> 00:21:32.000 potential unmet expectations. That is going through 00:21:32.000 --> 00:21:35.119 their mind. See, I don't necessarily believe 00:21:35.119 --> 00:21:38.740 that Mary confidently thought this was the Messiah. 00:21:40.039 --> 00:21:42.220 I believe she would have questioned and wondered. 00:21:43.039 --> 00:21:48.019 But then, as these shepherds show up, what does 00:21:48.019 --> 00:21:54.140 Mary hear? Mary hears the shepherds say, an angel. 00:21:55.279 --> 00:21:58.859 Will an angel appear to us? And then suddenly 00:21:58.859 --> 00:22:04.700 Mary and Joseph are like, oh, an angel. Now we're 00:22:04.700 --> 00:22:11.859 all on the same page. Because this is true. Jesus 00:22:11.859 --> 00:22:15.619 is the Messiah, the son of the living God. I 00:22:15.619 --> 00:22:18.799 know this because an angel came and told us. 00:22:19.039 --> 00:22:22.059 And then suddenly Mary can be confidently feeling 00:22:22.059 --> 00:22:25.359 that this is true. And we can do the same for 00:22:25.359 --> 00:22:28.470 somebody else. See, when we're second -guessing 00:22:28.470 --> 00:22:30.470 ourselves, when we're wondering what to say, 00:22:30.549 --> 00:22:32.369 I don't have the words to say. I can't pray for 00:22:32.369 --> 00:22:34.490 anyone. I'm not good enough. I haven't been in 00:22:34.490 --> 00:22:36.549 the church long enough. No, share the good news. 00:22:38.509 --> 00:22:41.049 You don't have to second -guess yourself. You 00:22:41.049 --> 00:22:45.349 can believe. And you see how Mary then confidently, 00:22:45.609 --> 00:22:49.289 she was working everything that these men, these 00:22:49.289 --> 00:22:51.829 outcasts shared with her, and she kept them close 00:22:51.829 --> 00:22:54.230 to her heart because that's what helped her believe. 00:22:56.240 --> 00:22:58.980 Someone else helped her to believe, and the same 00:22:58.980 --> 00:23:02.500 goes for us. Why share the good news? Why be 00:23:02.500 --> 00:23:04.740 outward focused? Why pray for people? Why invite 00:23:04.740 --> 00:23:07.299 people to our community of faith? For life change. 00:23:08.119 --> 00:23:12.960 Because people need it. I needed it. You needed 00:23:12.960 --> 00:23:16.259 it. And we shouldn't forget that truth. You don't 00:23:16.259 --> 00:23:19.019 have to feel unworthy. Just live on mission. 00:23:20.140 --> 00:23:23.180 You don't have to know all the Bible. You don't 00:23:23.180 --> 00:23:25.180 know how, you know, you don't have to be taught 00:23:25.180 --> 00:23:28.359 how to pray. You can just be a vessel that the 00:23:28.359 --> 00:23:31.420 Holy Spirit uses to bring about great joy for 00:23:31.420 --> 00:23:35.900 others, to proclaim the good news. But remember, 00:23:36.059 --> 00:23:38.900 there's a very fundamental difference between 00:23:38.900 --> 00:23:42.140 joy and happiness. And we have to talk about 00:23:42.140 --> 00:23:45.779 that today because our culture has twisted it 00:23:45.779 --> 00:23:49.369 all up. And I need to break it down for you real 00:23:49.369 --> 00:23:51.849 quick so that we can secure it in our hearts 00:23:51.849 --> 00:23:54.930 and truly live a life of joy, which leads us 00:23:54.930 --> 00:23:57.910 to our third thought. See, joy isn't an emotion. 00:23:58.470 --> 00:24:02.490 It's a choice. Joy isn't an emotion. It's a choice. 00:24:02.589 --> 00:24:05.210 It's not some exuberant, ecstatic feeling you 00:24:05.210 --> 00:24:07.849 get because you have that first sip feeling of 00:24:07.849 --> 00:24:12.490 your Starbucks. It's not that emotion that you 00:24:12.490 --> 00:24:15.069 get when your team scores the touchdown and they're 00:24:15.069 --> 00:24:17.069 on the way to the Super Bowl and you high -five 00:24:17.069 --> 00:24:19.210 your best friend. It's the first time in a decade. 00:24:20.569 --> 00:24:25.069 That's not it. That's not it. That's happiness. 00:24:26.109 --> 00:24:32.170 Joy is a choice. Joy is a choice. Let's see what 00:24:32.170 --> 00:24:34.869 the Bible says to us, Luke 2 .10. But the angel 00:24:34.869 --> 00:24:37.170 reassured them, don't be afraid. I find it interesting. 00:24:37.490 --> 00:24:40.109 The shepherds, the outcasts, they're fearful, 00:24:40.390 --> 00:24:43.029 full of fear. The angel has to say, calm down, 00:24:43.150 --> 00:24:46.009 guys. It's okay, I'm not gonna kill you. You're 00:24:46.009 --> 00:24:49.130 good. No, I'm bringing you good news that will 00:24:49.130 --> 00:24:52.150 be great joy. See, the shepherds had to overcome 00:24:52.150 --> 00:24:56.750 their fear from fear to great joy. 2 Corinthians 00:24:56.750 --> 00:25:01.880 7 .4 says, in all our affliction, I am overflowing 00:25:01.880 --> 00:25:04.759 with joy. I mean, I don't know about you, but 00:25:04.759 --> 00:25:08.319 when I read that, that sounds messed up. Doesn't 00:25:08.319 --> 00:25:12.900 it? In my affliction, I'm overflowing with joy. 00:25:12.940 --> 00:25:15.900 It makes no sense. Neither does this one that 00:25:15.900 --> 00:25:19.420 we find in Colossians 1 .24. Now I rejoice in 00:25:19.420 --> 00:25:22.559 what I am suffering for you. I mean, it's crazy. 00:25:24.740 --> 00:25:27.519 But then it gets worse. Look at James 1 too. 00:25:27.740 --> 00:25:30.180 Dear brothers and sisters, when troubles of any 00:25:30.180 --> 00:25:32.859 kind come your way, consider it an opportunity 00:25:32.859 --> 00:25:39.359 for great joy. Why? Because joy is a choice. 00:25:40.160 --> 00:25:42.160 See, we can read those words and think, what 00:25:42.160 --> 00:25:44.500 is wrong with James? What is wrong with Paul? 00:25:45.240 --> 00:25:48.680 Don't they know what happiness is? Well, see, 00:25:48.700 --> 00:25:50.980 they probably do. In fact, they know what happiness 00:25:50.980 --> 00:25:54.619 is, but they know joy is better. And they know 00:25:54.619 --> 00:25:58.609 joy is different. In that verse that I just read 00:25:58.609 --> 00:26:01.490 for you, the word consider is the Greek word 00:26:01.490 --> 00:26:06.009 called hegeomai. And it's this idea that you 00:26:06.009 --> 00:26:10.069 give careful consideration to what you're about 00:26:10.069 --> 00:26:13.230 to do. And that you make a very discerned and 00:26:13.230 --> 00:26:16.190 dedicated decision towards something better. 00:26:17.450 --> 00:26:20.490 You and I, in other words, we count the cost. 00:26:21.329 --> 00:26:24.369 And we see Paul talking about that all the time. 00:26:24.369 --> 00:26:28.250 Look at Philippians 3 .8. Yes, everything else 00:26:28.250 --> 00:26:31.509 is worthless when compared with the infinite 00:26:31.509 --> 00:26:34.869 value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord. For the 00:26:34.869 --> 00:26:37.970 sake, for his sake, I've discarded everything 00:26:37.970 --> 00:26:44.109 else. Counting it all as garbage so that I could 00:26:44.109 --> 00:26:50.089 gain Christ. See, joy is not an emotion. Because 00:26:50.089 --> 00:26:53.670 if it were, then these scriptures that I just 00:26:53.670 --> 00:26:58.130 read to you wouldn't be true. Joy is a choice. 00:26:58.930 --> 00:27:01.630 And when you fix your eyes on something else, 00:27:01.650 --> 00:27:07.430 Jesus, then you can experience that joy. Now, 00:27:07.490 --> 00:27:09.630 in our society, we have this idea of weighing 00:27:09.630 --> 00:27:14.569 out the pros and the cons. Quite often, if you're 00:27:14.569 --> 00:27:16.609 going to take a new job, you write a pros and 00:27:16.609 --> 00:27:20.150 a cons list. And you think about them, and you 00:27:20.150 --> 00:27:22.549 go over them. And if you're married, you talk 00:27:22.549 --> 00:27:26.009 about them with your spouse. And then quite often 00:27:26.009 --> 00:27:28.430 what happens is if the pros outweighs the cons, 00:27:28.529 --> 00:27:30.150 you take the job and you forget about praying. 00:27:31.809 --> 00:27:36.869 But that's a whole other sermon. But as a committed 00:27:36.869 --> 00:27:38.829 follower of Jesus, when you look at your pros 00:27:38.829 --> 00:27:43.329 and your cons, it doesn't matter how high the 00:27:43.329 --> 00:27:46.950 stack is of the cons, because Paul has already 00:27:46.950 --> 00:27:50.509 said, I consider that whole list what? Garbage. 00:27:51.490 --> 00:27:58.599 A waste of time. Because I consider that me knowing 00:27:58.599 --> 00:28:02.920 Jesus outweighs all the cons that stack up against 00:28:02.920 --> 00:28:08.180 it. So this Christmas, let's remember, it's not 00:28:08.180 --> 00:28:11.019 about the tree and the perfection or the lights 00:28:11.019 --> 00:28:14.319 in the yard or the presents or the sandalists. 00:28:15.440 --> 00:28:20.259 That all is garbage when it comes to Jesus. And 00:28:20.259 --> 00:28:21.920 it's not that we don't celebrate it. It's not 00:28:21.920 --> 00:28:23.559 that we don't embrace it. It's not that we don't 00:28:23.559 --> 00:28:25.880 have fun with it and make it a part of our family's 00:28:25.880 --> 00:28:30.359 traditions. It just means it can't be what it's 00:28:30.359 --> 00:28:35.359 about because it's not. It's commercialism. That's 00:28:35.359 --> 00:28:43.839 what that is. We are talking about Jesus. As 00:28:43.839 --> 00:28:47.059 a pastor now for 28 years, I hear, People say 00:28:47.059 --> 00:28:50.299 to me all the time, and maybe you've heard the 00:28:50.299 --> 00:28:52.640 same thing said from a friend, and typically 00:28:52.640 --> 00:28:55.619 what happens is when I hear these words, time 00:28:55.619 --> 00:28:59.119 has passed, which means the wound is now a scar, 00:28:59.380 --> 00:29:02.740 meaning maybe months or years have come and gone 00:29:02.740 --> 00:29:04.940 in these cases, and they'll look at me and say, 00:29:05.000 --> 00:29:07.440 you know, Chris, I never would have asked to 00:29:07.440 --> 00:29:12.079 go through that situation. I never would have 00:29:12.079 --> 00:29:14.710 invited it. to be a part of my life, but because 00:29:14.710 --> 00:29:16.529 of what God has done, I would never choose to 00:29:16.529 --> 00:29:22.349 remove it. It's who I am. Because that's somebody 00:29:22.349 --> 00:29:24.009 who has their eyes set on something different. 00:29:25.730 --> 00:29:27.950 That's somebody who has their eyes set on eternity, 00:29:28.049 --> 00:29:31.509 on the kingdom of God, on Jesus. And in Hebrews 00:29:31.509 --> 00:29:35.150 12 too, we see a picture that paints this picture 00:29:35.150 --> 00:29:39.680 from Jesus perfectly. Hebrews 12, 2, we do this 00:29:39.680 --> 00:29:42.720 by keeping our eyes on Jesus, the champion who 00:29:42.720 --> 00:29:45.019 initiates and perfects our faith. Now look at 00:29:45.019 --> 00:29:48.000 this. Here's the word that we're focusing on 00:29:48.000 --> 00:29:53.059 this week. Because of the joy awaiting him, he 00:29:53.059 --> 00:29:55.920 endured the cross disregarding his shame. Now 00:29:55.920 --> 00:29:58.359 he was seated in the place of honor beside God's 00:29:58.359 --> 00:30:01.140 throne. So a couple questions for you to ponder. 00:30:01.960 --> 00:30:08.730 What's joyous about the cross? Is being flogged 00:30:08.730 --> 00:30:13.309 and beaten joyous? That's not joyous at all. 00:30:13.849 --> 00:30:16.690 Is being stripped naked and having a crown of 00:30:16.690 --> 00:30:19.170 thorns shoved on top of your head, is that joyous? 00:30:20.470 --> 00:30:22.869 How about being crucified with spikes running 00:30:22.869 --> 00:30:24.630 through your wrists and through your feet and 00:30:24.630 --> 00:30:29.329 dying a suffocating death on that cross? There's 00:30:29.329 --> 00:30:33.670 nothing joyous about that. But I just read for 00:30:33.670 --> 00:30:37.259 you that the Bible says it... is for the joy 00:30:37.259 --> 00:30:41.539 that was set before him. See, Jesus' mind wasn't 00:30:41.539 --> 00:30:44.720 on all of that. It was on something different. 00:30:44.759 --> 00:30:48.920 It was on you and me. It was the joy that he 00:30:48.920 --> 00:30:51.720 could just know that you could experience forgiveness, 00:30:51.980 --> 00:30:54.400 that you could experience God's love, that you 00:30:54.400 --> 00:30:58.640 could understand grace, that the weight that 00:30:58.640 --> 00:31:01.319 you're feeling right now, the burden that you're 00:31:01.319 --> 00:31:04.940 carrying can be lifted and removed. And it's 00:31:04.940 --> 00:31:07.799 that joy that drove him to the cross. It was 00:31:07.799 --> 00:31:10.119 the freedom that you can find from your addiction 00:31:10.119 --> 00:31:12.619 that holds you captive. You can be set free. 00:31:13.359 --> 00:31:17.059 It was the joy that he knew you could have. And 00:31:17.059 --> 00:31:19.599 because of it, what did Jesus do? He went to 00:31:19.599 --> 00:31:25.539 the cross. And he died a credulous death. And 00:31:25.539 --> 00:31:27.460 it's because of that you can experience great 00:31:27.460 --> 00:31:33.299 joy. See, we see Jesus look past his circumstances 00:31:33.299 --> 00:31:37.099 and make a dedicated and specific decision to 00:31:37.099 --> 00:31:43.940 focus on what? Joy. Joy is separated from our 00:31:43.940 --> 00:31:49.299 circumstances. Joy is centered on Jesus and the 00:31:49.299 --> 00:31:56.240 goodness he brings to our lives. I want you to 00:31:56.240 --> 00:31:59.170 think about this for just a second. Because we 00:31:59.170 --> 00:32:01.650 spend so much time and a lot of energy trying 00:32:01.650 --> 00:32:05.190 to find happiness and comfort in all the wrong 00:32:05.190 --> 00:32:13.289 places. Joy is found in one person and in one 00:32:13.289 --> 00:32:19.109 place. And his name is Jesus. But there is an 00:32:19.109 --> 00:32:23.230 enemy of joy. And it has nothing to do with pain. 00:32:23.960 --> 00:32:26.220 leading us to our final fall. The greatest enemy 00:32:26.220 --> 00:32:31.140 of joy is distraction. Especially during this 00:32:31.140 --> 00:32:33.440 Christmas season, the reason you can feel burned 00:32:33.440 --> 00:32:37.180 out, tired, stressed out, and negative is because 00:32:37.180 --> 00:32:40.599 we're focusing on everything else rather than 00:32:40.599 --> 00:32:44.839 Jesus. The decorations, the presents, the dinners, 00:32:44.839 --> 00:32:49.710 the traditions. And suddenly when you get into 00:32:49.710 --> 00:32:51.630 this season, it's like your eyes are focused 00:32:51.630 --> 00:32:53.690 on so many things. I got to go to this party 00:32:53.690 --> 00:32:56.109 and that tradition and light this tree and go 00:32:56.109 --> 00:32:59.029 see those trees and this. And your eyes are everywhere 00:32:59.029 --> 00:33:04.490 and it's not focused on the one. And it's slight. 00:33:05.450 --> 00:33:10.329 And we tell everyone, but it's all for God. But 00:33:10.329 --> 00:33:14.099 slowly but surely we lose our focus. And the 00:33:14.099 --> 00:33:16.460 angel proclaimed in Luke 2 .10, don't be afraid. 00:33:16.519 --> 00:33:18.339 I bring you good news that will be great joy 00:33:18.339 --> 00:33:21.440 for all people. And there's so many Jesus followers 00:33:21.440 --> 00:33:24.000 walking around during this season, miserable, 00:33:24.059 --> 00:33:27.180 upset, and frustrated when it's the greatest 00:33:27.180 --> 00:33:31.920 opportunity to change the world. Because people 00:33:31.920 --> 00:33:34.279 that don't go to church are hungry to be invited 00:33:34.279 --> 00:33:38.299 to church during this season. They want to know 00:33:38.299 --> 00:33:43.630 what it's all about. And so many of us, we make 00:33:43.630 --> 00:33:47.130 a simple mistake. I know I do. And it sounds 00:33:47.130 --> 00:33:51.089 like this. We let our one days rob us of our 00:33:51.089 --> 00:33:55.329 two days. We let our one days rob us of our two 00:33:55.329 --> 00:33:57.369 days. And what do I mean by that? Well, one day 00:33:57.369 --> 00:34:00.089 we're going to get married. One day when I'm 00:34:00.089 --> 00:34:03.789 healed. One day when I have my dream job. Or 00:34:03.789 --> 00:34:08.440 one day when my spouse finally changes. One day 00:34:08.440 --> 00:34:12.400 when I find balance. One day when my ex would 00:34:12.400 --> 00:34:16.039 leave me alone. Whenever I have enough money, 00:34:16.139 --> 00:34:20.039 that one day. And see, that one day robs us of 00:34:20.039 --> 00:34:25.860 our today. That's why Jesus said in Matthew 6, 00:34:25.900 --> 00:34:27.860 34, don't worry about tomorrow, for tomorrow 00:34:27.860 --> 00:34:30.739 will bring its own worries. Today's trouble is 00:34:30.739 --> 00:34:35.659 enough for today. Amen. And if it's not our one 00:34:35.659 --> 00:34:37.940 days, you know what it is? It's our yesterdays. 00:34:38.500 --> 00:34:41.340 Oh, if I wouldn't have said those words, if I 00:34:41.340 --> 00:34:44.059 could only take them back, if I only savored 00:34:44.059 --> 00:34:46.300 that moment, if I didn't make that choice, if 00:34:46.300 --> 00:34:50.400 that wouldn't have happened to me, if only. And 00:34:50.400 --> 00:34:55.519 the yesterday starts to mess up our today. And 00:34:55.519 --> 00:34:58.420 here's the reality. All of us woke up this morning, 00:34:58.460 --> 00:35:00.980 opened our eyes, and allowed our feet to hit 00:35:00.980 --> 00:35:07.239 the floor. And that in itself is a miracle. A 00:35:07.239 --> 00:35:09.880 miracle that should release joy into our hearts. 00:35:09.960 --> 00:35:12.239 Paul writes in Romans 8, 1 through 2, so now 00:35:12.239 --> 00:35:14.840 there's no condemnation for those who long to 00:35:14.840 --> 00:35:17.980 Christ Jesus. And because you belong to him, 00:35:18.019 --> 00:35:19.679 the power of the life -giving spirit has freed 00:35:19.679 --> 00:35:21.639 you from the power of sin that leads to death. 00:35:22.679 --> 00:35:25.019 See, we've been freed from the pain of our past. 00:35:26.570 --> 00:35:29.329 So that we can focus on our today, which leads 00:35:29.329 --> 00:35:32.610 us to our simple action step, experiencing great 00:35:32.610 --> 00:35:35.409 joy. Friends, we simply need to daily choose 00:35:35.409 --> 00:35:41.769 joy. Friends, we need to daily choose joy. Paul 00:35:41.769 --> 00:35:44.429 writes to the church in Philippians 4, for always 00:35:44.429 --> 00:35:47.570 be full of joy in the Lord. I say it again, rejoice. 00:35:48.190 --> 00:35:50.250 And I did some studying of the Greek and the 00:35:50.250 --> 00:35:53.150 Hebrew for you on that word, always. And you 00:35:53.150 --> 00:35:54.769 know what it means in the Greek and the Hebrew? 00:35:55.760 --> 00:36:03.340 It means always. So when Paul says, always be 00:36:03.340 --> 00:36:05.719 full of joy in the Lord, he means it. And not 00:36:05.719 --> 00:36:09.460 only does he mean always being always, he reinforces 00:36:09.460 --> 00:36:15.880 it, and he says, again I say, rejoice. And Paul's 00:36:15.880 --> 00:36:18.820 trying to tell us that we constantly need to 00:36:18.820 --> 00:36:22.119 be focused on God's unchanging presence, faithfulness, 00:36:22.139 --> 00:36:26.199 and power. Even in the midst of hardship. It's 00:36:26.199 --> 00:36:30.639 a choice to share your testimony. It's a choice. 00:36:31.199 --> 00:36:35.519 It's an inner joy rooted in Jesus. And it's much 00:36:35.519 --> 00:36:39.159 different than temporary happiness. When we rejoice 00:36:39.159 --> 00:36:41.980 and are full of joy, then Psalm 1611 becomes 00:36:41.980 --> 00:36:44.860 a way of life. You will show me the way of life, 00:36:44.920 --> 00:36:48.340 granting me the joy of your presence and the 00:36:48.340 --> 00:36:52.380 pleasures of living with you forever. The joy 00:36:52.380 --> 00:36:54.840 of your presence is available to every single 00:36:54.840 --> 00:36:58.260 one of us. But again, it's a what church? It's 00:36:58.260 --> 00:37:05.619 a choice. So recently I was at a funeral. And 00:37:05.619 --> 00:37:07.800 when I was there, they started showing a video 00:37:07.800 --> 00:37:11.980 with a bunch of pictures in it. As I started 00:37:11.980 --> 00:37:14.239 watching this video and all the pictures of the 00:37:14.239 --> 00:37:18.260 person who had passed away, I began to weep and 00:37:18.260 --> 00:37:21.739 thought to myself, I wonder if they knew that 00:37:21.739 --> 00:37:23.960 picture was going to end up in their funeral 00:37:23.960 --> 00:37:29.460 camera roll. And of course the answer is no, 00:37:29.500 --> 00:37:33.719 they didn't know that, neither do you or I. But 00:37:33.719 --> 00:37:35.719 then I began to think, I wonder if they knew 00:37:35.719 --> 00:37:40.420 that there was joy in that moment. I wonder, 00:37:40.500 --> 00:37:46.880 did they see it? Did they experience it? And 00:37:46.880 --> 00:37:49.119 I tell you, it was so impactful on my heart, 00:37:49.159 --> 00:37:52.039 on my life, that for the last few weeks, every 00:37:52.039 --> 00:37:56.219 time I pull out my phone, I pause and I find 00:37:56.219 --> 00:38:01.059 myself looking at pictures. And I look at those 00:38:01.059 --> 00:38:05.500 pictures and I ask myself an honest question. 00:38:05.519 --> 00:38:11.380 I say, do I see it? Do I see joy in that photo? 00:38:13.019 --> 00:38:15.980 Now, in fact, every time I take a picture, I, 00:38:16.119 --> 00:38:19.500 in my mind, pause for a second. I think I'm in 00:38:19.500 --> 00:38:22.280 it. I want to be in this moment. I want to feel 00:38:22.280 --> 00:38:31.460 it. I want to experience the joy. The joy that 00:38:31.460 --> 00:38:34.380 is beyond my current circumstances or anxiety 00:38:34.380 --> 00:38:39.480 or stress or whatever it may be. So Jess and 00:38:39.480 --> 00:38:44.780 I have been discussing how our Lily is graduating 00:38:44.780 --> 00:38:49.019 this year. So I started looking at a bunch of 00:38:49.019 --> 00:38:55.880 pictures of my family. And as I was looking at 00:38:55.880 --> 00:38:59.920 these pictures of my family, I began to find 00:38:59.920 --> 00:39:03.239 the joy in them. And I want to share a couple 00:39:03.239 --> 00:39:07.699 with you if that's okay. Here's our first picture 00:39:07.699 --> 00:39:17.239 of Lily. And that's Lily as a baby, and you can 00:39:17.239 --> 00:39:20.840 see her smile, and she was always attached to 00:39:20.840 --> 00:39:25.280 Daddy's hip. And you see in the next picture, 00:39:25.340 --> 00:39:28.619 we're at the zoo, and there she is again at my 00:39:28.619 --> 00:39:35.139 hip. Gosh, I was young. And that's my three girls 00:39:35.139 --> 00:39:40.079 staring at the hippopotamus spreading poop all 00:39:40.079 --> 00:39:47.250 through. And it's funny, as I was looking at 00:39:47.250 --> 00:39:54.849 these pictures, Lily smiled. It was special to 00:39:54.849 --> 00:39:59.929 us because we lost, had two miscarriages before 00:39:59.929 --> 00:40:03.889 Lily came. And that's why her middle name is 00:40:03.889 --> 00:40:09.389 Joy. Because she's full of joy. And in our next 00:40:09.389 --> 00:40:13.440 picture, you'll see that Lily was actually the 00:40:13.440 --> 00:40:17.420 first baby in the church. She was the first baby 00:40:17.420 --> 00:40:19.199 that was part of our community of faith, and 00:40:19.199 --> 00:40:22.840 that was our family picture from a photography 00:40:22.840 --> 00:40:25.460 company that wanted to send and make $1 ,000 00:40:25.460 --> 00:40:30.719 off our church because we were so small. But 00:40:30.719 --> 00:40:35.179 it was still a good picture. And in our next 00:40:35.179 --> 00:40:39.960 photo, you'll see Lily loves softball, just like 00:40:39.960 --> 00:40:47.280 her older sister. Do we actually win the championship 00:40:47.280 --> 00:40:50.699 there? You see Nolan photobombing in the back. 00:40:53.159 --> 00:40:55.260 He looks that way because I had to drive 100 00:40:55.260 --> 00:40:57.900 miles an hour to get to the game to win the championship 00:40:57.900 --> 00:41:02.159 because I was their coach. So I came and preached 00:41:02.159 --> 00:41:04.360 with all of you and then went and won a championship. 00:41:05.219 --> 00:41:07.380 Not only does she play softball, though, she 00:41:07.380 --> 00:41:11.159 was the good citizen of the year or month or 00:41:11.159 --> 00:41:14.610 something at school. That was her fifth grade 00:41:14.610 --> 00:41:21.750 picture. And again, you see the smile. And then 00:41:21.750 --> 00:41:24.650 our son, oldest son, Isaac, graduated, and that's 00:41:24.650 --> 00:41:28.389 our family picture. And you can see our children 00:41:28.389 --> 00:41:37.130 growing up. And in our next photo, we love sports. 00:41:38.369 --> 00:41:48.139 And we love being together. It's a family. And 00:41:48.139 --> 00:41:50.300 the next one you're going to see Lily's 16th 00:41:50.300 --> 00:41:55.619 birthday was out in a field for a picnic. Oh 00:41:55.619 --> 00:41:58.239 no, she's helping me decorate this building. 00:42:00.260 --> 00:42:04.760 So that was before this place even opened. And 00:42:04.760 --> 00:42:11.340 then it's her 16th birthday. I think. Yep. We 00:42:11.340 --> 00:42:15.199 were having a picnic in the field. And in our 00:42:15.199 --> 00:42:22.920 next picture, you're going to see the family 00:42:22.920 --> 00:42:26.239 together again. This was just a few weeks ago. 00:42:27.320 --> 00:42:30.380 Lily is now signed and committed to play at Florida 00:42:30.380 --> 00:42:32.480 Atlantic University on a full ride scholarship 00:42:32.480 --> 00:42:38.920 for softball. And you see in the next picture, 00:42:39.000 --> 00:42:45.460 she's full of joy. And FAU is full of joy to 00:42:45.460 --> 00:42:57.500 have her. Look at the next slide. And in our 00:42:57.500 --> 00:43:02.179 next slide, that was a Father's Day. And it's 00:43:02.179 --> 00:43:04.079 interesting, as you go through pictures on your 00:43:04.079 --> 00:43:07.920 phone, that was a Father's Day picture. And my 00:43:07.920 --> 00:43:10.139 oldest daughter, Trinity, was upset that she 00:43:10.139 --> 00:43:11.920 wasn't in the picture, so she scanned herself 00:43:11.920 --> 00:43:21.579 in. And Zoe too. But what's interesting about 00:43:21.579 --> 00:43:23.780 this picture is when I looked at this picture, 00:43:23.880 --> 00:43:35.059 I saw the next picture. And that next picture 00:43:35.059 --> 00:43:42.219 is actually the last picture that I took with 00:43:42.219 --> 00:43:57.309 my dad. so much joy to see it and live it. But 00:43:57.309 --> 00:44:00.989 I gotta tell you something. I know life's hard 00:44:00.989 --> 00:44:05.250 and I know we're challenged daily, but you can 00:44:05.250 --> 00:44:08.489 live with joy if you make the choice. So what 00:44:08.489 --> 00:44:10.070 I want you to do, we're gonna sing here in a 00:44:10.070 --> 00:44:12.769 second. I want you to take your phone out and 00:44:12.769 --> 00:44:15.050 I want you to look at a picture right now. I'm 00:44:15.050 --> 00:44:20.019 serious, do it. Take your phone out. And if you 00:44:20.019 --> 00:44:22.639 got a flip phone, get with the program, man. 00:44:24.519 --> 00:44:27.340 Like, get a phone you can have a picture on. 00:44:29.000 --> 00:44:33.559 I want you to look at a picture. And I want you 00:44:33.559 --> 00:44:38.159 to find joy in that picture. I want you to see 00:44:38.159 --> 00:44:40.599 yourself there in the moment that it was taken. 00:44:41.440 --> 00:44:44.340 And I want you to see the joy of that moment. 00:44:46.119 --> 00:44:48.900 And I want you to be reminded that every day 00:44:48.900 --> 00:44:52.860 is a choice. Every day is a choice to experience 00:44:52.860 --> 00:44:55.820 joy. So we're going to sing here in a second. 00:44:57.360 --> 00:45:02.400 But listen, none of this happens without Jesus. 00:45:03.360 --> 00:45:06.300 The reason I do what I do is because of the burden 00:45:06.300 --> 00:45:09.320 that God put on my heart to see people come into 00:45:09.320 --> 00:45:11.639 a relationship with Him, to see marriages healed, 00:45:11.739 --> 00:45:14.519 to see people restored. And we're going to pray 00:45:14.519 --> 00:45:16.539 a simple prayer now as you're looking at that 00:45:16.539 --> 00:45:19.619 picture. I'm going to invite you, if you're distant 00:45:19.619 --> 00:45:21.940 or far from God and never came into that relationship, 00:45:22.179 --> 00:45:24.940 now's your chance. Amen. Let's pray together. 00:45:25.920 --> 00:45:34.059 Jesus, I'm broken. I'm full of shame, regret, 00:45:34.300 --> 00:45:42.619 sin. Change me. I believe you're God's son. I 00:45:42.619 --> 00:45:48.179 believe you died for me. Make me new. Set me 00:45:48.179 --> 00:45:52.400 free. Fill me with your spirit. Help me, God, 00:45:52.519 --> 00:45:58.639 to serve others. In Jesus' name, amen. So if 00:45:58.639 --> 00:46:01.119 you prayed that prayer, see me. I want to give 00:46:01.119 --> 00:46:03.300 you some next steps, tell you to get baptized. 00:46:03.320 --> 00:46:07.690 But more importantly, stand with me now. As we 00:46:07.690 --> 00:46:10.170 worship and pray. And listen, no matter your 00:46:10.170 --> 00:46:13.329 circumstances and what you brought in here, make 00:46:13.329 --> 00:46:17.769 a choice to worship and allow the joy to fill 00:46:17.769 --> 00:46:19.789 your heart so that you can go and give it away. 00:46:38.059 --> 00:46:39.559 I was deep, I was deep, I was...