WEBVTT 00:00:00.300 --> 00:00:04.740 Morning. I don't know if you caught it, but Austin 00:00:04.740 --> 00:00:08.519 referenced that, you know, fifth grade through 00:00:08.519 --> 00:00:12.660 where they are now. And I knew Austin in seventh 00:00:12.660 --> 00:00:19.100 grade, which makes me feel really old. But you 00:00:19.100 --> 00:00:21.960 guys, what a gift to the church. I don't know 00:00:21.960 --> 00:00:25.300 if you're familiar with this or not, but youth 00:00:25.300 --> 00:00:28.100 pastors, kind of the tenure of youth pastors. 00:00:28.880 --> 00:00:32.399 in the current climate of church world. And you're 00:00:32.399 --> 00:00:35.000 looking at roughly about two years. Every two 00:00:35.000 --> 00:00:38.179 years, they're moving on to something else. And 00:00:38.179 --> 00:00:42.020 Austin has been here for the long haul. And it's 00:00:42.020 --> 00:00:44.719 just an honor to have him, to watch him continue 00:00:44.719 --> 00:00:47.979 to pour out. You just saw the hardest part, or 00:00:47.979 --> 00:00:50.840 one of the hardest parts of youth ministry is 00:00:50.840 --> 00:00:53.700 the, I have you for this space of time and get 00:00:53.700 --> 00:00:57.679 to pour into you. and then I release you. That's 00:00:57.679 --> 00:01:00.039 so hard to do when you give your heart and your 00:01:00.039 --> 00:01:03.859 soul and everything that you are. And so as a 00:01:03.859 --> 00:01:05.379 church family, we're just so blessed with our 00:01:05.379 --> 00:01:08.879 youth team and so blessed with Austin and his 00:01:08.879 --> 00:01:10.700 longevity. And so I would love it if we could 00:01:10.700 --> 00:01:12.840 just honor him real quick, like give it up for 00:01:12.840 --> 00:01:23.180 Austin. With that, welcome to the Wild West. 00:01:24.109 --> 00:01:27.689 That is how today feels. It has been chaotic. 00:01:28.209 --> 00:01:31.849 It has been the Lord has showed up. It has been, 00:01:31.849 --> 00:01:35.489 hey, this was our plan and we went this way. 00:01:36.230 --> 00:01:38.670 So who knows what's going to happen in the next 00:01:38.670 --> 00:01:41.750 30 minutes. Like, I'm excited for you because 00:01:41.750 --> 00:01:44.370 God's going to meet you where you are. But I 00:01:44.370 --> 00:01:47.069 think one of the things that is highlighted in 00:01:47.069 --> 00:01:50.709 this morning is when you look at not just here, 00:01:50.790 --> 00:01:53.439 but also it. at Prescott Valley Park Collective 00:01:53.439 --> 00:01:57.700 this weekend and honoring our students, but also 00:01:57.700 --> 00:02:01.019 dedicating children. And I would just say this, 00:02:01.040 --> 00:02:06.920 the need for community is so important. The need 00:02:06.920 --> 00:02:11.539 for community to help navigate the seasons of 00:02:11.539 --> 00:02:14.039 life is so important. And here's what I mean. 00:02:14.120 --> 00:02:16.759 If you've ever raised a teenager, there is a 00:02:16.759 --> 00:02:19.280 moment with your teenager that you go, I don't 00:02:19.280 --> 00:02:22.550 know who you are. Who did you become, right? 00:02:22.650 --> 00:02:25.810 Or you're giving your teenager great advice, 00:02:25.949 --> 00:02:28.050 and you walk away kind of high -fiving your wife 00:02:28.050 --> 00:02:33.050 like, yes, I nailed it, and they go to youth 00:02:33.050 --> 00:02:35.310 and sit with their youth leader, and their youth 00:02:35.310 --> 00:02:38.349 leader tells them the exact same thing, and they 00:02:38.349 --> 00:02:40.169 come home and go, oh, my gosh, you should hear 00:02:40.169 --> 00:02:42.069 about the conversation I had with my youth leader. 00:02:42.569 --> 00:02:44.469 Like, listen to what they said, and you're like, 00:02:44.569 --> 00:02:47.150 I've been saying this for six months, right? 00:02:47.810 --> 00:02:51.169 But the reality is... There is a need in all 00:02:51.169 --> 00:02:54.349 of us for community. This conversation around 00:02:54.349 --> 00:02:58.150 limits, right? The idea that you think you have 00:02:58.150 --> 00:03:02.509 all your limits figured out, you don't. You got 00:03:02.509 --> 00:03:05.629 blind spots. All of us have blind spots. We need 00:03:05.629 --> 00:03:08.789 community to go, hey, you aren't seeing this 00:03:08.789 --> 00:03:10.550 right. There was a number of years ago for me. 00:03:12.240 --> 00:03:14.699 It was quite a while ago now, but the elders 00:03:14.699 --> 00:03:17.159 at one point came to me and went, hey, you need 00:03:17.159 --> 00:03:20.080 a sabbatical. You are not doing well. And I was 00:03:20.080 --> 00:03:23.419 like, I'm fine. I don't know what you mean. And 00:03:23.419 --> 00:03:26.419 they're like, no, we're pretty sure you do. And 00:03:26.419 --> 00:03:29.740 they were 100 % accurate. I was way beyond my 00:03:29.740 --> 00:03:33.259 limits. And they needed somebody to come alongside 00:03:33.259 --> 00:03:37.199 and go, hey, we need to spend some time and change 00:03:37.199 --> 00:03:40.789 this. And so in this conversation around limits, 00:03:40.870 --> 00:03:44.370 the idea of community entering into the conversation, 00:03:44.689 --> 00:03:46.810 this is why it's important that you are anchored 00:03:46.810 --> 00:03:49.270 to a life group. This is why it's important that 00:03:49.270 --> 00:03:51.569 you sit down at some point this week across the 00:03:51.569 --> 00:03:54.750 table with somebody who knows you and let them 00:03:54.750 --> 00:03:58.250 breathe into you where you have blind spots. 00:03:59.090 --> 00:04:05.169 Because the reality is we all have limits. And 00:04:05.169 --> 00:04:08.219 when you know your limits, you can figure out 00:04:08.219 --> 00:04:11.060 your path. This week, I got to do something. 00:04:12.199 --> 00:04:16.439 My youngest has been a part of a climbing club. 00:04:17.060 --> 00:04:19.660 And my wife's been like, for a little while, 00:04:19.740 --> 00:04:21.060 she's like, you got to go, you got to go, you 00:04:21.060 --> 00:04:23.519 got to go, you got to go. And I'm like, you know, 00:04:23.579 --> 00:04:25.120 I'm busy. Like, I'll figure it out. I'll get 00:04:25.120 --> 00:04:27.139 it in my schedule. Well, this past Thursday, 00:04:27.279 --> 00:04:30.000 and I think we have a video, I got to go and 00:04:30.000 --> 00:04:34.240 experience climbing club. And I didn't know, 00:04:34.360 --> 00:04:37.120 there's a whole thing behind this, right? Like 00:04:37.120 --> 00:04:40.540 there's a whole, you step up to the wall and 00:04:40.540 --> 00:04:43.339 there's little pieces of paper and it tells you 00:04:43.339 --> 00:04:46.660 what level that is, right? So my daughter's educating 00:04:46.660 --> 00:04:49.319 me on what level she is. She's showing me different 00:04:49.319 --> 00:04:52.500 ones and she's like, dad, this is a 5 .9, this 00:04:52.500 --> 00:04:56.980 is a 5 .9 plus, this is a 5 .10. And so it determines 00:04:56.980 --> 00:04:59.660 if you're gonna use the color, you know what 00:04:59.660 --> 00:05:02.139 level that color is before you begin your climb. 00:05:02.800 --> 00:05:06.160 And so in listening to this, I'm watching her. 00:05:06.220 --> 00:05:09.800 This one is at her level. And so she knows that 00:05:09.800 --> 00:05:13.879 as she steps into it, she's done this. She knows 00:05:13.879 --> 00:05:16.500 what it is. She's capable of it because she knows 00:05:16.500 --> 00:05:18.959 what level she's at. And she made it to the top. 00:05:19.019 --> 00:05:21.360 Just saying. Just saying. She made it to the 00:05:21.360 --> 00:05:27.740 top. But because she knew her level, she knew 00:05:27.740 --> 00:05:31.139 her path. I also watched her go to ones that 00:05:31.139 --> 00:05:34.259 were above her level. And as she got to those, 00:05:34.339 --> 00:05:37.920 she was unsure of how to navigate the different 00:05:37.920 --> 00:05:40.819 steps ahead of her because it was beyond the 00:05:40.819 --> 00:05:43.180 level she was at. When you know your level, you 00:05:43.180 --> 00:05:46.220 know your path. When you know your limits, you 00:05:46.220 --> 00:05:49.459 know your path. And it's really important that 00:05:49.459 --> 00:05:51.019 we understand. Now, here's another interesting 00:05:51.019 --> 00:05:54.339 thing from Climbing Club. Her limits are unique 00:05:54.339 --> 00:05:59.560 to her. Her limits are what she is at, what she 00:05:59.560 --> 00:06:02.399 is capable of, right? And I think it's interesting 00:06:02.399 --> 00:06:05.220 that culturally we just throw the same limit 00:06:05.220 --> 00:06:07.560 on everybody, that if I should be able to do 00:06:07.560 --> 00:06:09.800 this, you should be able to do that. Who says 00:06:09.800 --> 00:06:14.579 that? What's the assumption that all humans are 00:06:14.579 --> 00:06:17.459 exactly the same? I don't play an instrument. 00:06:18.639 --> 00:06:21.379 My level of playing an instrument is very, very, 00:06:21.399 --> 00:06:27.240 very low. I watched you. We struggle as a church 00:06:27.240 --> 00:06:31.939 for some rhythm sometimes. That first song should 00:06:31.939 --> 00:06:34.800 have had your hips moving. And you guys aren't 00:06:34.800 --> 00:06:36.680 even sure how to bob your head, some of you. 00:06:36.720 --> 00:06:38.680 You know what I'm saying? Like there should have 00:06:38.680 --> 00:06:41.699 been movement and rhythm, right? You have a limit. 00:06:43.579 --> 00:06:45.860 Now, you throw that to somebody else who was 00:06:45.860 --> 00:06:49.199 up here, their limit's different. Why? Because 00:06:49.199 --> 00:06:52.720 limits are unique. Limits are unique. I think 00:06:52.720 --> 00:06:54.379 what's interesting with the conversation around 00:06:54.379 --> 00:06:56.860 limits, when you know your limit, you know your 00:06:56.860 --> 00:07:00.509 path. But I think sometimes we assume limits 00:07:00.509 --> 00:07:04.709 are bad. Sometimes I think culturally, we assume 00:07:04.709 --> 00:07:07.069 that limits need to be overcome. They're just 00:07:07.069 --> 00:07:09.269 barriers to get around, right? Like if you're 00:07:09.269 --> 00:07:11.790 really a high achiever, you just get over that. 00:07:12.870 --> 00:07:15.389 I'm curious where we get that from because I'm 00:07:15.389 --> 00:07:18.089 not sure it's in the Bible. Here's what I mean. 00:07:18.389 --> 00:07:21.350 If you open Genesis chapter two, so we're in 00:07:21.350 --> 00:07:24.329 the creation narrative. God is creating everything 00:07:24.329 --> 00:07:26.269 and putting it all together, right? And in verse 00:07:26.269 --> 00:07:28.639 seven, it says this. Then the Lord God formed 00:07:28.639 --> 00:07:30.639 a man from the dust of the ground and breathed 00:07:30.639 --> 00:07:33.699 into his nostrils the breath of life. And the 00:07:33.699 --> 00:07:37.459 man became a living being. God, the language 00:07:37.459 --> 00:07:40.899 here is God is a potter, and as a potter, he 00:07:40.899 --> 00:07:44.939 is forming something. He is taking dirt, he's 00:07:44.939 --> 00:07:47.519 taking the dust, and he is forming the human 00:07:47.519 --> 00:07:51.879 frame. There is limitations to what God is creating. 00:07:52.920 --> 00:07:55.579 Humans are limited by the frame they create. 00:07:55.680 --> 00:07:59.600 You know how I know? You don't have wings. God 00:07:59.600 --> 00:08:02.540 didn't create you with wings. And yet as humans, 00:08:02.600 --> 00:08:05.920 we love to what? Fly. But none of you can fly 00:08:05.920 --> 00:08:09.300 without something helping you fly. Right? Why? 00:08:09.420 --> 00:08:11.759 Because God created limitations to the human 00:08:11.759 --> 00:08:15.160 frame. God created limitations. You don't have 00:08:15.160 --> 00:08:17.519 gills. We like to make superheroes with gills, 00:08:17.660 --> 00:08:20.620 right? Why? Because we're obsessed with living 00:08:20.620 --> 00:08:24.699 in places that we're not capable of. You were 00:08:24.699 --> 00:08:30.379 created with a... You have physical, physical 00:08:30.379 --> 00:08:36.320 limits. The next verse says this. Now the Lord 00:08:36.320 --> 00:08:38.799 God had planted a garden in the east in Eden, 00:08:38.899 --> 00:08:41.360 and there he put the man he had formed. So the 00:08:41.360 --> 00:08:44.340 man he's created, shaped with limits, he now 00:08:44.340 --> 00:08:47.899 puts into spatial limits. What do I mean by that? 00:08:48.000 --> 00:08:49.940 He puts him into a garden, and the garden had 00:08:49.940 --> 00:08:53.200 boundaries. The garden had, his feet were planted 00:08:53.200 --> 00:08:57.049 in a specific place. Your feet are planted on 00:08:57.049 --> 00:09:00.409 planet Earth, a little blue and green dot floating 00:09:00.409 --> 00:09:03.110 in the atmosphere, in the universe, right? Like 00:09:03.110 --> 00:09:05.309 you have been put here and we try and get outside 00:09:05.309 --> 00:09:07.350 of that. If you get outside of that and you go 00:09:07.350 --> 00:09:09.889 to space and you try and exist outside, you need 00:09:09.889 --> 00:09:12.450 a suit to be able to do it. Why? Because you 00:09:12.450 --> 00:09:17.590 were created in a space that we call home. And 00:09:17.590 --> 00:09:21.570 this space has limits for you. You need the oxygen 00:09:21.570 --> 00:09:26.450 of this space. God created a spatial limit. If 00:09:26.450 --> 00:09:28.850 you look at verse 15, the Lord God took the man 00:09:28.850 --> 00:09:30.750 and put him into the garden of Eden. So we talked 00:09:30.750 --> 00:09:32.250 about that already, right? Like the Lord took 00:09:32.250 --> 00:09:35.490 him, put him in Eden to work it and take care 00:09:35.490 --> 00:09:38.190 of it. What is the limit given by God? If you're 00:09:38.190 --> 00:09:40.090 someone where you're like, I don't know if I 00:09:40.090 --> 00:09:43.250 like work, guess what? You were made for it. 00:09:44.049 --> 00:09:46.750 You were made for purpose. You were made for 00:09:46.750 --> 00:09:50.409 meaning. Your work is something that is put into 00:09:50.409 --> 00:09:53.919 your hands by God. That's what's created here 00:09:53.919 --> 00:09:56.879 is that there is a work for you that has deep 00:09:56.879 --> 00:10:00.200 purpose. He tells the man after he creates him 00:10:00.200 --> 00:10:03.120 with limits and puts him in a spatial, he goes, 00:10:03.200 --> 00:10:06.360 okay, there's a purpose. He creates a limit. 00:10:06.440 --> 00:10:08.879 What is that limit? To take care to steward what 00:10:08.879 --> 00:10:14.399 God has put him in the midst of and around. And 00:10:14.399 --> 00:10:16.950 the Lord God commanded the man. So now in the 00:10:16.950 --> 00:10:18.909 midst of the garden, the Lord God commands the 00:10:18.909 --> 00:10:21.309 man, you are free to eat from any tree in the 00:10:21.309 --> 00:10:23.669 garden, but you must not eat from the tree of 00:10:23.669 --> 00:10:26.009 the knowledge of good and evil. For when you 00:10:26.009 --> 00:10:29.049 eat from it, you will certainly die. What happens? 00:10:29.330 --> 00:10:31.250 He gets put into the garden and gets put into 00:10:31.250 --> 00:10:33.610 the spatial. And then there are limits. Listen 00:10:33.610 --> 00:10:36.210 to this. There are limits to his freedom. There 00:10:36.210 --> 00:10:41.129 are limits to his freedom. Freedom has limits. 00:10:41.750 --> 00:10:44.190 What do I mean by that? He goes, you can eat 00:10:44.190 --> 00:10:47.080 from anything. Any tree. You are free to eat 00:10:47.080 --> 00:10:50.139 from any tree. That is grace, by the way. God 00:10:50.139 --> 00:10:52.279 gets a bad rap at this point because it's like, 00:10:52.360 --> 00:10:53.919 oh, God just doesn't want you to have any fun. 00:10:54.039 --> 00:10:56.139 No, no, no. God gives you every single tree, 00:10:56.240 --> 00:10:58.679 every single thing for good. And he goes, okay, 00:10:58.740 --> 00:11:01.139 inside of that freedom, don't touch this one. 00:11:01.259 --> 00:11:03.879 Don't eat this one. Stay away from this one. 00:11:05.000 --> 00:11:08.039 Right? So even in the midst of creation, God 00:11:08.039 --> 00:11:11.039 creates limits around freedom. We love the songs 00:11:11.039 --> 00:11:12.720 that were like, I'm free, I'm free, I'm free 00:11:12.720 --> 00:11:14.840 indeed. Right? Like we love the songs about our 00:11:14.840 --> 00:11:16.500 freedom. We love messages about our freedom. 00:11:16.580 --> 00:11:19.899 We're free in Christ. Very true. In Christ, in 00:11:19.899 --> 00:11:23.580 your freedom, you still have limits because limits 00:11:23.580 --> 00:11:28.639 are good for you. You may not like that. I don't 00:11:28.639 --> 00:11:30.700 like that. I don't want to live with limits. 00:11:30.759 --> 00:11:33.440 I like if there's a limit, I want to beat it. 00:11:33.659 --> 00:11:37.850 Right? And yet God goes, even in this moment, 00:11:37.889 --> 00:11:40.149 there is freedom. It goes against our culture. 00:11:41.289 --> 00:11:42.950 Freedom means I can do whatever I want whenever 00:11:42.950 --> 00:11:44.730 I want, right? Like freedom means I don't know. 00:11:45.529 --> 00:11:47.730 Freedom that is healthy has limits inside of 00:11:47.730 --> 00:11:53.289 it. You look down at the verse 24. And at this 00:11:53.289 --> 00:11:55.690 point, if you were here last week, God makes 00:11:55.690 --> 00:11:57.929 man fall into sleep and he creates a woman. And 00:11:57.929 --> 00:12:00.710 when he creates a woman, poetry flows out of 00:12:00.710 --> 00:12:03.549 the man. So right before this, the poetry flows 00:12:03.549 --> 00:12:05.190 out of the man, and then he says this in verse 00:12:05.190 --> 00:12:08.549 24. That is why a man leaves his father and mother 00:12:08.549 --> 00:12:12.289 and is united to his wife, and they become one 00:12:12.289 --> 00:12:15.129 flesh. Adam and his wife were both naked and 00:12:15.129 --> 00:12:18.789 felt no shame. So you got poetry, and then you 00:12:18.789 --> 00:12:21.450 got marriage, right? You got poetry, and you 00:12:21.450 --> 00:12:23.389 got marriage. Young men in the room, learn how 00:12:23.389 --> 00:12:25.250 to do poetry, and you'll find yourself in marriage. 00:12:25.429 --> 00:12:28.980 Just saying, right? But what's interesting here 00:12:28.980 --> 00:12:32.879 is there's limits to relationship. He goes, when 00:12:32.879 --> 00:12:36.019 two people are going to commit into a marriage 00:12:36.019 --> 00:12:39.620 relationship, guess who doesn't come along? The 00:12:39.620 --> 00:12:43.240 same relationship you had with your mama. Because 00:12:43.240 --> 00:12:45.700 anybody who has seen a marriage where mama came 00:12:45.700 --> 00:12:49.120 along and is in all the business, or the parents 00:12:49.120 --> 00:12:51.240 are in all the business, it doesn't go well. 00:12:52.009 --> 00:12:55.129 Why? Because we were created with limits relationally. 00:12:55.190 --> 00:12:58.350 When we step into a relationship, it limits other 00:12:58.350 --> 00:13:01.350 ones around it. That's the natural thing that 00:13:01.350 --> 00:13:03.610 God puts in order. Now, why is this important? 00:13:03.750 --> 00:13:06.610 Because this is building a biblical base that 00:13:06.610 --> 00:13:10.450 limits our good, not evil. The way that I know 00:13:10.450 --> 00:13:14.330 this is because God looks at this moment in creation 00:13:14.330 --> 00:13:19.389 and he goes, it is very good. It's very good. 00:13:19.990 --> 00:13:24.480 It's good. That humans have limits is what God 00:13:24.480 --> 00:13:29.480 says. It's good that you exist in a space with 00:13:29.480 --> 00:13:32.480 purpose given by God. That's a limit that you 00:13:32.480 --> 00:13:36.519 need. It's good that you exist in a space where 00:13:36.519 --> 00:13:40.940 relationships are shaped in limits. We have a 00:13:40.940 --> 00:13:42.500 culture right now that says you can do whatever 00:13:42.500 --> 00:13:44.000 you want, whenever you want, with whoever you 00:13:44.000 --> 00:13:45.720 want. No, you can't because there was limits 00:13:45.720 --> 00:13:48.440 given in creation and there are cause and effect. 00:13:49.930 --> 00:13:52.549 Right? There are limits to what I can put in 00:13:52.549 --> 00:13:55.230 my body and I'll be okay. No, you can't. There 00:13:55.230 --> 00:13:59.529 are limits. And God has put them there. And I 00:13:59.529 --> 00:14:02.409 think one of the things we miss is we go, limits 00:14:02.409 --> 00:14:04.549 are bad. Limits are not bad. They are God -given. 00:14:06.309 --> 00:14:08.909 And we have to figure out how do limits work 00:14:08.909 --> 00:14:13.889 today in my world? Because there are two different 00:14:13.889 --> 00:14:15.950 directions we'll go. One is what happens in the 00:14:15.950 --> 00:14:21.309 next chapter. Adam decides, Right? Okay, God, 00:14:21.389 --> 00:14:23.730 you set up these limits. You set up all these 00:14:23.730 --> 00:14:27.009 trees. I can have all of that. And then he finds 00:14:27.009 --> 00:14:28.909 himself hanging out with his wife next to the 00:14:28.909 --> 00:14:30.409 tree that he's not supposed to have, right? And 00:14:30.409 --> 00:14:34.570 what does he do? It's a grasp for autonomy. It's 00:14:34.570 --> 00:14:37.009 a grasp for independence. It's a grasp to be 00:14:37.009 --> 00:14:39.529 outside of the limits. When he steps out of the 00:14:39.529 --> 00:14:42.590 limits that God gave him, catastrophe happens. 00:14:43.509 --> 00:14:46.009 And there's a learning piece in here. What happens 00:14:46.009 --> 00:14:48.210 when you step outside of the limits that God's 00:14:48.210 --> 00:14:51.769 put on you? Let me give you an example. Been 00:14:51.769 --> 00:14:55.529 married to my wife for a hot minute, right? 30 00:14:55.529 --> 00:15:00.070 years if I've got my dates right. Still to this 00:15:00.070 --> 00:15:04.289 day, what is true? God's united us. If I step 00:15:04.289 --> 00:15:08.289 outside of that, there are broken things that 00:15:08.289 --> 00:15:10.610 will happen because I have gone past the limit 00:15:10.610 --> 00:15:15.269 that God put in place, right? And you'd all go, 00:15:15.429 --> 00:15:19.240 hey, that makes sense, don't do it. And yet culturally, 00:15:19.379 --> 00:15:22.639 what is happening over and over and over and 00:15:22.639 --> 00:15:25.620 over? People look at it and go, there's not a 00:15:25.620 --> 00:15:29.080 limit. I don't need to adhere to that. And what 00:15:29.080 --> 00:15:31.759 you have is the same mindset that Adam had that 00:15:31.759 --> 00:15:34.539 goes, I can have all those, but I want that one. 00:15:35.519 --> 00:15:38.320 And so there's a cause and effect to it, a breaking 00:15:38.320 --> 00:15:44.279 through limitation. The other version and model 00:15:44.279 --> 00:15:48.399 that we have is the person of Jesus. And Jesus 00:15:48.399 --> 00:15:53.679 embraced limits. Listen to this. Philippians 00:15:53.679 --> 00:16:01.059 chapter two. Let's go verse six. So Jesus, who 00:16:01.059 --> 00:16:04.840 being in the very nature of God, did not consider 00:16:04.840 --> 00:16:08.179 equality with God something to be used to his 00:16:08.179 --> 00:16:12.580 own advantage. Rather, he made himself nothing 00:16:12.580 --> 00:16:15.840 by taking the very nature of a servant, being 00:16:15.840 --> 00:16:34.429 in. What does Jesus do? Jesus, God himself, limits 00:16:34.429 --> 00:16:40.029 himself to the very frame he created. He puts 00:16:40.029 --> 00:16:42.649 himself, God who is infinite in power, wisdom, 00:16:42.809 --> 00:16:46.330 infinite in knowledge, right? who is everywhere 00:16:46.330 --> 00:16:49.649 all at once, puts himself inside of a frame that 00:16:49.649 --> 00:16:52.610 is stuck and planted spatially to the earth. 00:16:53.370 --> 00:16:56.830 Puts him side of it. This is so stunning, right? 00:16:56.929 --> 00:16:59.409 Because it takes such humility. He's God. He 00:16:59.409 --> 00:17:01.470 could hold on to the fact that I'm God, right? 00:17:01.570 --> 00:17:04.029 And instead he lays that down and he goes, I'm 00:17:04.029 --> 00:17:06.410 going to become the God man who is fully God 00:17:06.410 --> 00:17:10.269 and fully human inside of a limited frame. He 00:17:10.269 --> 00:17:12.910 embraces the limitations of what it means to 00:17:12.910 --> 00:17:15.650 be human. He becomes the model for us. I mean, 00:17:15.670 --> 00:17:17.430 think about it. This is mind -blowing, right? 00:17:18.390 --> 00:17:23.569 That God, who is eternal, takes on a time zone. 00:17:24.549 --> 00:17:27.410 Think about that for a second. God, who only 00:17:27.410 --> 00:17:31.549 knows eternity. A single day with the Lord is 00:17:31.549 --> 00:17:35.769 like a thousand. Right? Like a thousand years. 00:17:36.950 --> 00:17:41.900 And that God takes on this. And lives in a time 00:17:41.900 --> 00:17:46.279 zone and a 24 -hour day. He embraces the limitations 00:17:46.279 --> 00:17:50.740 of what it was. He doesn't shortchange it. Right? 00:17:50.859 --> 00:17:56.019 Think about this. God cut molars. Because he 00:17:56.019 --> 00:18:00.380 grew like everybody else. He sat in a period 00:18:00.380 --> 00:18:03.799 of waiting. So as time is just ticking along, 00:18:04.059 --> 00:18:07.059 right? He's born, but when you see him show up 00:18:07.059 --> 00:18:09.039 in public ministry, he's 30 years old. There's 00:18:09.039 --> 00:18:12.980 30 years there. of waiting. He came with the 00:18:12.980 --> 00:18:14.839 purpose. He knew the purpose. The purpose was 00:18:14.839 --> 00:18:17.500 still the purpose. He had to grow. He put himself 00:18:17.500 --> 00:18:21.900 in the limitations and confinements that we all 00:18:21.900 --> 00:18:24.579 experience. I mean, think about it for a second. 00:18:24.700 --> 00:18:28.640 This one gets me every time. Jesus limited himself 00:18:28.640 --> 00:18:33.299 to the speed of walking. Everywhere he went, 00:18:33.299 --> 00:18:37.369 he walked. The average person, I'm told, walks 00:18:37.369 --> 00:18:39.410 three miles an hour. I was told this week that 00:18:39.410 --> 00:18:44.210 is a brisk walk. So let's say Jesus stays at 00:18:44.210 --> 00:18:46.809 three miles. He moved on the planet at three 00:18:46.809 --> 00:18:50.309 miles per hour, limited himself to it, the God 00:18:50.309 --> 00:18:55.309 of the universe. That's crazy. I'm like, why 00:18:55.309 --> 00:18:59.609 didn't you get a horse? Jesus, why didn't we 00:18:59.609 --> 00:19:01.839 get a chariot? You could have covered so much 00:19:01.839 --> 00:19:03.880 more space and showed everybody and told, right? 00:19:03.940 --> 00:19:05.740 Like we're in church growth strategy, you know? 00:19:06.019 --> 00:19:07.839 And Jesus is like, no, I'm just going to walk, 00:19:07.940 --> 00:19:12.319 man. I'm good. He limited himself to the speed 00:19:12.319 --> 00:19:16.319 of walking. Jesus understands what it means to 00:19:16.319 --> 00:19:22.220 take on limitations. He limited himself relationally. 00:19:23.140 --> 00:19:34.700 If you turn to Mark chapter one. Verse 35. Very 00:19:34.700 --> 00:19:37.579 early in the morning, while it was still dark, 00:19:37.799 --> 00:19:41.480 Jesus got up, left the house, and went off to 00:19:41.480 --> 00:19:44.079 a solitary place where he prayed. There's so 00:19:44.079 --> 00:19:45.680 much packed into here, you guys, when you think 00:19:45.680 --> 00:19:48.119 of limits in Jesus, right? Like very early in 00:19:48.119 --> 00:19:49.579 the morning, which means that he experienced 00:19:49.579 --> 00:19:51.740 night and day, the rhythm that was set in creation, 00:19:52.039 --> 00:19:54.680 24 -hour day. Jesus experienced the same night 00:19:54.680 --> 00:19:56.660 and day that you did. Night and day, night and 00:19:56.660 --> 00:19:58.839 day, that rhythm, right? Inside of that rhythm, 00:19:58.960 --> 00:20:02.680 he leaves a house. So he experienced the need 00:20:02.680 --> 00:20:05.559 and the limitation of, it's not good that I'm 00:20:05.559 --> 00:20:07.900 just outside. I need somewhere to stay. I need 00:20:07.900 --> 00:20:10.960 shelter. He limits himself inside of this. But 00:20:10.960 --> 00:20:15.200 listen to this. Jesus got up, left the house, 00:20:15.259 --> 00:20:19.900 and went off to a solitary place where he prayed. 00:20:22.740 --> 00:20:27.400 The God who is in... community with himself, 00:20:27.660 --> 00:20:30.099 triune God, three in one, Father, Son, Holy Spirit. 00:20:30.480 --> 00:20:33.240 They're in community with themselves because 00:20:33.240 --> 00:20:35.960 of the limitations of being human. Now Jesus 00:20:35.960 --> 00:20:38.559 gets up in the morning, why? So that he can go 00:20:38.559 --> 00:20:43.700 and have a relationship with the Father. So that 00:20:43.700 --> 00:20:46.039 he can go and spend time with his Father. Here's 00:20:46.039 --> 00:20:49.240 where this is so good. Because for you, you have 00:20:49.240 --> 00:20:51.759 the same limitations that Jesus did. He has the 00:20:51.759 --> 00:20:53.759 limitation of time, which is why he got up when? 00:20:54.960 --> 00:20:58.700 Early, because it mattered that much. And it's 00:20:58.700 --> 00:21:01.539 fascinating to me. He's not asking us to do anything 00:21:01.539 --> 00:21:06.660 that he didn't do. Then he models for us, there's 00:21:06.660 --> 00:21:09.220 a rhythm to your life that's so important if 00:21:09.220 --> 00:21:10.740 you're going to live inside of your limits. How 00:21:10.740 --> 00:21:12.740 do I know? Because look what happens next. Verse 00:21:12.740 --> 00:21:16.519 36, Simon and his companions went to look for 00:21:16.519 --> 00:21:20.440 him. And when they found him, excuse me, they 00:21:20.440 --> 00:21:24.470 exclaimed, everyone is looking for you. You ever 00:21:24.470 --> 00:21:26.869 had this moment? Everybody needs you. You ever 00:21:26.869 --> 00:21:29.130 had that, like it feels that way? Like everybody's 00:21:29.130 --> 00:21:33.150 so needy right now. There's so many problems. 00:21:33.250 --> 00:21:35.289 There's so many things to solve. There's so many, 00:21:35.349 --> 00:21:39.349 it's too much. That's the tempo of this. Like 00:21:39.349 --> 00:21:41.509 he gets away and the boys come, right? And the 00:21:41.509 --> 00:21:44.170 companions and they're like, hey, Jesus, everybody's 00:21:44.170 --> 00:21:45.849 looking for you. I heard the story of this one 00:21:45.849 --> 00:21:47.670 lady, like she came from a long way to meet with 00:21:47.670 --> 00:21:56.539 you. She needs you. That's what Jesus says. Verse 00:21:56.539 --> 00:22:00.700 38, Jesus replied, let us go somewhere else. 00:22:01.619 --> 00:22:06.859 Did he not hear him? They need you. They got 00:22:06.859 --> 00:22:10.279 needs. Jesus, you're the only one that can meet 00:22:10.279 --> 00:22:16.420 them. Let us go somewhere else to the nearby 00:22:16.420 --> 00:22:18.940 villages so I can preach there also. Catch this. 00:22:19.059 --> 00:22:24.549 That is why I have come. So he traveled throughout 00:22:24.549 --> 00:22:26.430 Galilee, preaching in their synagogues and driving 00:22:26.430 --> 00:22:28.609 out demons. Wait, wait, wait, wait, Jesus, everybody 00:22:28.609 --> 00:22:32.029 needs you. And Jesus says, no, they had real 00:22:32.029 --> 00:22:35.289 needs. They had people that were broken, that 00:22:35.289 --> 00:22:37.269 were hurting, the people that were sick, that 00:22:37.269 --> 00:22:40.150 needed healing. Like the needs were real. They 00:22:40.150 --> 00:22:44.569 needed the Messiah. But notice where Jesus was 00:22:44.569 --> 00:22:48.710 before he gave his answer. He's talking to who? 00:22:49.130 --> 00:22:53.779 The Father. And he's aligned with what the Father 00:22:53.779 --> 00:22:56.900 wants. And the Father determines what he does 00:22:56.900 --> 00:23:01.920 with his limitations. Because Jesus goes, I could 00:23:01.920 --> 00:23:04.619 stay here and be beyond my limits, or I can step 00:23:04.619 --> 00:23:07.980 into the purpose that he has for me, which is 00:23:07.980 --> 00:23:11.660 to go and do what I came to do. I wonder how 00:23:11.660 --> 00:23:13.700 many of you are living beyond your limits because 00:23:13.700 --> 00:23:15.359 you're answering needs for other people that 00:23:15.359 --> 00:23:18.839 aren't yours to answer. Maybe another way to 00:23:18.839 --> 00:23:21.779 say it is this. Every assignment is not your 00:23:21.779 --> 00:23:25.240 assignment. Every assignment's not your assignment. 00:23:25.559 --> 00:23:29.339 You guys, there's studies around this. How many 00:23:29.339 --> 00:23:33.099 relationships can humans physically handle? Like, 00:23:33.099 --> 00:23:35.660 what are the limitations just in relationships? 00:23:36.299 --> 00:23:40.220 They claim from this study that three to five 00:23:40.220 --> 00:23:45.119 intimate, best friend, daily relationships are 00:23:45.119 --> 00:23:48.920 all you can handle and do well. then you have 00:23:48.920 --> 00:23:51.359 an outer circle to that, and it's 12 people. 00:23:51.480 --> 00:23:54.339 And 12 people are, if the three to five are, 00:23:54.420 --> 00:23:57.180 I will get back to you instantly that day, 12 00:23:57.180 --> 00:23:59.240 are, I'll probably get back to you the next morning 00:23:59.240 --> 00:24:04.099 or later that week, right? Beyond that, some 00:24:04.099 --> 00:24:07.079 say there's a circle of 50 that are like companions 00:24:07.079 --> 00:24:09.579 along the journey, that they're the people that 00:24:09.579 --> 00:24:11.640 like every now and then you grab, you know, every 00:24:11.640 --> 00:24:13.960 six months you grab dinner with or something 00:24:13.960 --> 00:24:15.640 like that, and you kind of have a relationship 00:24:15.640 --> 00:24:18.750 with them or it feels like you do. then the last 00:24:18.750 --> 00:24:21.289 ring, your max amount of people that you can 00:24:21.289 --> 00:24:27.349 be in relationship and know well are 150. 150. 00:24:29.750 --> 00:24:31.289 I don't know how you feel. There's more than 00:24:31.289 --> 00:24:36.210 150 in this gathering. Right? And you all know, 00:24:36.230 --> 00:24:39.569 like the touch points, if that's true, you all 00:24:39.569 --> 00:24:41.910 know 150 other people. Some of that might cross 00:24:41.910 --> 00:24:44.529 over, some of it might not. That's a lot of needs. 00:24:45.309 --> 00:24:49.420 Agreed? And there's no way one person standing 00:24:49.420 --> 00:24:52.180 up here is going to meet all the needs because 00:24:52.180 --> 00:24:56.880 it's not meant to be that way. The idea is that 00:24:56.880 --> 00:24:59.180 we are meeting one another's needs, but here's 00:24:59.180 --> 00:25:01.980 what needs to happen. You need to be walking 00:25:01.980 --> 00:25:03.420 with the Lord. I need to be walking with the 00:25:03.420 --> 00:25:05.519 Lord and going, God, what are you calling me 00:25:05.519 --> 00:25:10.259 to? What is my assignment? Who are you calling 00:25:10.259 --> 00:25:14.109 me to walk with? Because here's what happens. 00:25:14.190 --> 00:25:15.990 Otherwise, we're trying to meet everybody's needs, 00:25:16.130 --> 00:25:17.930 right? Like, you ever meet somebody that meets 00:25:17.930 --> 00:25:19.849 Jesus, and they're on fire, and then they start 00:25:19.849 --> 00:25:22.069 serving at a church, and they're like gung -ho, 00:25:22.150 --> 00:25:23.730 and they're going, going, going, and then they 00:25:23.730 --> 00:25:25.269 burn out, and then they're like, I'm not even 00:25:25.269 --> 00:25:27.609 sure if I believe this thing anymore. Because 00:25:27.609 --> 00:25:29.150 they were living beyond their limits that God 00:25:29.150 --> 00:25:32.619 never asked them to step inside of. Right, and 00:25:32.619 --> 00:25:34.400 so now they're questioning the whole faith in 00:25:34.400 --> 00:25:36.319 Jesus and the whole thing, and really what happened 00:25:36.319 --> 00:25:38.619 is they burned out because they pressed beyond 00:25:38.619 --> 00:25:40.940 the limits because God never gave them that assignment. 00:25:41.119 --> 00:25:43.299 They just saw it as a good assignment, so why 00:25:43.299 --> 00:25:46.920 wouldn't you take that assignment? And I'm curious, 00:25:47.059 --> 00:25:49.480 I'm curious how many of us actually slow down 00:25:49.480 --> 00:25:55.279 and go, God, what are you calling me to? What 00:25:55.279 --> 00:25:59.700 does this look like for me? It's pretty fascinating 00:25:59.700 --> 00:26:03.180 within the, Within that study I told you about, 00:26:03.319 --> 00:26:05.740 I've had a lot of different feedback from people. 00:26:05.779 --> 00:26:07.339 They're like, oh, I got way more than three to 00:26:07.339 --> 00:26:11.299 five. Okay, your limit's different than mine. 00:26:12.519 --> 00:26:14.539 Oh man, I don't understand. Can I just give you 00:26:14.539 --> 00:26:18.099 a model? Jesus had 12, right? Sound familiar? 00:26:18.859 --> 00:26:21.859 Jesus had 12. But remember, when Jesus goes up 00:26:21.859 --> 00:26:23.599 on the Mount of Transfiguration, he only takes 00:26:23.599 --> 00:26:27.400 three. When Jesus goes in the garden and he prays 00:26:27.400 --> 00:26:29.859 and he needs people with him, he only takes three. 00:26:31.140 --> 00:26:32.720 But then there are other moments where Jesus 00:26:32.720 --> 00:26:34.799 has a bunch of companions with him as well. So 00:26:34.799 --> 00:26:37.299 he's got the 12 plus whatever that 50 looked 00:26:37.299 --> 00:26:41.559 like. But if it was good enough for Jesus, why 00:26:41.559 --> 00:26:43.039 wouldn't it be good enough for us? And I think 00:26:43.039 --> 00:26:44.900 here's what I believe. I believe that some of 00:26:44.900 --> 00:26:46.720 us think that we can have all these relationships. 00:26:46.880 --> 00:26:48.579 Why? Because culture tells us we're supposed 00:26:48.579 --> 00:26:51.380 to have this deep limit of relationships. You're 00:26:51.380 --> 00:26:55.160 supposed to have 1 .5 million followers and keep 00:26:55.160 --> 00:26:59.160 up with them all. You can't. You can't even do 00:26:59.160 --> 00:27:02.529 beyond 150 well. You know how I know? People 00:27:02.529 --> 00:27:04.490 who are not like me, they're extroverts and they're 00:27:04.490 --> 00:27:06.650 super relational and they're gifted at it and 00:27:06.650 --> 00:27:09.170 they're amazing. You know what I notice? Is the 00:27:09.170 --> 00:27:11.009 more relationships they add because they think 00:27:11.009 --> 00:27:13.190 they can just keep adding, the worse they do 00:27:13.190 --> 00:27:14.970 with some of those relationships and people get 00:27:14.970 --> 00:27:18.170 hurt. Why? Because we have limits. And I'm not 00:27:18.170 --> 00:27:20.470 telling you what your limit is. You have to experience 00:27:20.470 --> 00:27:22.470 that with God. But just maybe, just maybe you're 00:27:22.470 --> 00:27:24.049 doing terrible with your family because you're 00:27:24.049 --> 00:27:26.869 over your limit and you're putting time into 00:27:26.869 --> 00:27:28.829 somebody else that's not your assignment. Your 00:27:28.829 --> 00:27:41.190 family is your assignment. Your coworkers, yeah, 00:27:41.309 --> 00:27:43.750 you may be called to be in their life, but don't 00:27:43.750 --> 00:27:48.569 you replace them with your family. There's this 00:27:48.569 --> 00:27:52.250 image that it's not mine, it's somebody else's, 00:27:52.269 --> 00:27:55.430 but if you're juggling, right, and you got all 00:27:55.430 --> 00:27:58.049 these things you're juggling, you better figure 00:27:58.049 --> 00:28:00.869 out which ones are rubber and can bounce when 00:28:00.869 --> 00:28:04.329 you drop them and which ones are glass. And in 00:28:04.329 --> 00:28:07.109 relationships, you better figure out which ones 00:28:07.109 --> 00:28:15.819 are glass. Super important, Jesus goes, let's 00:28:15.819 --> 00:28:18.980 go somewhere else. Jesus, Jesus, get this. Jesus 00:28:18.980 --> 00:28:24.599 looked at people and said, no. That's my worst, 00:28:24.640 --> 00:28:27.039 man. I'll be the first one to go. I hate that. 00:28:30.160 --> 00:28:31.660 And you know, what does he do? He goes with his 00:28:31.660 --> 00:28:34.519 father and his father guides him by what? This 00:28:34.519 --> 00:28:36.480 is why I have you here. Here's your purpose. 00:28:36.539 --> 00:28:40.240 This is what I've called you to do. This is your 00:28:40.240 --> 00:28:47.359 limit. My wife and I, our younger girls, the 00:28:47.359 --> 00:28:51.200 adoption had gone through. It had just been finalized 00:28:51.200 --> 00:28:54.380 and we got a call. And the call was, would you 00:28:54.380 --> 00:29:00.000 take another placement? And it was a two and 00:29:00.000 --> 00:29:03.519 a half year old little girl. And she had some 00:29:03.519 --> 00:29:06.359 special needs. It wasn't totally defined what 00:29:06.359 --> 00:29:10.549 care was needed. But we're like, we just did 00:29:10.549 --> 00:29:13.009 this once. Like we're ready to go. Like this 00:29:13.009 --> 00:29:17.250 is finalized. How do we say no to this? And we 00:29:17.250 --> 00:29:20.130 took her into our home and it became clear that 00:29:20.130 --> 00:29:25.730 what we'd taken on was well beyond what we could 00:29:25.730 --> 00:29:37.349 handle. And I'll be honest with you. Love says 00:29:37.349 --> 00:29:41.569 no sometimes. But in Christian circles, it can 00:29:41.569 --> 00:29:46.730 be really easy to go feel guilty because we're 00:29:46.730 --> 00:29:48.950 told to love, right? And how could you not love 00:29:48.950 --> 00:29:50.930 in that moment? And so there's just a lot of 00:29:50.930 --> 00:29:53.410 weight that gets put. There's a lot of guilt 00:29:53.410 --> 00:29:58.289 associated to it. And so we're about eight weeks 00:29:58.289 --> 00:30:05.049 in to having her in our home. It becomes clear. 00:30:05.150 --> 00:30:07.150 And again, you need community to help you see 00:30:07.150 --> 00:30:08.990 blind spots, right? Like we had a caseworker, 00:30:09.109 --> 00:30:15.549 our caseworker came in and my wife's health because 00:30:15.549 --> 00:30:18.789 of stress and just what it was causing her body 00:30:18.789 --> 00:30:22.049 and immune system and all of it, like was not 00:30:22.049 --> 00:30:25.630 doing well. And the caseworker looks at us and 00:30:25.630 --> 00:30:27.569 goes, I'm gonna do for you what you can't do 00:30:27.569 --> 00:30:31.529 for yourself. I'm gonna say no. And we need to 00:30:31.529 --> 00:30:34.289 remove her from, I'll be honest, it felt like 00:30:34.289 --> 00:30:39.470 failure. It felt like we had not done this right 00:30:39.470 --> 00:30:45.910 until you hear the rest of the story. Because 00:30:45.910 --> 00:30:48.470 there was a family in our community near to us 00:30:48.470 --> 00:30:51.430 that wanted specifically a little girl with special 00:30:51.430 --> 00:30:56.190 needs. And when she was in our house, we knew 00:30:56.190 --> 00:30:58.130 she loved the outdoors and we did not have a 00:30:58.130 --> 00:31:01.470 space that was adequate for her. They lived on 00:31:01.470 --> 00:31:06.609 a farm. And she was able to be outside and thrive. 00:31:06.849 --> 00:31:09.690 And to this day, the family is still connected 00:31:09.690 --> 00:31:12.210 to Heights and attends. And we get to hear these 00:31:12.210 --> 00:31:14.529 updates of how she's doing. She is thriving. 00:31:16.410 --> 00:31:23.589 And it's beautiful. But what it tells me is every 00:31:23.589 --> 00:31:28.849 assignment is not my assignment. And we've got 00:31:28.849 --> 00:31:31.230 to learn to live inside of the limitations where. 00:31:31.599 --> 00:31:36.220 where we ask God before we take stuff on, before 00:31:36.220 --> 00:31:39.319 we let guilt or a false sense of love or the 00:31:39.319 --> 00:31:42.579 need or whatever it happens to be, where we go, 00:31:42.640 --> 00:31:46.779 God, what have you called us to be? Because in 00:31:46.779 --> 00:31:49.099 the Garden of Eden, what you had is you had a 00:31:49.099 --> 00:31:55.740 God setting limits and boundaries. And I'm curious. 00:31:57.710 --> 00:31:59.890 What does it look like for you to steward your 00:31:59.890 --> 00:32:03.390 limits and boundaries that God has given you? 00:32:05.269 --> 00:32:07.710 Because what I know culturally is culture is 00:32:07.710 --> 00:32:11.210 pushing us all to live way overextended, whether 00:32:11.210 --> 00:32:13.990 it's financially, emotionally. One of the reasons 00:32:13.990 --> 00:32:18.930 we have so much mental health. I don't know what 00:32:18.930 --> 00:32:21.829 the right phrase is. It's 1115, I'm tired, right? 00:32:21.930 --> 00:32:26.210 But whatever goes with mental health and the 00:32:26.210 --> 00:32:29.009 need. to steward our mental health and heal our 00:32:29.009 --> 00:32:31.430 mental health. I think our mental health is connected 00:32:31.430 --> 00:32:34.869 to, we are far more connected than we ever were 00:32:34.869 --> 00:32:38.509 made to be, and far more lonely than we were 00:32:38.509 --> 00:32:41.650 ever made to be. I heard a study this week that 00:32:41.650 --> 00:32:45.990 72 % of teens have an actual relationship with 00:32:45.990 --> 00:32:49.269 chat GPT, where they have no one else in their 00:32:49.269 --> 00:32:51.029 life that they feel like they can talk to, so 00:32:51.029 --> 00:32:55.549 they are turning to a bot to share their feelings. 00:32:57.839 --> 00:33:01.940 Something is deeply broken. And I think it's 00:33:01.940 --> 00:33:05.259 time that we came back to the Lord. I think it's 00:33:05.259 --> 00:33:07.519 time we came back and went, God, you gave limitations. 00:33:07.539 --> 00:33:12.599 They are good. Would you teach me how to be obedient 00:33:12.599 --> 00:33:15.799 just like Jesus? Become obedient even to death. 00:33:17.420 --> 00:33:22.839 Teach me how to die well inside of how you've 00:33:22.839 --> 00:33:26.539 created me to be. And so I love to pray for you. 00:33:26.579 --> 00:33:30.240 This is not easy. This is not light. And yet 00:33:30.240 --> 00:33:33.940 on the other side is such hope to live inside 00:33:33.940 --> 00:33:35.519 of what he created. So would you pray with me? 00:33:35.559 --> 00:33:38.900 God, we are so grateful for you. God, thank you 00:33:38.900 --> 00:33:43.819 for just even the concept that you, the God who 00:33:43.819 --> 00:33:50.299 is infinite, became limited so that we could 00:33:50.299 --> 00:33:52.700 find life through your death. Thank you for dying 00:33:52.700 --> 00:33:56.140 for us. Thank you for... buying our freedom back. 00:33:56.319 --> 00:33:58.579 Thank you that we have limits inside of our freedom. 00:33:58.680 --> 00:34:03.259 Thank you that you are the God who meets us inside 00:34:03.259 --> 00:34:06.299 of the waiting and the pain and the struggle 00:34:06.299 --> 00:34:11.059 of limits. And so God, would you help us to steward 00:34:11.059 --> 00:34:14.780 those well? Would you teach us to ask wise questions 00:34:14.780 --> 00:34:17.420 around our emotional and physical and mental 00:34:17.420 --> 00:34:22.699 health? Would you teach us? How to live financially 00:34:22.699 --> 00:34:24.900 in our limits? Would you teach us relationally 00:34:24.900 --> 00:34:27.719 how to honor what you've put in our hands well? 00:34:30.599 --> 00:34:33.300 God, would you allow us to make much of you even 00:34:33.300 --> 00:34:36.360 in these moments when we get to celebrate the 00:34:36.360 --> 00:34:39.099 limited capacity of our lungs and our breath? 00:34:40.519 --> 00:34:42.880 And God, we get to take it and lift it up to 00:34:42.880 --> 00:34:47.119 you. That we get to even declare it's the breath 00:34:47.119 --> 00:34:51.820 in our lungs. The breath in our lungs that we 00:34:51.820 --> 00:34:56.619 get to use to say, great are you, Lord. So thank 00:34:56.619 --> 00:34:58.500 you for being great today. We need you to be 00:34:58.500 --> 00:35:02.440 great. We're grateful. And everybody said, amen.