WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.440 1968 Olympics was a guy by the name of John Stephen 00:00:05.440 --> 00:00:10.400 Akwari who was a Tanzanian runner and he was 00:00:10.400 --> 00:00:15.080 signed up to run in the Olympic marathon and 00:00:15.080 --> 00:00:20.800 maybe you know this story maybe you don't so 00:00:20.800 --> 00:00:26.000 he shows up and early on in the marathon Akwari 00:00:26.000 --> 00:00:31.210 fell severely injuring his leg and he had every 00:00:31.210 --> 00:00:35.170 reason to quit, but Aquari didn't quit. So hours 00:00:35.170 --> 00:00:39.270 after the race had ended, I mean literally hours 00:00:39.270 --> 00:00:42.350 after the race had ended, long after the medals 00:00:42.350 --> 00:00:44.630 had been awarded, the stadium had completely 00:00:44.630 --> 00:00:48.429 emptied out. Aquari limped his way across the 00:00:48.429 --> 00:00:51.829 finish line to the stunned applause of the few 00:00:51.829 --> 00:00:55.270 remaining spectators who were still there. When 00:00:55.270 --> 00:00:58.109 he was asked why he kept going, he simply said 00:00:58.109 --> 00:01:00.950 this, my country did not send me 5 ,000 miles 00:01:00.950 --> 00:01:04.230 to start a race. They sent me 5 ,000 miles to 00:01:04.230 --> 00:01:09.510 finish the race. It may look heroic, it may sound 00:01:09.510 --> 00:01:13.329 inspiring, but for most of us, success doesn't 00:01:13.329 --> 00:01:17.010 feel much like a finish line. It feels more like 00:01:17.010 --> 00:01:21.290 a treadmill. It's loud, relentless, and exhausting. 00:01:22.329 --> 00:01:26.480 The world rewards results. but God rewards faithfulness. 00:01:27.299 --> 00:01:31.819 Almost won't finish the race. So the problem 00:01:31.819 --> 00:01:33.959 that we have is that we live in a world that's 00:01:33.959 --> 00:01:36.099 obsessed with starting fast, finishing first, 00:01:36.180 --> 00:01:38.480 and looking good while we do it. Everyone said, 00:01:38.780 --> 00:01:40.420 amen, you already know that. That's not news 00:01:40.420 --> 00:01:42.379 to anybody, but that's the world that we live 00:01:42.379 --> 00:01:46.040 in. And we've been taught that success means 00:01:46.040 --> 00:01:49.859 having more, doing better, being seen. staying 00:01:49.859 --> 00:01:52.620 ahead and if you're not at the very top of whatever 00:01:52.620 --> 00:01:55.680 it is that you're talking about then we start 00:01:55.680 --> 00:01:59.319 to ask are we even winning at all from the time 00:01:59.319 --> 00:02:02.739 that we were kids we were ranked scored and compared 00:02:02.739 --> 00:02:06.680 things like grades followers stats awards likes 00:02:06.680 --> 00:02:09.020 achievements and we begin to measure ourselves 00:02:09.020 --> 00:02:12.039 and everyone around us by a standard that's very 00:02:12.039 --> 00:02:17.159 loud flashy and external but what happens when 00:02:17.159 --> 00:02:21.610 you're faithful but overlooked. What happens 00:02:21.610 --> 00:02:24.930 when you try hard, but you still fall short? 00:02:25.770 --> 00:02:27.969 What happens when you don't have the resume, 00:02:28.229 --> 00:02:32.389 the recognition, or the results? We begin to 00:02:32.389 --> 00:02:36.629 ask, am I failing? Am I behind? Is there something 00:02:36.629 --> 00:02:40.770 wrong with me? Is my life even making a difference 00:02:40.770 --> 00:02:44.289 whatsoever? Quietly, success turns from something 00:02:44.289 --> 00:02:47.009 that we pursue into something that weighs us 00:02:47.009 --> 00:02:50.729 down. enter a little man, a wee little man, in 00:02:50.729 --> 00:02:53.169 fact, by the name of Zacchaeus. If you want to 00:02:53.169 --> 00:02:55.530 follow along, you can. His story is found in 00:02:55.530 --> 00:02:58.069 Luke chapter 19. It's the first 10 verses, Luke 00:02:58.069 --> 00:03:01.110 chapter 19, verses 1 through 10. And here in 00:03:01.110 --> 00:03:04.330 Luke chapter 19, we're introduced to this wee 00:03:04.330 --> 00:03:06.370 little man. A wee little man was he by the name 00:03:06.370 --> 00:03:09.590 of Zacchaeus. And that passage tells us a few 00:03:09.590 --> 00:03:12.009 things about Zacchaeus. It tells us that he's 00:03:12.009 --> 00:03:15.110 rich and powerful. And so far you say, okay, 00:03:15.319 --> 00:03:17.340 I get it, this is why we're talking about somebody 00:03:17.340 --> 00:03:20.000 who is successful, right? He's a great picture 00:03:20.000 --> 00:03:23.419 of success because he's rich and powerful and 00:03:23.419 --> 00:03:29.199 the Bible tells us that he was hated. Well, there 00:03:29.199 --> 00:03:31.879 goes the picture of success, at least in our 00:03:31.879 --> 00:03:35.719 culture, but here's the clincher. Verse nine 00:03:35.719 --> 00:03:41.800 tells us that he wanted to see Jesus. So he climbs 00:03:41.800 --> 00:03:43.900 up a sycamore tree. You guys know this song, 00:03:44.120 --> 00:03:47.159 right? Zacchaeus was a wee little man. A wee 00:03:47.159 --> 00:03:51.439 little man was he. He climbed up in a sycamore 00:03:51.439 --> 00:03:55.039 tree for the Lord he wanted to see. And as the 00:03:55.039 --> 00:03:58.819 Savior passed that way, he looked up in the tree 00:03:58.819 --> 00:04:04.340 and he said, Zacchaeus, you come down. I'm going 00:04:04.340 --> 00:04:07.219 to your house today. Yes, I'm going to your house 00:04:07.219 --> 00:04:09.969 today. I think that Jesus must have missed the 00:04:09.969 --> 00:04:12.169 memo. Like in our house growing up, we told our 00:04:12.169 --> 00:04:14.629 children all the time, you are not allowed to 00:04:14.629 --> 00:04:18.029 invite yourself to anybody else's house. You 00:04:18.029 --> 00:04:22.050 just don't do that. It's unacceptable. It's uncouth. 00:04:23.490 --> 00:04:27.689 But Jesus invited himself to Zacchaeus' house. 00:04:28.569 --> 00:04:31.189 So he climbs the sycamore tree. He's rising above 00:04:31.189 --> 00:04:33.810 the noise and the obstacles. And you know what 00:04:33.810 --> 00:04:36.730 happened. Jesus stopped. He called him by name. 00:04:37.000 --> 00:04:39.819 He invited himself in and begins a conversation 00:04:39.819 --> 00:04:44.360 that would change Zacchaeus' life forever. One 00:04:44.360 --> 00:04:49.339 decision, seeking Jesus, led to transformation 00:04:49.339 --> 00:04:52.600 and success, at least in God's eyes. The world 00:04:52.600 --> 00:04:54.740 didn't see him any differently for climbing that 00:04:54.740 --> 00:04:57.779 tree. In fact, all it did was confirm their mockery, 00:04:58.560 --> 00:05:02.300 but Jesus saw him, and that changed everything. 00:05:03.839 --> 00:05:08.620 So what about us? Let's be completely honest. 00:05:08.639 --> 00:05:13.180 Most of us are not climbing trees. I doubt any 00:05:13.180 --> 00:05:15.519 of you have on your schedule for today. You know 00:05:15.519 --> 00:05:18.079 what? I'm gonna find the tallest sycamore tree 00:05:18.079 --> 00:05:20.540 that I can find and I'm gonna climb it. I doubt 00:05:20.540 --> 00:05:23.860 that's on your plans for the day. So if we're 00:05:23.860 --> 00:05:27.500 not climbing trees, what we are is stuck in the 00:05:27.500 --> 00:05:31.100 crowd. So let's talk a little bit about how we 00:05:31.100 --> 00:05:37.430 settle for less. We settle for less Having excuses 00:05:37.430 --> 00:05:40.589 just like Moses did you like you know his excuse, 00:05:40.750 --> 00:05:43.509 right? So God shows up and says hey Moses I'm 00:05:43.509 --> 00:05:46.269 gonna use you to lead my people out of captivity 00:05:46.269 --> 00:05:48.649 and he's like, but I don't I'm not a good speaker 00:05:48.649 --> 00:05:51.769 He has all these excuses and we settle for less 00:05:51.769 --> 00:05:55.430 by having excuses like Moses and we fear fear 00:05:55.430 --> 00:05:59.689 failure Just like Peter did and we want the results 00:05:59.689 --> 00:06:01.750 without the climb We surround ourselves with 00:06:01.750 --> 00:06:04.209 people who drain our faith. We stop it almost 00:06:04.209 --> 00:06:07.750 almost obedient almost surrendered, almost faithful, 00:06:07.829 --> 00:06:13.269 but almost won't finish the race. Proverbs 14 00:06:13.269 --> 00:06:15.449 23. If you're looking for a verse that you're 00:06:15.449 --> 00:06:17.589 like, okay, this is my verse for the week, I 00:06:17.589 --> 00:06:19.990 would suggest this would be a good one. Proverbs 00:06:19.990 --> 00:06:25.990 14 23. In toil there is profit, but mere talk 00:06:25.990 --> 00:06:31.689 tends only to poverty. Look at your neighbor 00:06:31.689 --> 00:06:36.089 and say that's good. That's good. In all toil, 00:06:37.170 --> 00:06:42.810 there's profit, but mere talk tends only to poverty. 00:06:44.029 --> 00:06:45.689 Said another way, if you looked it up in the 00:06:45.689 --> 00:06:48.949 Phil's paraphrased version of the Bible, the 00:06:48.949 --> 00:06:52.290 Phil's paraphrase, not a translation at all, 00:06:52.550 --> 00:06:54.410 but a paraphrase, if you looked it up in the 00:06:54.410 --> 00:06:57.709 Phil's paraphrase, it says this, if you put in 00:06:57.709 --> 00:07:01.410 the work, I mean if you commit to the climb, 00:07:02.810 --> 00:07:08.500 it's gonna pay off. It may not be today. You 00:07:08.500 --> 00:07:10.980 might have to wait for tomorrow, but sooner or 00:07:10.980 --> 00:07:13.600 later your hard work, your toil, your tenacity 00:07:13.600 --> 00:07:19.959 always pays off. But in the end, your talk will 00:07:19.959 --> 00:07:25.160 do nothing. You might recognize a guy by the 00:07:25.160 --> 00:07:30.860 name of Frank Sinatra. Before Frank Sinatra was 00:07:30.860 --> 00:07:33.699 a household name, Frank Sinatra, believe it or 00:07:33.699 --> 00:07:36.300 not, there was a season that he was just another 00:07:36.300 --> 00:07:38.860 singer like every other person, every other singer 00:07:38.860 --> 00:07:41.500 on the planet and he was fighting for attention. 00:07:42.040 --> 00:07:45.620 One night he finds himself in a noisy nightclub 00:07:45.620 --> 00:07:47.879 and people are talking over top of the music 00:07:47.879 --> 00:07:51.100 and they're doing their thing and Frank Sinatra 00:07:51.100 --> 00:07:55.019 is desperate to be heard. So that night in this 00:07:55.019 --> 00:07:57.920 noisy nightclub he jumps up on the table and 00:07:57.920 --> 00:08:01.180 begins to sing at the top of his lungs. The crowd 00:08:01.420 --> 00:08:04.040 fell silent, not because of his voice, but because 00:08:04.040 --> 00:08:07.439 of his courage. That audacious act helped launch 00:08:07.439 --> 00:08:10.560 one of the most legendary music careers of all 00:08:10.560 --> 00:08:14.459 time. So following that night, news began to 00:08:14.459 --> 00:08:17.019 spread about this crazy guy who gets up on top 00:08:17.019 --> 00:08:19.759 of the table and sings at the top of his lungs 00:08:19.759 --> 00:08:23.899 and it went from being a noisy nightclub to Sinatra 00:08:23.899 --> 00:08:26.480 singing in front of a packed house every night. 00:08:26.860 --> 00:08:29.500 and people would come and they weren't talking 00:08:29.500 --> 00:08:31.720 over top of him anymore. Within a few months 00:08:31.720 --> 00:08:34.639 Sinatra would be offered a chance to join Tommy 00:08:34.639 --> 00:08:38.419 Dorsey's orchestra which gave him national exposure. 00:08:39.259 --> 00:08:42.120 Later Sinatra was talking about that moment where 00:08:42.120 --> 00:08:45.039 he made the choice to jump up on the table and 00:08:45.039 --> 00:08:48.200 he said this, he said success is the best revenge. 00:08:51.189 --> 00:08:53.750 So here he is trying to make a name for himself. 00:08:53.809 --> 00:08:56.450 He's just trying to be heard over the noise, 00:08:56.450 --> 00:09:00.110 and he says, you know what? I'll do to get people's 00:09:00.110 --> 00:09:01.909 attention. I'll jump up on top of the table and 00:09:01.909 --> 00:09:05.149 start singing. Success is the best revenge. So 00:09:05.149 --> 00:09:09.549 success must be deserved. Success takes risks. 00:09:10.669 --> 00:09:15.429 Success requires effort. And success always has 00:09:15.429 --> 00:09:20.470 this element of a refusal to quit. Sinatra climbed 00:09:20.470 --> 00:09:24.129 on the table for applause. Zacchaeus climbed 00:09:24.129 --> 00:09:26.570 the tree for transformation. One drew a crowd. 00:09:27.409 --> 00:09:30.450 One drew Christ. And that's really the difference. 00:09:31.590 --> 00:09:34.669 Here's the truth that we've been missing. What 00:09:34.669 --> 00:09:37.029 if we've been chasing the wrong definition of 00:09:37.029 --> 00:09:41.169 success? What if real success doesn't make headlines, 00:09:41.730 --> 00:09:45.149 but it makes heaven smile? God doesn't measure 00:09:45.149 --> 00:09:47.889 your life by speed or status. Here's how he measures 00:09:47.889 --> 00:09:51.259 your life. In case you're wondering, God measures 00:09:51.259 --> 00:09:56.320 our life by faithfulness. Scripture does not 00:09:56.320 --> 00:10:00.419 say, well done, good, and famous servant. It 00:10:00.419 --> 00:10:03.100 doesn't say that. It does not say well done, 00:10:03.200 --> 00:10:06.860 good, and first place servant. But what it does 00:10:06.860 --> 00:10:12.559 say is well done, good, and faithful servant. 00:10:13.599 --> 00:10:17.019 Galatians 6, 9 says this, let us not grow weary 00:10:17.019 --> 00:10:19.179 in doing good for at the proper time we'll reap 00:10:19.179 --> 00:10:23.100 a harvest if we do not give up. The world rewards 00:10:23.100 --> 00:10:27.139 results. God rewards faithfulness. Almost won't 00:10:27.139 --> 00:10:30.019 finish the race. My first couple of marathons 00:10:30.019 --> 00:10:32.580 and half marathons, I'm ashamed to admit this, 00:10:32.580 --> 00:10:35.820 but it really is true. And a few of you have 00:10:35.820 --> 00:10:37.480 run with me so you know that I'm telling the 00:10:37.480 --> 00:10:40.659 absolute gospel truth. So like Danita would ask 00:10:40.659 --> 00:10:43.009 me, she's like, are you prepared for this? I 00:10:43.009 --> 00:10:45.389 think, I don't know, but anyways, so I really 00:10:45.389 --> 00:10:48.029 had two goals in my first several marathons and 00:10:48.029 --> 00:10:50.409 half marathons. Here they were. Number one is 00:10:50.409 --> 00:10:53.909 I wanted to finish. I did not want to, it's not 00:10:53.909 --> 00:10:55.649 cheap to run a marathon. I don't know if you 00:10:55.649 --> 00:10:59.129 realize that, but it's not cheap. I'm not even 00:10:59.129 --> 00:11:01.350 talking about just the event itself. Those aren't 00:11:01.350 --> 00:11:03.850 cheap. You're talking probably at least $100, 00:11:04.230 --> 00:11:07.450 maybe $200 for the event itself. And then you 00:11:07.450 --> 00:11:10.600 have to... pay for all the stuff that goes along 00:11:10.600 --> 00:11:12.620 with it. So you've got a big investment in it. 00:11:12.820 --> 00:11:15.379 And I did not want to be the guy that's got $500 00:11:15.379 --> 00:11:17.759 invested in this thing. I don't even finish. 00:11:18.480 --> 00:11:21.779 So I wanted to finish and my only other goal 00:11:21.779 --> 00:11:26.480 was to not die. I'm telling you the truth. So 00:11:26.480 --> 00:11:29.159 and then I like I did a little bit of time. Kevin 00:11:29.159 --> 00:11:31.860 and I did these together. We did some triathlons 00:11:31.860 --> 00:11:34.179 to the Y and it was a blast. I had a great time 00:11:34.179 --> 00:11:37.620 doing it. But I'm thinking at that point, I could 00:11:37.620 --> 00:11:40.159 easily get up, I could put my shoes on, and I 00:11:40.159 --> 00:11:42.919 could go run 10 miles at any point. Not a big 00:11:42.919 --> 00:11:45.500 deal. So I'm like, I can do that. And I could 00:11:45.500 --> 00:11:47.980 get on my bike, and I could ride for 50 miles. 00:11:48.460 --> 00:11:50.139 And I'm like, that's not a big deal. And I'm 00:11:50.139 --> 00:11:53.559 like, how hard can it be to swim? That's a stupid 00:11:53.559 --> 00:11:56.399 question. So I'm like, I can do this, right? 00:11:56.399 --> 00:11:59.279 So I went for my first day of swimming. I swim 00:11:59.279 --> 00:12:01.940 one lap, and I'm like, I'm going to die. That's 00:12:01.940 --> 00:12:05.000 all there is to it. So I would joke with lifeguards. 00:12:05.120 --> 00:12:07.059 I would say, every time I would see them, I'd 00:12:07.059 --> 00:12:08.840 come in and work on swimming. I'd be like, I'm 00:12:08.840 --> 00:12:11.620 here for drowning practice. So when I'm doing 00:12:11.620 --> 00:12:14.539 the triathlon, I had two goals. I wanted to finish 00:12:14.539 --> 00:12:17.500 and not die. That's the only thing that I cared 00:12:17.500 --> 00:12:21.399 about. I did not ever picture myself winning 00:12:21.399 --> 00:12:25.220 the race. The reality is, not only did I not 00:12:25.220 --> 00:12:30.179 win the race, I got beat by girls. Every time 00:12:30.179 --> 00:12:33.639 that I competed, I got beat by girls. And sometimes 00:12:33.639 --> 00:12:36.039 there are times that you're like, OK, of course 00:12:36.039 --> 00:12:38.820 she's going to win. Like the triathlon, the lady 00:12:38.820 --> 00:12:41.240 who won the entire thing, she was probably, I 00:12:41.240 --> 00:12:43.879 don't know, 22, 23 years old, something like 00:12:43.879 --> 00:12:47.460 that. She was a college swimmer. She's going 00:12:47.460 --> 00:12:50.659 to beat me. That's all there is to it. So I mean, 00:12:50.740 --> 00:12:52.700 look at me. I'm not going to beat her. It's just 00:12:52.700 --> 00:12:56.080 all there is to it. I never pictured myself winning. 00:12:56.259 --> 00:12:59.039 I just wanted to finish, and I didn't want to 00:12:59.039 --> 00:13:02.500 die. And since our world defines success very 00:13:02.500 --> 00:13:04.779 differently than God does, I think it would behoove 00:13:04.779 --> 00:13:07.720 us to consider what does success look like in 00:13:07.720 --> 00:13:11.700 his eyes. If that's the only one that really 00:13:11.700 --> 00:13:13.360 matters, and that's the standard that we need 00:13:13.360 --> 00:13:16.120 to meet, what does success look like in his eyes? 00:13:16.139 --> 00:13:18.500 And here's the first one that you probably did 00:13:18.500 --> 00:13:21.320 not think would make the list, but it does, and 00:13:21.320 --> 00:13:23.879 we need to talk about this. So in God's eyes, 00:13:24.120 --> 00:13:34.759 successful people will fail. Did you know that 00:13:34.759 --> 00:13:37.580 Abraham Lincoln lost eight elections before becoming 00:13:37.580 --> 00:13:39.980 one of the greatest leaders in U .S. history? 00:13:44.320 --> 00:13:47.539 So by the world's standards, he failed eight 00:13:47.539 --> 00:13:52.879 times. Proverbs 24, 16 says this, for the righteous 00:13:52.879 --> 00:13:56.639 falls seven times and rises again. Well, Abraham 00:13:56.639 --> 00:14:00.200 Lincoln, it took him eight. But anyways, so the 00:14:00.200 --> 00:14:02.259 righteous, Proverbs says, they're going to fall 00:14:02.259 --> 00:14:04.259 down seven times, but here's the thing that keeps 00:14:04.259 --> 00:14:07.519 them righteous, is that they get back up, they 00:14:07.519 --> 00:14:11.039 rise again, even after they fail. Successful 00:14:11.039 --> 00:14:17.240 people will fail. Matthew 14, 29, great passage. 00:14:18.120 --> 00:14:19.919 I'm going to give you a couple of verses, probably 00:14:19.919 --> 00:14:24.299 three of them. Matthew 14, it is 29 through 31. 00:14:24.519 --> 00:14:28.399 He said, come, it's Jesus. Walking on the water 00:14:28.399 --> 00:14:31.200 Peter's in the boat So there's this exchange 00:14:31.200 --> 00:14:33.159 that happens between them and Jesus is speaking 00:14:33.159 --> 00:14:35.720 He says to Peter come so Peter got out of the 00:14:35.720 --> 00:14:37.600 boat He walked on the water and he came to Jesus 00:14:37.600 --> 00:14:40.059 and when he saw the wind he was afraid and began 00:14:40.059 --> 00:14:43.019 to sink and he cried out Lord Save me Jesus immediately 00:14:43.019 --> 00:14:44.879 reached out his hand took hold of him saying 00:14:44.879 --> 00:14:49.179 oh you of little faith. Why did you doubt? So 00:14:49.179 --> 00:14:51.940 Peter walked on the water until he looked away 00:14:51.940 --> 00:14:55.220 and in that moment of looking away he failed 00:14:56.549 --> 00:15:01.129 And Jesus questioned him about his doubt. The 00:15:01.129 --> 00:15:04.669 word that's used there is destazo. Everyone say 00:15:04.669 --> 00:15:09.409 destazo. Destazo. It's where we get words like 00:15:09.409 --> 00:15:12.450 distracted. And here's what the word means. So 00:15:12.450 --> 00:15:15.149 when he starts to sink, Jesus saved me, he reaches 00:15:15.149 --> 00:15:17.649 out and grabs a hold of him. He says, oh you 00:15:17.649 --> 00:15:21.870 of little faith, why did you doubt destazo? The 00:15:21.870 --> 00:15:24.649 word that he used there is not It's not really 00:15:24.649 --> 00:15:26.990 about doubt. What the word literally translated 00:15:26.990 --> 00:15:31.470 means is, why are you double -minded? It's where 00:15:31.470 --> 00:15:34.470 we get the word distracted. So Peter didn't sink 00:15:34.470 --> 00:15:36.830 because the wind was stronger. He sank because 00:15:36.830 --> 00:15:40.549 his focus shifted. Doubt isn't always about disbelief. 00:15:40.590 --> 00:15:43.509 Sometimes it's about being divided. It's about 00:15:43.509 --> 00:15:48.519 having divided belief. So Peter failed, but he 00:15:48.519 --> 00:15:51.340 didn't stay down He became the rock of the early 00:15:51.340 --> 00:15:53.519 church success in the kingdom of God does not 00:15:53.519 --> 00:15:55.860 mean that you will not fall flat on your face 00:15:55.860 --> 00:15:59.840 But what it does mean is that you refuse to allow 00:15:59.840 --> 00:16:01.860 that to be the final word you get back up on 00:16:01.860 --> 00:16:05.740 your feet and you keep moving forward So if you 00:16:05.740 --> 00:16:08.600 want to be successful in the eyes of God today, 00:16:08.600 --> 00:16:10.379 I'm just gonna tell you right now you're going 00:16:10.379 --> 00:16:17.029 to fall down You're gonna fall on your face Just 00:16:17.029 --> 00:16:20.110 refuse to allow that to be the final word. Okay, 00:16:20.129 --> 00:16:24.830 you fell down. Get back up. Get on your feet, 00:16:24.870 --> 00:16:27.730 keep moving forward. That's the way that God 00:16:27.730 --> 00:16:32.330 defines success. Proverbs 13, 18, whoever heeds 00:16:32.330 --> 00:16:34.529 correction is honored. I think that's part of 00:16:34.529 --> 00:16:37.409 what was going on with Peter. If you heed correction, 00:16:37.889 --> 00:16:41.389 you're honored. So you're gonna fall down. And 00:16:41.389 --> 00:16:43.289 it's possible that when you fall down, someone's 00:16:43.289 --> 00:16:46.559 gonna give you some correction. Heed their correction. 00:16:47.240 --> 00:16:51.320 Get on your feet. Keep moving forward. You're 00:16:51.320 --> 00:16:55.519 all familiar with the Navy SEALs. So in the part 00:16:55.519 --> 00:16:58.600 of the Navy SEAL training, which all of the special 00:16:58.600 --> 00:17:02.220 ops community, all of their schools, you can 00:17:02.220 --> 00:17:04.140 watch all of this. It's all available online. 00:17:04.279 --> 00:17:07.799 You can watch it on YouTube or whatever platform 00:17:07.799 --> 00:17:09.759 you're on. You can watch their training stuff, 00:17:09.839 --> 00:17:12.779 and they're all intense. So it doesn't really 00:17:12.779 --> 00:17:15.890 matter who you want to talk about. Every last 00:17:15.890 --> 00:17:19.309 school is incredibly intense, and there is not 00:17:19.309 --> 00:17:21.829 an exception to that, but specifically the Navy 00:17:21.829 --> 00:17:24.970 SEALs. They have this thing called Hell Week, 00:17:25.630 --> 00:17:30.210 and actually most of the special ops community, 00:17:30.230 --> 00:17:32.650 they all have something like that. But the SEALs, 00:17:32.789 --> 00:17:35.670 they endure freezing ocean swims, zero sleep, 00:17:36.230 --> 00:17:40.250 brutal physical demands, and yet we understand 00:17:40.250 --> 00:17:42.730 that many of them quit. But here's the secret 00:17:42.730 --> 00:17:45.160 with... Not only the Navy SEALs, but really all 00:17:45.160 --> 00:17:47.619 of those special ops community, but we're talking 00:17:47.619 --> 00:17:51.700 about the SEALs. The SEALs never go alone. They 00:17:51.700 --> 00:17:55.039 use this thing called the buddy system. And you're 00:17:55.039 --> 00:17:57.740 probably familiar with this. So when your body 00:17:57.740 --> 00:18:00.140 gives out and your mind says, you can't do this, 00:18:00.180 --> 00:18:01.880 you have a buddy there, and your buddy says, 00:18:02.019 --> 00:18:04.220 yes you can, we didn't come this far to quit. 00:18:05.279 --> 00:18:08.400 Those who isolate drowned. Not just in the water, 00:18:09.059 --> 00:18:12.579 but in their doubt. Jesus understood this well 00:18:12.579 --> 00:18:16.880 when he was going to heal Jairus' daughter. He 00:18:16.880 --> 00:18:19.140 clears the room out of all the doubters and surrounded 00:18:19.140 --> 00:18:21.799 himself with only the faithful people. In this 00:18:21.799 --> 00:18:24.019 case, you can read about it in Mark chapter 5, 00:18:24.099 --> 00:18:26.460 it's Peter, James, and John. Everyone else gets 00:18:26.460 --> 00:18:29.180 kicked out and Peter, James, and John, they're 00:18:29.180 --> 00:18:31.900 still there and Jesus then heals his daughter. 00:18:32.420 --> 00:18:35.019 So Jesus is perfect theology, right? If you agree 00:18:35.019 --> 00:18:37.019 with that, go like this. What does that mean? 00:18:37.039 --> 00:18:40.470 If you can find it in the life of Jesus, It's 00:18:40.470 --> 00:18:43.369 allowed to be in our life. It's acceptable. That 00:18:43.369 --> 00:18:45.349 should be the standard that we use. If it's in 00:18:45.349 --> 00:18:47.650 Jesus' life, it should be in my life, right? 00:18:48.289 --> 00:18:50.349 If it's not in Jesus' life, it shouldn't be a 00:18:50.349 --> 00:18:54.369 part of my life. He's perfect theology. So Jesus 00:18:54.369 --> 00:18:56.789 is modeling something here in Mark chapter five, 00:18:56.809 --> 00:18:59.710 and here's what it is. So like when we read Mark 00:18:59.710 --> 00:19:02.089 chapter five, this is what we should take as 00:19:02.089 --> 00:19:04.289 the takeaway. We should say, I should do this 00:19:04.289 --> 00:19:08.569 because Jesus is perfect theology. Jesus... dismiss 00:19:08.569 --> 00:19:16.869 the doubters and fill the room with faith. You 00:19:16.869 --> 00:19:18.450 want to know what you should do this week? You 00:19:18.450 --> 00:19:21.170 should dismiss the doubters and fill the room 00:19:21.170 --> 00:19:25.029 with faith. Especially if you're in a difficult 00:19:25.029 --> 00:19:28.990 spot, get rid of the doubters. Don't hang around 00:19:28.990 --> 00:19:32.769 with them anymore. Send them packing. Fill the 00:19:32.769 --> 00:19:35.369 room with faith. He didn't just heal Jairus's 00:19:35.369 --> 00:19:38.160 daughter He protected the environment of faith. 00:19:40.759 --> 00:19:43.460 A couple scripture verses for you to think about. 00:19:43.660 --> 00:19:46.740 First Corinthians 15 33 says, bad company corrupts 00:19:46.740 --> 00:19:48.660 good character. So here's what's going to happen. 00:19:48.940 --> 00:19:50.980 You're either going to make the choice to dismiss 00:19:50.980 --> 00:19:54.019 the doubters or you're going to be right there 00:19:54.019 --> 00:19:59.759 with them. Galatians 6 2, carry each other's 00:19:59.759 --> 00:20:05.180 burdens. Hebrews 3 13, encourage one another 00:20:05.809 --> 00:20:10.309 daily. Bottom line is this, we need to surround 00:20:10.309 --> 00:20:12.250 ourselves with people who pray when we're too 00:20:12.250 --> 00:20:15.349 tired, who believe when we're tempted to doubt, 00:20:15.910 --> 00:20:19.269 and who will not allow us to ring the bell and 00:20:19.269 --> 00:20:23.230 tap out. People who, when we're tired and we 00:20:23.230 --> 00:20:25.329 want to quit, will say, listen, you didn't come 00:20:25.329 --> 00:20:29.630 this far to quit. We need a buddy like that. 00:20:30.869 --> 00:20:33.630 Winston Churchill, which is the name that we 00:20:33.630 --> 00:20:36.829 all probably recognize, was a super important 00:20:36.829 --> 00:20:40.869 part of World War II, was almost forgotten, almost 00:20:40.869 --> 00:20:42.910 finished, but he wasn't. Why? And the answer 00:20:42.910 --> 00:20:46.069 to that is because he had a buddy. And there 00:20:46.069 --> 00:20:47.710 were several of them that you could point to, 00:20:47.730 --> 00:20:50.269 but the one who probably stands above the rest 00:20:50.269 --> 00:20:53.690 was his wife, Clementine. Clementine was the 00:20:53.690 --> 00:20:56.150 one who would encourage him not to quit. After 00:20:56.150 --> 00:20:58.369 a particularly tense stretch in leadership, she 00:20:58.369 --> 00:21:01.410 wrote this to Winston Churchill. You are not 00:21:01.410 --> 00:21:05.089 as kind as you used to be. I see the strain wearing 00:21:05.089 --> 00:21:10.349 you down. Rest, recharge, and return. Britain 00:21:10.349 --> 00:21:14.549 needs your courage." And when the world needed 00:21:14.549 --> 00:21:19.250 courage, Winston Churchill stood up. In a famous 00:21:19.250 --> 00:21:21.490 wartime speech he wrote, it's probably one of 00:21:21.490 --> 00:21:24.329 his most well -known wartime speeches, and I 00:21:24.329 --> 00:21:26.289 don't know what it is about really that entire 00:21:26.289 --> 00:21:28.990 era and really before that. It's like, I'll listen 00:21:28.990 --> 00:21:33.970 to presidential addresses, Eisenhower, Like that 00:21:33.970 --> 00:21:35.930 era and back, I'll listen to them. I'm like, 00:21:36.049 --> 00:21:39.170 man, this is just so brilliant. And just the 00:21:39.170 --> 00:21:41.490 way that they communicated was just amazing. 00:21:42.170 --> 00:21:44.750 So this is Winston Churchill, great communicator. 00:21:44.829 --> 00:21:48.089 And this was the speech, never give in, never 00:21:48.089 --> 00:21:51.809 give in, never, never, never, never in nothing, 00:21:52.349 --> 00:22:03.099 great or small, never give in. He didn't settle 00:22:03.099 --> 00:22:05.539 for almost. He finished strong. So what about 00:22:05.539 --> 00:22:10.819 us? How are you going to finish? Galatians 5 00:22:10.819 --> 00:22:16.119 -7 says this. It's a great verse. Paul's talking 00:22:16.119 --> 00:22:18.259 to the church in Galatia and he says this, you 00:22:18.259 --> 00:22:23.400 were running a good race. Who cut in on you? 00:22:27.619 --> 00:22:30.180 Second Timothy, I fought the good fight. I finished 00:22:30.180 --> 00:22:34.599 the race. I've kept the faith. Here's the point 00:22:34.599 --> 00:22:36.559 in all of that you haven't missed your moment 00:22:36.559 --> 00:22:40.579 God doesn't reward the fastest starter But it 00:22:40.579 --> 00:22:43.440 rewards the faithful finisher the world rewards 00:22:43.440 --> 00:22:48.299 results God rewards faithfulness almost Won't 00:22:48.299 --> 00:22:53.519 finish the race So here's the good news Here's 00:22:53.519 --> 00:22:57.319 the grace in all of it if you if you will God 00:22:57.319 --> 00:23:01.720 defines success differently We already know that 00:23:02.000 --> 00:23:08.839 He defines success not about being noticed, but 00:23:08.839 --> 00:23:13.160 by being known by God. He defines success not 00:23:13.160 --> 00:23:15.339 by climbing over people, but climbing toward 00:23:15.339 --> 00:23:17.799 Jesus. You've heard me say this before, but it's 00:23:17.799 --> 00:23:20.279 true. Your desire to please Him pleases Him. 00:23:21.519 --> 00:23:25.299 God doesn't just reward the result. He rewards 00:23:25.299 --> 00:23:29.299 your reach. He rewards the effort that you put 00:23:29.299 --> 00:23:33.640 into the climb. He defined success not by perfection, 00:23:33.819 --> 00:23:35.980 but by faithful pursuit. Just this week, Joel 00:23:35.980 --> 00:23:38.279 and I were having a conversation, actually, while 00:23:38.279 --> 00:23:39.559 we were painting this wall. Didn't that wall 00:23:39.559 --> 00:23:41.420 look amazing? Like, when you came in, how many 00:23:41.420 --> 00:23:42.920 of you noticed, like, man, that looks different? 00:23:43.599 --> 00:23:45.099 How many of you have no idea what I'm talking 00:23:45.099 --> 00:23:48.519 about? God bless you, that's awesome. So look 00:23:48.519 --> 00:23:51.200 around, something's different than it was just 00:23:51.200 --> 00:23:53.339 a week ago, but something's different. So Joel 00:23:53.339 --> 00:23:55.619 and I were working on that wall, and while we 00:23:55.619 --> 00:23:57.079 were doing that, we were having this conversation. 00:23:57.160 --> 00:24:01.200 I'll probably owe him 20 bucks for this. I probably 00:24:01.200 --> 00:24:03.779 owe 20 bucks for this. So we're having this conversation, 00:24:03.819 --> 00:24:07.559 and the conversation went like this. So God described 00:24:07.559 --> 00:24:10.819 David as a man after his own heart, right? If 00:24:10.819 --> 00:24:12.920 you're with me so far, go like this. That's what 00:24:12.920 --> 00:24:14.740 God said about David. Doesn't matter what anybody 00:24:14.740 --> 00:24:16.799 else thinks about David, that's what God said 00:24:16.799 --> 00:24:19.119 about David. And there's an important thing for 00:24:19.119 --> 00:24:21.480 us to consider. That's a good takeaway for somebody. 00:24:22.819 --> 00:24:25.359 So if we were going to talk about keys to success, 00:24:25.460 --> 00:24:27.099 one of the best things you could probably do 00:24:27.099 --> 00:24:29.339 is just say, forget what anybody else thinks 00:24:29.339 --> 00:24:33.619 about you. Who cares what they think about you? 00:24:36.940 --> 00:24:39.000 I mean, seriously, why do you care what they 00:24:39.000 --> 00:24:42.579 think? It should really only matter what God 00:24:42.579 --> 00:24:46.099 thinks. So God looks at David and says, David's 00:24:46.099 --> 00:24:49.259 a man after my own heart. And so Joel and I are 00:24:49.259 --> 00:24:50.900 kind of fleshing that out together. He's like, 00:24:51.000 --> 00:24:54.519 you know, so David wasn't perfect. And that's 00:24:54.519 --> 00:24:57.440 good theology so far, right? I mean, David made 00:24:57.440 --> 00:25:02.099 some huge blunders. And we're still talking about 00:25:02.099 --> 00:25:06.220 him 2 ,500 years later. We're talking about the 00:25:06.220 --> 00:25:08.440 blunders that he made. So I mean, they're pretty 00:25:08.440 --> 00:25:12.019 big. They're cosmic proportion. So he wasn't 00:25:12.019 --> 00:25:14.960 perfect. Well, then why in the world would God 00:25:14.960 --> 00:25:17.460 say, here's David, a man after my own heart, 00:25:17.539 --> 00:25:21.019 if he's not perfect? Because God doesn't reward 00:25:21.019 --> 00:25:27.670 perfection. He rewards pursuit. David was relentless 00:25:27.670 --> 00:25:31.190 in his pursuit of God and wanting to get back 00:25:31.190 --> 00:25:33.650 up on his feet and keep moving forward. Did David 00:25:33.650 --> 00:25:37.890 fall on his face? You know that he did. But he 00:25:37.890 --> 00:25:40.910 didn't allow that to be the final word. He got 00:25:40.910 --> 00:25:44.230 back up on his feet and kept moving forward. 00:25:45.170 --> 00:25:49.670 So how do we do that? Like Zacchaeus, here's 00:25:49.670 --> 00:25:53.410 how we do that. Like Zacchaeus, we climb. Like 00:25:53.410 --> 00:25:57.180 Moses, We let God speak through your weaknesses. 00:25:57.839 --> 00:26:00.480 And like Peter, we step out even when it feels 00:26:00.480 --> 00:26:05.559 risky. You guys want an incredible verse? I mean, 00:26:05.640 --> 00:26:07.960 the verse by itself is incredible, but when you 00:26:07.960 --> 00:26:09.759 understand what it says in the original language, 00:26:09.900 --> 00:26:11.559 like, man, that's just absolutely phenomenal. 00:26:11.980 --> 00:26:14.660 So Proverbs 12, 11, it's a phenomenal verse, 00:26:14.819 --> 00:26:17.240 even if you read it just in English. So if you 00:26:17.240 --> 00:26:19.200 read it in English, it says this, whoever works 00:26:19.200 --> 00:26:22.940 his land will have plenty of bread. It's a good 00:26:22.940 --> 00:26:24.960 verse, right? I mean if you work your land you'll 00:26:24.960 --> 00:26:26.640 have plenty of bread. How many are like that's 00:26:26.640 --> 00:26:30.759 a good verse? So in the Hebrew language because 00:26:30.759 --> 00:26:33.559 obviously Proverbs was written in Hebrew So if 00:26:33.559 --> 00:26:35.779 you read that same verse in Hebrew, it sounds 00:26:35.779 --> 00:26:38.200 a little bit different So it says whoever works 00:26:38.200 --> 00:26:41.000 his land that parts the same Whether you're talking 00:26:41.000 --> 00:26:43.819 Hebrew or English whoever works his land will 00:26:43.819 --> 00:26:46.160 have that that parts all the same But here's 00:26:46.160 --> 00:26:49.000 where it changes in English. It says plenty of 00:26:49.000 --> 00:26:52.920 bread But it does not say anything about bread 00:26:52.920 --> 00:26:57.640 in Hebrew. In Hebrew, what it says is saba lekem. 00:26:59.160 --> 00:27:01.660 Anyone who works his land will have saba lekem. 00:27:03.180 --> 00:27:06.200 And I can tell you're blessed. You're like, that's 00:27:06.200 --> 00:27:09.099 incredible. So if I work the land, I'll have 00:27:09.099 --> 00:27:15.660 saba lekem. Woo! That and two dollars will get 00:27:15.660 --> 00:27:18.559 me a cup of coffee at McDonald's, right? If you 00:27:18.559 --> 00:27:20.799 work... If you're faithful to work the land, 00:27:21.000 --> 00:27:25.240 whoever works land will have sabaleca. So here's 00:27:25.240 --> 00:27:29.339 what sabaleca means in Hebrew. Whoever works 00:27:29.339 --> 00:27:35.259 the land will have sabaleca, deep satisfaction. 00:27:39.019 --> 00:27:41.700 Is plenty of bread probably included in that? 00:27:41.779 --> 00:27:43.700 Can you have deep satisfaction if you're hungry? 00:27:43.960 --> 00:27:46.819 Probably not. So sure, plenty of bread is included, 00:27:47.000 --> 00:27:49.359 but Deep satisfaction, so much more than that, 00:27:49.819 --> 00:27:52.279 right? So if we, whoever works the land will 00:27:52.279 --> 00:27:56.059 have sabba lecum. They'll have deep satisfaction. 00:27:57.279 --> 00:28:00.619 God doesn't offer surface level success. He offers 00:28:00.619 --> 00:28:04.460 fullness. That's what awaits everyone who says, 00:28:04.460 --> 00:28:07.960 I'm going to climb. I'm gonna reach for Jesus. 00:28:08.140 --> 00:28:11.000 I want to see Jesus. I'm not gonna allow the 00:28:11.000 --> 00:28:13.619 noise of the crowd or the distractions to keep 00:28:13.619 --> 00:28:16.339 it from happening. I'm going to climb. Whatever 00:28:16.339 --> 00:28:17.960 it's going to take for me to get to the place 00:28:17.960 --> 00:28:20.819 that I see Jesus, that's what's promised to us. 00:28:21.019 --> 00:28:25.819 That's what awaits. Saba Lekom. Deep satisfaction. 00:28:27.900 --> 00:28:30.480 It's available to whoever will work the land. 00:28:30.559 --> 00:28:32.480 Whoever says, you know what, I'm going to climb 00:28:32.480 --> 00:28:35.859 today. I'm going to find a sycamore tree if I 00:28:35.859 --> 00:28:38.180 have to, but I'm going to get above the noise. 00:28:38.259 --> 00:28:40.519 I'm going to get above the distractions. I'm 00:28:40.519 --> 00:28:43.480 going to see Jesus. The moment that he sees me 00:28:43.480 --> 00:28:49.990 doing that, Saba Lekom. deep satisfaction. So 00:28:49.990 --> 00:28:54.190 what do we do with all of this? Six points. You 00:28:54.190 --> 00:28:57.690 say, well a good sermon has three points. Whoever 00:28:57.690 --> 00:29:06.849 said this was a good sermon? Have you never heard 00:29:06.849 --> 00:29:14.089 me preach? Six points. Here they are. Number 00:29:14.089 --> 00:29:24.119 one. Like Zacchaeus, take the step that everybody 00:29:24.119 --> 00:29:33.119 else wants. Number two, obey. Like Moses, trust 00:29:33.119 --> 00:29:38.880 God's voice more than your own fear. Number three, 00:29:39.619 --> 00:29:43.980 step out like Peter, even when it feels like 00:29:43.980 --> 00:29:51.430 you're going to sink. number four work like the 00:29:51.430 --> 00:29:54.170 farmer trusting that toil brings about a harvest 00:29:54.170 --> 00:29:56.990 so that our toil remember the first that we talked 00:29:56.990 --> 00:30:03.750 about that our toil always pays off when we're 00:30:03.750 --> 00:30:06.630 tenacious and we say i'm not going to quit it 00:30:06.630 --> 00:30:09.730 always pays off it may not be today you might 00:30:09.730 --> 00:30:11.950 have to wait for tomorrow but it always pays 00:30:11.950 --> 00:30:15.470 off so be like the farmer that trusts that His 00:30:15.470 --> 00:30:18.069 toil brings about a harvest, that when I work 00:30:18.069 --> 00:30:20.809 the field, when I do what I need to do, that 00:30:20.809 --> 00:30:22.970 it brings about sabba lekkum. That's what the 00:30:22.970 --> 00:30:26.029 Bible says. Not just plenty of bread, but it 00:30:26.029 --> 00:30:33.430 brings about deep satisfaction. Number five? 00:30:34.069 --> 00:30:37.789 One, two, three, four, five. Number five, stick 00:30:37.789 --> 00:30:41.460 with your buddy. Let others hold you up. when 00:30:41.460 --> 00:30:43.660 you're tempted to quit, you need somebody in 00:30:43.660 --> 00:30:47.359 your life who will say to you, you've come too 00:30:47.359 --> 00:30:51.759 far to quit. I'm not going to allow you to quit. 00:30:53.359 --> 00:30:55.759 If you have to fall on your face, that's fine. 00:30:56.359 --> 00:30:58.059 But you're gonna get on your feet and you're 00:30:58.059 --> 00:31:00.799 gonna keep moving forward. This is not going 00:31:00.799 --> 00:31:03.160 to be the final word. It's not gonna end like 00:31:03.160 --> 00:31:09.640 this. And number six, finish. Like Churchill 00:31:09.640 --> 00:31:20.150 said. Never, never, never give in. Success isn't 00:31:20.150 --> 00:31:22.410 about status, it's about surrender. It's not 00:31:22.410 --> 00:31:25.049 about being seen, it's about being shaped. The 00:31:25.049 --> 00:31:28.170 world says stand out, God says stay faithful. 00:31:28.990 --> 00:31:32.849 The world rewards results, God rewards faithfulness. 00:31:32.970 --> 00:31:41.220 Almost won't finish the race. Today, maybe you're 00:31:41.220 --> 00:31:47.059 worn out. Maybe you're discouraged. Maybe you're 00:31:47.059 --> 00:31:49.460 wondering if you've fallen too far behind to 00:31:49.460 --> 00:31:56.019 catch up. Well, I've got news for you. You haven't. 00:31:56.779 --> 00:32:00.599 God hasn't called you to be the best. He's called 00:32:00.599 --> 00:32:04.740 you to be faithful. You don't have to finish 00:32:04.740 --> 00:32:10.240 first, but you do need to finish. And the only 00:32:10.240 --> 00:32:13.039 way that we finish strong is with Jesus. So don't 00:32:13.039 --> 00:32:15.819 settle for almost. Don't settle for almost faithful. 00:32:16.339 --> 00:32:18.740 Don't settle for almost obedient. Don't settle 00:32:18.740 --> 00:32:24.140 for almost successful. Finish the race. Climb 00:32:24.140 --> 00:32:30.480 the tree. Jump on the table. And keep going. 00:32:31.859 --> 00:32:34.480 And trust that God will meet you every step of 00:32:34.480 --> 00:32:37.690 the way and trust this promise. that when you 00:32:37.690 --> 00:32:40.710 do what you need to do, when you work the field, 00:32:40.829 --> 00:32:43.470 when you climb, that what's been promised to 00:32:43.470 --> 00:32:47.750 you is Saba Lekom. That he'll bring you deep 00:32:47.750 --> 00:32:48.390 satisfaction.