WEBVTT 00:00:03.440 --> 00:00:06.299 I still remember Mandisa from, like, I don't 00:00:06.299 --> 00:00:10.320 want to gain the whole world and lose my soul. 00:00:11.900 --> 00:00:15.500 Dude, my whole personality as, like, a fourth 00:00:15.500 --> 00:00:19.219 grader was Toby Mac's Diversity album recorded 00:00:19.219 --> 00:00:22.320 live in Texas. We had it on DVD, and I had that 00:00:22.320 --> 00:00:25.100 thing on repeat all the time. That was good, 00:00:25.140 --> 00:00:28.980 Toby Mac. That was really good, Toby Mac. When 00:00:28.980 --> 00:00:31.980 we go back to, like, Diversity, I remember the 00:00:31.980 --> 00:00:35.399 name of that album. And then I think it's Whoopsie 00:00:35.399 --> 00:00:37.420 Daisy. I think was that the album before? Whoopsie 00:00:37.420 --> 00:00:39.200 Daisy was the album after, but that's not the 00:00:39.200 --> 00:00:41.020 title of the album. I'm trying to remember what 00:00:41.020 --> 00:00:43.399 it is. But it's that because that's the one with 00:00:43.399 --> 00:00:45.380 the I don't want to gain the whole world. But 00:00:45.380 --> 00:00:50.960 like all of like when Toby Mac went single and 00:00:50.960 --> 00:00:53.280 like all those, especially like the first two 00:00:53.280 --> 00:00:56.140 because they were like really hard. Yeah, that 00:00:56.140 --> 00:00:58.359 was good. Toby Mac. He's done that thing where 00:00:58.359 --> 00:01:00.140 he like he'll take an artist under his wing. 00:01:00.779 --> 00:01:03.619 and kind of help boost them up. He did that with 00:01:03.619 --> 00:01:08.629 Holland. He did that with NF. Like, NF's early 00:01:08.629 --> 00:01:11.090 stuff, like, Toby Mac, like, kind of boosted 00:01:11.090 --> 00:01:13.629 him. Toby Mac let him tour with him and stuff. 00:01:13.689 --> 00:01:15.849 And then NF, like, was like, I'm not a Christian 00:01:15.849 --> 00:01:17.510 artist. I'm an artist that's a Christian. And 00:01:17.510 --> 00:01:19.489 Toby was like, dude, you can't do that. Yeah. 00:01:19.629 --> 00:01:21.489 Which you can. Like, I actually think there's 00:01:21.489 --> 00:01:24.629 a – like, I can make a valid case for somebody 00:01:24.629 --> 00:01:27.049 who is musically gifted who is a Christian who 00:01:27.049 --> 00:01:29.709 does not explicitly make Christian music. I agree. 00:01:30.549 --> 00:01:34.790 But, yeah. No, I – that early Toby Mac was – 00:01:34.790 --> 00:01:38.189 oh, it was so cool, man. I felt so edgy listening 00:01:38.189 --> 00:01:40.709 to his cover of Jesus freak that he does. This 00:01:40.709 --> 00:01:45.450 is an encore like daddy's got guitars. His concerts 00:01:45.450 --> 00:01:47.909 were good back then too. He has some good concerts. 00:01:47.950 --> 00:01:49.689 He would do that thing where like the band would 00:01:49.689 --> 00:01:51.409 be going crazy and he'd disappear for a little 00:01:51.409 --> 00:01:53.150 bit and he'd just pop up in the, in the crowd. 00:01:53.290 --> 00:01:55.390 Yeah. Yeah. I think if I did that at Memorial, 00:01:55.650 --> 00:01:57.129 I mean, everybody would see me walk out there, 00:01:57.170 --> 00:02:01.209 but you know, we need some stage effects to make 00:02:01.209 --> 00:02:05.739 that work. There are so many prerequisites to 00:02:05.739 --> 00:02:07.379 what we're talking about that I would need to 00:02:07.379 --> 00:02:10.819 install in our sanctuary. Lots of money, but 00:02:10.819 --> 00:02:13.340 we have a basement for it, though. That crawl 00:02:13.340 --> 00:02:15.960 space is huge. How dare you give me any kind 00:02:15.960 --> 00:02:18.419 of... I mean, and think about it. Right below 00:02:18.419 --> 00:02:21.879 where the stage is, it's deep. It's deep. That's 00:02:21.879 --> 00:02:23.539 true. You could drop. Dude, I could do the Michael 00:02:23.539 --> 00:02:27.830 Jackson thing where I shoot out, you know? Have 00:02:27.830 --> 00:02:30.009 you seen that? Listen, the cost of this is justified. 00:02:31.569 --> 00:02:33.849 Dean and David, if y 'all are listening to this, 00:02:33.990 --> 00:02:39.389 can y 'all build this? Can y 'all build this 00:02:39.389 --> 00:02:42.090 for me? A spring -loaded catapult that gets me 00:02:42.090 --> 00:02:45.150 just high enough off the ground. Yes, it is. 00:02:45.250 --> 00:02:48.229 It gets me just high enough off the top of the 00:02:48.229 --> 00:02:50.550 stage where it lands. This is perfect. I see 00:02:50.550 --> 00:02:54.490 no problems with this. Oh, gosh. In my mind, 00:02:54.509 --> 00:02:57.759 it's great. In reality, this is wretched. We're 00:02:57.759 --> 00:03:01.400 not going to do this. This is terrible. Dude, 00:03:01.539 --> 00:03:05.219 I need stage lights before we get pyrotechnics 00:03:05.219 --> 00:03:07.580 and we get hydraulics out of the stage. Sean, 00:03:07.599 --> 00:03:11.120 we need a new sound system before we get new 00:03:11.120 --> 00:03:15.080 stage lights. Oh man, it's on our last leg. Talking 00:03:15.080 --> 00:03:18.520 about like poorly appropriated use of church 00:03:18.520 --> 00:03:22.280 money. I was on Facebook Marketplace the other 00:03:22.280 --> 00:03:26.360 day, which is always dangerous for me. Was Craigslist 00:03:26.360 --> 00:03:31.580 ever a big thing in your generation? Oh, yeah. 00:03:31.639 --> 00:03:34.520 I used Craigslist. The used guitar market still 00:03:34.520 --> 00:03:36.560 runs off of it. Please stop touching your microphone. 00:03:37.229 --> 00:03:39.229 Is it still a thing? Oh, yeah. Craigslist is 00:03:39.229 --> 00:03:40.849 still running. Now, there's some creepy people 00:03:40.849 --> 00:03:42.370 on Craigslist. Maybe I think that's why Facebook 00:03:42.370 --> 00:03:45.490 Marketplace became overshadowed Craigslist. It's 00:03:45.490 --> 00:03:47.250 because, oh, you get to look at a profile. You 00:03:47.250 --> 00:03:49.770 get to see some stuff about this person and not 00:03:49.770 --> 00:03:52.449 just random words on a screen. Meet me at the 00:03:52.449 --> 00:03:55.409 Walmart parking lot at 2 a .m. Bring all of your 00:03:55.409 --> 00:03:58.150 money just in case. So I was on Facebook Marketplace 00:03:58.150 --> 00:04:01.129 the other day, right? And I saw somebody was 00:04:01.129 --> 00:04:06.819 selling for the small price of $11 ,000. A 50 00:04:06.819 --> 00:04:10.039 -foot rock climbing wall for kids' parties and 00:04:10.039 --> 00:04:14.479 stuff. Mobile? Mobile. It's on a trailer, dude. 00:04:14.680 --> 00:04:17.259 And I thought to myself, Memorial needs this. 00:04:17.259 --> 00:04:25.579 VBS needs this. I cannot imagine the amount of 00:04:25.579 --> 00:04:28.259 legal protection we would need from an insurance 00:04:28.259 --> 00:04:30.899 perspective and the number of waivers. Tommy 00:04:30.899 --> 00:04:33.779 Tarleton would hate any mention of trying for 00:04:33.779 --> 00:04:36.139 us to buy a rock wall. Yes, he would. But you 00:04:36.139 --> 00:04:37.759 know what? I think it's for the Lord. You know 00:04:37.759 --> 00:04:39.899 how much ministry can be done as you're climbing 00:04:39.899 --> 00:04:42.500 a rock wall? A lot. Listen, I've been on a rock 00:04:42.500 --> 00:04:45.480 wall. I think more people call on Jesus on a 00:04:45.480 --> 00:04:48.800 rock wall than... than they do with both feet 00:04:48.800 --> 00:04:51.600 firmly planted on the ground. If you happen to 00:04:51.600 --> 00:04:54.540 come across a mobile rock wall on Facebook Marketplace, 00:04:54.759 --> 00:04:57.759 think about donating it to the church. Just drop 00:04:57.759 --> 00:05:00.279 it off. Drop it off. Listen, we don't need to... 00:05:00.279 --> 00:05:02.800 So here's the problem with opening up this conversation. 00:05:02.839 --> 00:05:05.500 Okay. Because people already feel like the church 00:05:05.500 --> 00:05:07.839 is the best place to go donate stuff to without 00:05:07.839 --> 00:05:11.319 telling us. Yeah. And people will just show up 00:05:11.319 --> 00:05:16.500 with... I'm trying to think of a nice word. Flotsam 00:05:16.500 --> 00:05:19.639 and jetsam. I'm just going to say junk. I'm going 00:05:19.639 --> 00:05:21.579 to say junk. That's the nice word. Like, I don't 00:05:21.579 --> 00:05:24.100 need this. I don't need this. The church would 00:05:24.100 --> 00:05:28.540 love to have this because I guess there's some 00:05:28.540 --> 00:05:30.399 people that just feel bad throwing stuff away. 00:05:31.079 --> 00:05:34.639 And so they're just like, we'll donate it to 00:05:34.639 --> 00:05:36.180 the church. Well, I mean, that's an argument 00:05:36.180 --> 00:05:38.199 of lesser to greater because I think churches 00:05:38.199 --> 00:05:41.689 particularly are guilty of never throwing. Listen, 00:05:41.990 --> 00:05:44.170 if there is one thing that I have brought to 00:05:44.170 --> 00:05:49.310 memorial, it is the spiritual gift of the dumpster. 00:05:49.410 --> 00:05:52.329 The spiritual gift of chuck it. Throw it away. 00:05:52.329 --> 00:05:57.009 Get it out of here. You see, Sean, it's not about 00:05:57.009 --> 00:05:59.829 the gift given to the church. It's about the 00:05:59.829 --> 00:06:04.449 heart that it's given in. Wouldn't you agree? 00:06:04.629 --> 00:06:07.470 I would agree, except for the people that continue 00:06:07.470 --> 00:06:09.800 with their heart to give us wheelchairs. You 00:06:09.800 --> 00:06:11.079 know how many wheelchairs we have at this church 00:06:11.079 --> 00:06:14.259 right now? I don't, actually. There's about eight. 00:06:15.040 --> 00:06:19.519 Eight wheelchairs stuffed in closets. Tell me 00:06:19.519 --> 00:06:22.639 that hasn't turned into a youth group game. Insurance. 00:06:22.800 --> 00:06:32.259 No. But what we love is that, yes, it is not 00:06:32.259 --> 00:06:35.680 the size of the gift that matters. It's the heart. 00:06:36.779 --> 00:06:39.240 What are you getting at? I'm getting that today's 00:06:39.240 --> 00:06:43.019 passage. Oh, there it is. Awesome. Awesome. What's 00:06:43.019 --> 00:06:46.459 today's passage, Sean? Oh, man. So this week, 00:06:46.500 --> 00:06:50.300 man, this week's lessons has been varied for 00:06:50.300 --> 00:06:53.459 sure with the stuff that we hit, the stuff that 00:06:53.459 --> 00:06:56.420 we were going to be reading this week. But we 00:06:56.420 --> 00:06:59.759 wanted to settle on a smaller passage that is 00:06:59.759 --> 00:07:03.879 found both in Mark and in Luke. And affectionately, 00:07:03.879 --> 00:07:07.300 it is known as the widow's gift or the widow's 00:07:07.300 --> 00:07:09.759 might is how people will refer to this story. 00:07:10.040 --> 00:07:12.639 And it's a short one. And I think we should read 00:07:12.639 --> 00:07:13.819 one of them. Which one do you think we should 00:07:13.819 --> 00:07:16.560 read? should read uh mark accounts longer i i've 00:07:16.560 --> 00:07:18.620 got stuff from both of them so yeah like well 00:07:18.620 --> 00:07:20.500 i think we'll end up referencing all right well 00:07:20.500 --> 00:07:22.079 let's read mark because mark's got a little bit 00:07:22.079 --> 00:07:23.740 you know like i said it's got a couple more words 00:07:23.740 --> 00:07:25.519 a little more details in it so let's read mark 00:07:25.519 --> 00:07:28.100 just so everyone's on the same page so if you're 00:07:28.100 --> 00:07:30.139 driving down the road you don't have time to 00:07:30.139 --> 00:07:32.800 break out your bible right now as as you're uh 00:07:32.800 --> 00:07:36.199 as you're listening to this um please don't actually 00:07:36.199 --> 00:07:39.360 that's like my pastoral counsel to you right 00:07:39.360 --> 00:07:46.680 now is don't read your bible Oh, man. So as you're 00:07:46.680 --> 00:07:48.300 driving down the road right now, because we know 00:07:48.300 --> 00:07:50.699 that there are probably some that listen to the 00:07:50.699 --> 00:07:53.319 podcast as they get on the road, listen to this 00:07:53.319 --> 00:07:55.180 so that way you can be in the context of what 00:07:55.180 --> 00:07:57.480 we're talking about and join in with those who 00:07:57.480 --> 00:08:00.279 do have their Bible in front of them not driving 00:08:00.279 --> 00:08:03.800 down the road. I think they get it, Sean. We're 00:08:03.800 --> 00:08:06.379 sitting at a table. Let me read it. I've been 00:08:06.379 --> 00:08:10.339 carried to the table. Did I introduce you to 00:08:10.339 --> 00:08:12.439 that song? Yes. That's what I thought. I thought 00:08:12.439 --> 00:08:15.519 that was wild. You never heard that song. There 00:08:15.519 --> 00:08:17.060 are many songs I haven't heard. Yeah, but that's 00:08:17.060 --> 00:08:18.980 a really good one. It is a really good one. Yeah. 00:08:19.120 --> 00:08:21.579 But you knew of Leland. Oh, yeah. He's the man 00:08:21.579 --> 00:08:24.319 who sings like a woman. Yeah. He's got long hair. 00:08:24.399 --> 00:08:26.759 So you know all the long hair Christians. Y 'all 00:08:26.759 --> 00:08:28.000 have like a little Facebook group or something, 00:08:28.060 --> 00:08:31.100 right? Yeah, there's all four of us. Anyways, 00:08:31.420 --> 00:08:34.259 I moved my mouse. There we go. All right. Starting 00:08:34.259 --> 00:08:37.179 in verse 41. Sitting across from the temple treasury, 00:08:37.360 --> 00:08:40.840 he watched how the crowd dropped money into the 00:08:40.840 --> 00:08:44.850 treasury. Many rich people were putting in large 00:08:44.850 --> 00:08:49.070 sums. Then a poor widow came and dropped in two 00:08:49.070 --> 00:08:54.490 tiny coins worth very little. Summoning his disciples, 00:08:54.649 --> 00:08:57.429 he said to them, Truly I tell you, this poor 00:08:57.429 --> 00:09:00.330 widow has put more into the treasury than all 00:09:00.330 --> 00:09:03.870 the others, for they all gave out of their surplus, 00:09:04.230 --> 00:09:09.049 but she, out of her poverty, has put in everything 00:09:09.049 --> 00:09:15.970 she had. All she had to live on. Yeah. Now, the 00:09:15.970 --> 00:09:18.330 first thing that stands out to me about this 00:09:18.330 --> 00:09:23.470 text, Jesus is... I'm rocking ESV. And he sat 00:09:23.470 --> 00:09:25.649 down opposite the treasury and watched people 00:09:25.649 --> 00:09:29.490 putting money in the offering box. This was a 00:09:29.490 --> 00:09:33.370 public spectacle. People could see what people 00:09:33.370 --> 00:09:36.029 were giving. Man, yeah. And this is something 00:09:36.029 --> 00:09:39.840 that... That's wild to me, first off. I'm so 00:09:39.840 --> 00:09:44.299 glad that this is no longer our culture. Okay, 00:09:44.320 --> 00:09:47.279 I'll just be honest. There is a time where this 00:09:47.279 --> 00:09:51.620 has been done in church. I forgot what they call 00:09:51.620 --> 00:09:54.960 it. And it's been like a special offering thing. 00:09:55.179 --> 00:09:58.679 Who can give the most -a -thon? I mean, that's 00:09:58.679 --> 00:10:01.200 what I call it in my brain, but it's a time where 00:10:01.200 --> 00:10:03.019 there would be a box in front of the church, 00:10:03.100 --> 00:10:07.379 and it would be a special offering, and people 00:10:07.379 --> 00:10:10.379 literally, every row would get up, come, put 00:10:10.379 --> 00:10:12.720 their gift in the church, and go sit back down. 00:10:13.139 --> 00:10:15.799 And I've always been freaked out about that. 00:10:17.820 --> 00:10:20.289 It's been done at... I've seen it done many times 00:10:20.289 --> 00:10:22.090 and it's always just been a weird spirit to me 00:10:22.090 --> 00:10:23.389 because it's kind of like this whole thing, right? 00:10:23.490 --> 00:10:26.370 It's like, like, yeah, like it's a, it's truly 00:10:26.370 --> 00:10:30.370 like this is a spectacle where people, and then 00:10:30.370 --> 00:10:32.690 how do they know that some people were putting 00:10:32.690 --> 00:10:35.870 in large sums of money because they made sure 00:10:35.870 --> 00:10:39.019 people knew they were putting in. large sums 00:10:39.019 --> 00:10:42.379 of money and in all fairness like like there 00:10:42.379 --> 00:10:44.820 there's a practicality to this too if you're 00:10:44.820 --> 00:10:46.899 rich and you're getting you so old testament 00:10:46.899 --> 00:10:49.120 law commanded you to give 10 of your stuff right 00:10:49.120 --> 00:10:52.799 and so if if you if you got if you and they couldn't 00:10:52.799 --> 00:10:54.659 drop in checks back in the day right so if you 00:10:54.659 --> 00:10:58.019 got racks on racks like you have a massive freaking 00:10:58.019 --> 00:11:00.980 it was going to be obvious and so the clunk in 00:11:00.980 --> 00:11:04.259 the bottom of the offeratory chest And I got 00:11:04.259 --> 00:11:05.620 to think there have been ways around that. But 00:11:05.620 --> 00:11:09.399 it's hard not to read performative giving into 00:11:09.399 --> 00:11:11.899 this text. Yeah, it's really hard not to. Yeah. 00:11:12.419 --> 00:11:15.460 But yeah, you're right. Jesus is sitting there 00:11:15.460 --> 00:11:19.200 just watching. He's people watching. Yeah. It's 00:11:19.200 --> 00:11:21.460 so wonderful. I love to do that. Favorite place 00:11:21.460 --> 00:11:23.990 to do that is the mall and the airport. Oh, that 00:11:23.990 --> 00:11:26.330 is a great place, because you can get a range 00:11:26.330 --> 00:11:28.009 of emotions in that place. Oh, you get a range 00:11:28.009 --> 00:11:30.070 of emotions at either place. Yeah, the mall's 00:11:30.070 --> 00:11:33.470 a fun one, too. You learn things you didn't want 00:11:33.470 --> 00:11:36.090 to know at the mall, but that's half the battle. 00:11:36.269 --> 00:11:38.809 But here we go, but Jesus is people watching 00:11:38.809 --> 00:11:42.110 in the temple, right? And he's watching these 00:11:42.110 --> 00:11:47.350 people put in money, and the focus of this story 00:11:47.350 --> 00:11:50.389 is not the rich people, but it's this poor widow. 00:11:50.929 --> 00:11:56.830 Yeah. Right? And she come, and from Jesus' commentary, 00:11:57.210 --> 00:12:01.789 and he knows, because he's God, that she gave 00:12:01.789 --> 00:12:08.429 everything. Yeah. And that is, this is where 00:12:08.429 --> 00:12:11.549 we see really the heart of who our God is. Because 00:12:11.549 --> 00:12:14.149 here, so you're exactly right. Something that 00:12:14.149 --> 00:12:18.049 just occurred to me now is that, so everybody 00:12:18.049 --> 00:12:20.289 saw the spectacle of the rich giving, right? 00:12:20.759 --> 00:12:22.799 Jesus had to call his disciples' attention to 00:12:22.799 --> 00:12:28.179 the giving of this widow. Whoa. And so he contrasts 00:12:28.179 --> 00:12:29.740 the heart of giving from abundance and giving 00:12:29.740 --> 00:12:33.620 out of poverty, but Jesus sees the small actions 00:12:33.620 --> 00:12:38.960 of faithfulness with equal focus and with equal 00:12:38.960 --> 00:12:41.639 intentionality as what might be considered the 00:12:41.639 --> 00:12:43.779 quote -unquote large acts of faithfulness or 00:12:43.779 --> 00:12:50.320 generosity. What I love about this and the reason 00:12:50.320 --> 00:12:55.139 he drew the attention of the disciples is because 00:12:55.139 --> 00:13:02.559 her giving was truly sacrificial. What does that 00:13:02.559 --> 00:13:05.220 look like? Or what do you mean when you say that? 00:13:05.519 --> 00:13:08.220 So it says that she gave out of her poverty. 00:13:08.480 --> 00:13:12.779 Yeah. So this means that every bit of money she 00:13:12.779 --> 00:13:16.840 has, we are getting the... We are getting the 00:13:16.840 --> 00:13:19.779 context here that she doesn't have a lot. Yeah. 00:13:19.840 --> 00:13:24.480 And so she needs to live to be able to buy food 00:13:24.480 --> 00:13:27.600 or whatever. She needs the resources that she 00:13:27.600 --> 00:13:31.019 has. Verse 44 says she put in all she had to 00:13:31.019 --> 00:13:35.539 live on. Yes. Everything. And she was willing 00:13:35.539 --> 00:13:42.559 to sacrifice what she had in faith to God. Yeah. 00:13:43.039 --> 00:13:47.669 Where... when we give and it doesn't hurt us, 00:13:47.710 --> 00:13:52.190 if we just give out of our abundance, which is 00:13:52.190 --> 00:13:53.909 what it says that the rich people were doing. 00:13:53.990 --> 00:13:56.490 So it also makes me wonder if they were giving 00:13:56.490 --> 00:13:59.049 out of their abundance, were they even, I wonder 00:13:59.049 --> 00:14:01.669 if they were even given what was required of 00:14:01.669 --> 00:14:05.309 them of the time. I bet they were. Yeah. It's 00:14:05.309 --> 00:14:08.289 hard to know that from the text, but I do see 00:14:08.289 --> 00:14:09.110 what you're getting at. But it wasn't hurting 00:14:09.110 --> 00:14:11.539 them. But it wasn't hurting. Even if it was, 00:14:11.759 --> 00:14:14.580 it was not something that was sacrificial. Yeah. 00:14:14.779 --> 00:14:17.220 Like, their abundance was not sacrificial to 00:14:17.220 --> 00:14:20.679 them, and it would have not been missed. Right. 00:14:20.759 --> 00:14:23.620 And that is completely true. And you see the 00:14:23.620 --> 00:14:26.179 premise in Scripture of, like, giving shouldn't 00:14:26.179 --> 00:14:28.419 be a flippant thing, even in the Old Testament. 00:14:28.539 --> 00:14:29.720 Because remember, these people didn't have New 00:14:29.720 --> 00:14:32.320 Testament, spirituality, new covenant, all that 00:14:32.320 --> 00:14:35.559 stuff. Like David gives the example of, I will 00:14:35.559 --> 00:14:38.120 not give sacrifices that cost me nothing. When 00:14:38.120 --> 00:14:40.340 he goes to buy the threshing floor to build the 00:14:40.340 --> 00:14:42.659 temple and humble was like, dog, I love Jesus. 00:14:42.720 --> 00:14:44.019 You're also the king. I don't have a choice. 00:14:44.120 --> 00:14:45.220 I'm going to give it to you. And David's like, 00:14:45.259 --> 00:14:46.960 I won't do this in a way that won't cost me. 00:14:47.610 --> 00:14:51.509 But I will say here, I don't feel like Jesus 00:14:51.509 --> 00:14:54.470 condemns the rich for the way that they give 00:14:54.470 --> 00:14:58.610 in so much as he elevates the giving of the widow. 00:14:58.789 --> 00:15:00.929 Like I said at the beginning, he is focusing 00:15:00.929 --> 00:15:04.669 on the widow. He is focusing on her actions. 00:15:04.769 --> 00:15:08.529 Yeah. And once this is, he wants his disciples, 00:15:08.649 --> 00:15:10.090 because he says he's not, he doesn't look at 00:15:10.090 --> 00:15:11.950 his disciples and say, oh gosh, look what they're 00:15:11.950 --> 00:15:14.610 doing. Yeah. No, no. He focuses on this one and 00:15:14.610 --> 00:15:16.370 just says, hey, this is what I want you to notice. 00:15:16.769 --> 00:15:19.289 I want you to notice how this woman has come, 00:15:19.470 --> 00:15:22.509 this widow has come, and she has given everything. 00:15:22.830 --> 00:15:27.000 Yeah. And that is out of... Her heart must have 00:15:27.000 --> 00:15:29.639 obviously been in the right place as well. 100%. 00:15:29.639 --> 00:15:32.259 This wasn't her giving out of fear, like, oh, 00:15:32.279 --> 00:15:34.379 the Lord's going to smite me if I don't do this, 00:15:34.419 --> 00:15:36.720 one of those things. No, her heart was saying 00:15:36.720 --> 00:15:39.899 that I love God so much, and I trust and I have 00:15:39.899 --> 00:15:42.240 faith in my God that I'm just going to give him 00:15:42.240 --> 00:15:44.960 this. So that trust and faith thing is something 00:15:44.960 --> 00:15:47.779 that stood out to me too. My Bible's got one 00:15:47.779 --> 00:15:51.220 of those little notey notes. Notey notes. Yep, 00:15:51.299 --> 00:15:53.730 that's a theological term. Right where it says 00:15:53.730 --> 00:15:56.690 she gave two small copper coins, it gave me an 00:15:56.690 --> 00:16:00.669 interpretation of how much that was worth. It's 00:16:00.669 --> 00:16:04.690 a Roman copper coin worth about 1 64th of a day's 00:16:04.690 --> 00:16:12.539 wages. All she had was a 64th of a day's wages. 00:16:12.919 --> 00:16:16.299 And so the principle of her giving, that being 00:16:16.299 --> 00:16:19.460 all that she have, one, and her giving all of 00:16:19.460 --> 00:16:23.240 that to the Lord flies directly in the face of 00:16:23.240 --> 00:16:26.059 the tendencies I see in myself. Here's what I 00:16:26.059 --> 00:16:32.620 mean. When things get thin financially or in 00:16:32.620 --> 00:16:37.039 any other area of my life, I tend to, and I think 00:16:37.039 --> 00:16:39.399 this is a pretty natural human response, I tend 00:16:39.399 --> 00:16:41.980 to go into conservation mode. Let me give you 00:16:41.980 --> 00:16:47.259 an example. December is crunch time for worship 00:16:47.259 --> 00:16:51.900 ministry. We have concerts, we have... concerts 00:16:51.900 --> 00:16:54.820 we've got plays we got rehearsals we got services 00:16:54.820 --> 00:16:57.740 and then there's also like all the other various 00:16:57.740 --> 00:17:00.659 sundry holiday things there are more nights of 00:17:00.659 --> 00:17:02.919 the week that you are here in the month of december 00:17:02.919 --> 00:17:06.779 than an average month yes uh to maybe to understate 00:17:06.779 --> 00:17:10.079 it a little yes um and so not so so drop the 00:17:10.079 --> 00:17:13.460 the money connotation yeah um but the scarcity 00:17:13.460 --> 00:17:17.319 i face in december is not money because I'm grateful 00:17:17.319 --> 00:17:21.960 for the church providing for me. It's time. And 00:17:21.960 --> 00:17:26.759 when I experience scarcity of time, it doesn't 00:17:26.759 --> 00:17:30.680 make me more generous. It makes me less generous. 00:17:32.500 --> 00:17:34.319 It's a natural human instinct. I think to myself, 00:17:34.539 --> 00:17:38.150 no. that extra extra extra thing that that somebody 00:17:38.150 --> 00:17:40.109 asks us to do i'm not doing that i'm gonna go 00:17:40.109 --> 00:17:42.549 home and i'm gonna play my guitar i'm gonna read 00:17:42.549 --> 00:17:45.089 a book i'm gonna watch a christmas movie um because 00:17:45.089 --> 00:17:49.170 my scarcity um must like like i have to protect 00:17:49.170 --> 00:17:53.230 what i have now this is the exact opposite in 00:17:53.230 --> 00:17:57.029 her scarcity um she responds with generosity 00:17:57.029 --> 00:18:00.460 in worship And I think that that's an expression 00:18:00.460 --> 00:18:03.619 of trust, like what you said, where she gives 00:18:03.619 --> 00:18:08.099 out of her poverty because she trusts that the 00:18:08.099 --> 00:18:10.759 Lord will provide for her. I think that's a mindset 00:18:10.759 --> 00:18:12.900 that we all have an opportunity to embrace in 00:18:12.900 --> 00:18:14.940 different areas of our lives. Because, I mean, 00:18:14.940 --> 00:18:16.599 you and me sitting across this table from each 00:18:16.599 --> 00:18:21.230 other have different areas of lack. Everybody 00:18:21.230 --> 00:18:23.730 listening to this podcast have different areas 00:18:23.730 --> 00:18:26.210 of lack. For some, it might be financial. For 00:18:26.210 --> 00:18:28.410 some, it might be time. For some, it might be 00:18:28.410 --> 00:18:31.069 physical stamina and energy. For some, it might 00:18:31.069 --> 00:18:33.410 be ability to deal with people. Like your bucket 00:18:33.410 --> 00:18:37.250 only goes so full. But how do we, one of the 00:18:37.250 --> 00:18:39.569 biggest takeaways I took from this text for myself 00:18:39.569 --> 00:18:46.109 was how do I respond when I have lack? Do I respond 00:18:46.109 --> 00:18:50.650 by conserving? Or do I respond? with generosity, 00:18:50.750 --> 00:18:54.150 trusting that the Lord will take care of me. 00:18:54.390 --> 00:18:56.289 Yeah. And this is one of the things that we've 00:18:56.289 --> 00:18:59.609 dealt with on this podcast before, and that is 00:18:59.609 --> 00:19:03.369 worship and sacrifice go hand in hand. Yes. I 00:19:03.369 --> 00:19:07.329 mean, worship, true worship, and I'm talking 00:19:07.329 --> 00:19:09.950 about the definition of the word beyond music. 00:19:10.549 --> 00:19:14.769 Far beyond music. Worshiping God requires sacrifice. 00:19:15.860 --> 00:19:21.880 Going back to the story of David, he fully recognized 00:19:21.880 --> 00:19:26.099 that there is a sacrifice needed because it's 00:19:26.099 --> 00:19:28.500 showing dependence on the one you're trying to 00:19:28.500 --> 00:19:31.700 worship. I mean, how can you worship God if you're 00:19:31.700 --> 00:19:33.980 not giving up something of yourself? Because 00:19:33.980 --> 00:19:37.579 it's an expression of love, right? And generally, 00:19:37.579 --> 00:19:40.000 if you love somebody, you don't want to give 00:19:40.000 --> 00:19:44.819 them the dregs. When I take Maddie out for our 00:19:44.819 --> 00:19:48.500 anniversary, I don't take Maddie to Wendy's. 00:19:48.960 --> 00:19:51.519 What? Unless Maddie wants to go, in which case 00:19:51.519 --> 00:19:55.180 we do. I've heard Maddie talk about the potatoes 00:19:55.180 --> 00:19:57.940 and chili at Wendy's. Which are things she actually 00:19:57.940 --> 00:19:59.940 can't eat there with her dietary restrictions. 00:20:00.279 --> 00:20:04.640 It's tougher than you might think. But it's not 00:20:04.640 --> 00:20:10.480 an obligation. It's an affection. It's not... 00:20:11.650 --> 00:20:14.589 Well, Jesus gave everything for you, so you better 00:20:14.589 --> 00:20:16.589 give everything for him. There's desire. It's 00:20:16.589 --> 00:20:19.849 desire there. And I think that our desire... 00:20:20.340 --> 00:20:24.660 to worship sacrificially can grow based off of 00:20:24.660 --> 00:20:27.799 how often we look at the truth of what Jesus 00:20:27.799 --> 00:20:29.839 has done for us and let that influence our love 00:20:29.839 --> 00:20:30.940 for him. I think that's part of the sanctification 00:20:30.940 --> 00:20:34.099 process. A hundred percent. But like guilting 00:20:34.099 --> 00:20:37.180 you into giving. No, no, no, no, no, no, no. 00:20:37.200 --> 00:20:39.079 Whether that's time or money or service. No, 00:20:39.079 --> 00:20:43.190 no, no, no, no, no, no. Here's an interesting 00:20:43.190 --> 00:20:46.210 little tidbit. I went down a little bit of a 00:20:46.210 --> 00:20:49.710 rabbit trail about giving when I looked at this 00:20:49.710 --> 00:20:54.430 text. Are New Testament believers, this is a 00:20:54.430 --> 00:20:57.069 question for you, Sean, do you think New Testament 00:20:57.069 --> 00:21:01.410 believers are required by the Bible to give 10 00:21:01.410 --> 00:21:06.470 % of their income? No. Really? No. I think that 00:21:06.470 --> 00:21:10.440 is a belief that is... prominent in a lot of 00:21:10.440 --> 00:21:12.119 circles in Christianity. Yeah, no, I think that 00:21:12.119 --> 00:21:17.299 the New Testament, I think that 10 % is a good 00:21:17.299 --> 00:21:19.640 baseline for new believers. And not anything 00:21:19.640 --> 00:21:21.960 that is a commandment from Scripture, but as 00:21:21.960 --> 00:21:25.819 a practice of getting to that, of understanding 00:21:25.819 --> 00:21:29.160 what giving is, I think giving 10 % is a good 00:21:29.160 --> 00:21:33.380 baseline. But when I look at New Testament giving, 00:21:33.539 --> 00:21:37.960 once again, I just see sacrificial. And I think 00:21:37.960 --> 00:21:40.740 sometimes if we stay so focused on the amount 00:21:40.740 --> 00:21:44.119 of that number of 10%, we might be missing what 00:21:44.119 --> 00:21:46.140 God is trying to do in our lives when he's trying 00:21:46.140 --> 00:21:48.119 to say, hey, no, I think you should give up more. 00:21:48.440 --> 00:21:50.400 But here's the hard thing, because this is so 00:21:50.400 --> 00:21:51.900 hard to talk about as pastors, because then you've 00:21:51.900 --> 00:21:54.839 got these people with our sinful hearts. They're 00:21:54.839 --> 00:21:56.519 like, uh -huh, yeah, yeah, the pastor just wants 00:21:56.519 --> 00:21:59.539 more money. It's like, no, no, no, no. And so 00:21:59.539 --> 00:22:01.880 it's one of those fine lines of being able to 00:22:01.880 --> 00:22:05.529 try to help guide people. And understand like, 00:22:05.569 --> 00:22:07.950 hey, this is not, I'm not doing this out of personal 00:22:07.950 --> 00:22:10.549 gain. Like truly not trying to do this. I'm trying 00:22:10.549 --> 00:22:13.529 to get you to understand, like, listen to the 00:22:13.529 --> 00:22:15.569 Lord here. And there is a difference. And like, 00:22:15.650 --> 00:22:18.369 and if you're giving an offering to the Lord, 00:22:18.430 --> 00:22:19.609 that's going to be different for different people. 00:22:19.609 --> 00:22:24.859 I don't think it's that hard. I recognize what 00:22:24.859 --> 00:22:26.440 you're saying in terms of the folks who would 00:22:26.440 --> 00:22:28.660 be like, these people just want more money, but 00:22:28.660 --> 00:22:30.859 let's let the words of Scripture determine what 00:22:30.859 --> 00:22:34.440 we believe. 2 Corinthians 2 .9. I landed here 00:22:34.440 --> 00:22:36.880 in my journey as I'm looking at tithing and all 00:22:36.880 --> 00:22:40.420 that stuff. Paul says the point is this. Whoever 00:22:40.420 --> 00:22:43.759 sows sparingly will also reap sparingly. Whoever 00:22:43.759 --> 00:22:49.910 sows bountifully will also reap. And so prosperity 00:22:49.910 --> 00:22:51.990 teachers, guys who are just trying to get your 00:22:51.990 --> 00:22:54.210 money, they stop at verse six because they're 00:22:54.210 --> 00:22:56.250 like, you so sparingly, God is not going to bless 00:22:56.250 --> 00:22:58.609 you. They directly equate how much you give to 00:22:58.609 --> 00:23:01.369 them to line their pockets and their Lamborghini 00:23:01.369 --> 00:23:05.710 for the Lord with how much God will bless you. 00:23:05.769 --> 00:23:10.059 But verse seven says, each one must give. As 00:23:10.059 --> 00:23:12.740 he has decided in his heart. There you go. Not 00:23:12.740 --> 00:23:16.200 reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves 00:23:16.200 --> 00:23:18.480 a cheerful giver. We see here in scripture, and 00:23:18.480 --> 00:23:22.420 I will talk about this until I am dead. God cares 00:23:22.420 --> 00:23:24.660 more about your heart when you do the thing than 00:23:24.660 --> 00:23:27.000 whether you do the thing or not. Correct. And 00:23:27.000 --> 00:23:30.509 so this is why every single year. when we do 00:23:30.509 --> 00:23:32.150 our special offerings, like the two big ones 00:23:32.150 --> 00:23:35.430 that we have here at Memorial is our Easter offering 00:23:35.430 --> 00:23:37.849 and our Christmas offering. One supports international 00:23:37.849 --> 00:23:40.410 missionaries, the other supports national missionaries, 00:23:40.470 --> 00:23:44.200 right? And... Every single time, and I will continue 00:23:44.200 --> 00:23:47.900 to do it every single time, we do these special 00:23:47.900 --> 00:23:50.640 offering gifts that is above your tithe and offering. 00:23:50.740 --> 00:23:53.359 Let me repeat that again. This does not replace 00:23:53.359 --> 00:23:56.400 your tithes. This is above an offering. This 00:23:56.400 --> 00:23:59.759 is an offering of sacrifice to these special 00:23:59.759 --> 00:24:03.180 things. I always say every single time, pray 00:24:03.180 --> 00:24:06.940 about this. Before you, like, hey, we started 00:24:06.940 --> 00:24:09.960 it on December 1st. Don't give on December 1st. 00:24:10.509 --> 00:24:13.549 Pray about how much you want to give. In fact, 00:24:13.650 --> 00:24:16.670 a lot of times I'll even say, if you're a married 00:24:16.670 --> 00:24:19.990 couple, pray separately. Don't talk to each other 00:24:19.990 --> 00:24:22.569 about it. Pray separately and then come together 00:24:22.569 --> 00:24:25.069 and see what that amount is that the Lord has 00:24:25.069 --> 00:24:27.410 talked to you about separately. Because when 00:24:27.410 --> 00:24:31.569 you do that, it's coming from your heart. And 00:24:31.569 --> 00:24:34.769 it's no longer going to be a... We definitely 00:24:34.769 --> 00:24:36.910 have a lot of people that are financially -minded 00:24:36.910 --> 00:24:38.390 people, and they're going to be thinking, okay, 00:24:38.509 --> 00:24:40.390 well, this is December. I got this going on. 00:24:40.430 --> 00:24:41.789 I got this going on. I got this. It's like, no, 00:24:41.829 --> 00:24:45.750 no, no. This is not a budgetary expense. This 00:24:45.750 --> 00:24:47.849 is a sacrificial gift that you're giving to the 00:24:47.849 --> 00:24:53.869 Lord. Let Him guide your giving and not your 00:24:53.869 --> 00:24:57.490 paycheck balance. Yeah. Because if the... Right 00:24:57.490 --> 00:24:59.990 there, as you just read, if the Lord's going 00:24:59.990 --> 00:25:02.529 to guide you toward it and be free to listen 00:25:02.529 --> 00:25:05.190 to the Lord. Now, sometimes I've done this, me 00:25:05.190 --> 00:25:07.210 and Tiffany have done this, and the Lord has 00:25:07.210 --> 00:25:09.349 given us a number we were not comfortable with. 00:25:09.450 --> 00:25:12.250 That's happened a lot. Yeah. But guess what? 00:25:12.890 --> 00:25:15.680 Especially when we do it separately. we know 00:25:15.680 --> 00:25:17.839 it's from the Lord. Yeah. If we do it together, 00:25:17.920 --> 00:25:20.940 we can convince ourselves that, oh, yeah, no. 00:25:21.500 --> 00:25:24.059 No, but if we both pray separately and all of 00:25:24.059 --> 00:25:25.619 a sudden we come back with a number together 00:25:25.619 --> 00:25:27.819 and we were both scared to tell each other the 00:25:27.819 --> 00:25:29.460 number and then we come out with the same number, 00:25:29.599 --> 00:25:32.099 we know God has told us to give that number. 00:25:32.180 --> 00:25:35.460 And like, okay, we don't know how our bank account 00:25:35.460 --> 00:25:37.900 can afford this, but we know the Lord has told 00:25:37.900 --> 00:25:40.519 us to do this. And it does have to come from. 00:25:40.990 --> 00:25:44.410 God, because I firmly believe like this verse 00:25:44.410 --> 00:25:48.589 gives precedent for God can tell you a small 00:25:48.589 --> 00:25:50.509 number. God can tell you don't give. Oh, absolutely. 00:25:50.710 --> 00:25:53.910 Absolutely. I think that the premise here of 00:25:53.910 --> 00:25:56.829 like you have to give a certain amount or even 00:25:56.829 --> 00:26:00.809 like you have to give at all. It's really based 00:26:00.809 --> 00:26:04.289 off of what the Lord is asking you to do. That 00:26:04.289 --> 00:26:06.410 means you can't do it by yourself. That means 00:26:06.410 --> 00:26:08.890 that before you give, you have to be walking 00:26:08.890 --> 00:26:11.549 with Jesus to know what he wants you to do. I 00:26:11.549 --> 00:26:14.329 also think that that lets him determine the direction 00:26:14.329 --> 00:26:17.170 that you give. God can say, give in this area. 00:26:17.230 --> 00:26:19.569 God can say, give in this area. But at the end 00:26:19.569 --> 00:26:21.549 of the day, he's the one who has given us the 00:26:21.549 --> 00:26:25.119 resources. And because he loves us and because 00:26:25.119 --> 00:26:27.240 we struggle to know what to do and because he 00:26:27.240 --> 00:26:29.779 has a perfect plan, he'll show you how, when, 00:26:29.779 --> 00:26:33.759 and where to give, not under compulsion, not 00:26:33.759 --> 00:26:37.599 reluctantly. And he will cultivate that joy in 00:26:37.599 --> 00:26:40.940 your heart if you ask him. And as a reminder 00:26:40.940 --> 00:26:43.259 that you talked about earlier, now that we have 00:26:43.259 --> 00:26:47.390 fully really looked at, you know. sacrificial 00:26:47.390 --> 00:26:49.869 giving and giving us to the Lord calls, this 00:26:49.869 --> 00:26:52.990 is not all about money. No. In fact, for many 00:26:52.990 --> 00:26:56.730 people, time is more valuable than money because 00:26:56.730 --> 00:26:58.970 that is a limited resource that we all have the 00:26:58.970 --> 00:27:01.750 same amount of every single day. And then we 00:27:01.750 --> 00:27:04.029 all choose what we do with the time that we're 00:27:04.029 --> 00:27:06.190 given. My brother in Christ, we do not all have 00:27:06.190 --> 00:27:08.289 the same amount of time every day. We all have 00:27:08.289 --> 00:27:13.170 24 hours. Yeah, but the obligations that bind 00:27:13.170 --> 00:27:17.759 us are different. You are correct. But we all 00:27:17.759 --> 00:27:20.799 get to choose what we do within that 24 -hour 00:27:20.799 --> 00:27:23.539 period. So, yes, we definitely have obligations. 00:27:23.720 --> 00:27:26.440 We have different things that we can do. And 00:27:26.440 --> 00:27:31.160 some will squander that time. Others will manage 00:27:31.160 --> 00:27:35.759 it better, right? But every single human being 00:27:35.759 --> 00:27:39.259 has 24 hours in a day. And so for some people, 00:27:39.359 --> 00:27:43.519 that is a more valuable resource. than money 00:27:43.519 --> 00:27:49.700 is and so giving up of time is something that 00:27:49.700 --> 00:27:54.180 some people don't do no and so maybe in your 00:27:54.180 --> 00:27:57.319 heart maybe in the heart of someone listening 00:27:57.319 --> 00:28:01.500 you know you are you you can money is not something 00:28:01.500 --> 00:28:03.380 you can give freely with money and maybe even 00:28:03.380 --> 00:28:05.779 sacrificially but you're not willing to give 00:28:05.779 --> 00:28:08.579 your time because i know of a lot of i know I've 00:28:08.579 --> 00:28:11.839 known people in church that give incredibly to 00:28:11.839 --> 00:28:14.059 the church and sacrificially. They are willing 00:28:14.059 --> 00:28:16.980 to give to missions. They're willing to give 00:28:16.980 --> 00:28:20.279 to the church sacrificially, but they won't serve. 00:28:20.920 --> 00:28:24.859 You know, isn't it so interesting that the same 00:28:24.859 --> 00:28:31.240 virtue or vice can have such a different... impact 00:28:31.240 --> 00:28:34.000 in different areas of our life, that one that 00:28:34.000 --> 00:28:36.720 is so generous with finances can be so stingy 00:28:36.720 --> 00:28:40.579 with time. One of the people who's mentored me, 00:28:40.759 --> 00:28:45.039 they lean definitely more charismatic than some 00:28:45.039 --> 00:28:48.180 others. And so this person practices deliverance 00:28:48.180 --> 00:28:50.400 ministry. They'll pray over people regarding 00:28:50.400 --> 00:28:52.640 specific spirits that are afflicting them. And 00:28:52.640 --> 00:28:54.160 that's a different conversation for a different 00:28:54.160 --> 00:28:56.539 podcast. Really? We don't have time to go into 00:28:56.539 --> 00:28:59.140 that one right now? We are already over the 30 00:28:59.140 --> 00:29:01.539 -minute mark. And And that is something I'm happy 00:29:01.539 --> 00:29:05.359 to talk about. But the point of it is this. This 00:29:05.359 --> 00:29:06.940 couple was really struggling. They were really 00:29:06.940 --> 00:29:08.619 fighting with some spiritual warfare. They approached 00:29:08.619 --> 00:29:11.799 this person who does deliverance. And after the 00:29:11.799 --> 00:29:14.160 three of them prayed, they all came to the conclusion, 00:29:14.259 --> 00:29:17.920 like, there is a spirit of greed on this man. 00:29:18.400 --> 00:29:22.900 And the man was like, I don't think you understand. 00:29:24.000 --> 00:29:27.660 Like, we are giving sacrificially. Like, I am 00:29:27.660 --> 00:29:31.299 generous, and the wife affirmed that. And so 00:29:31.299 --> 00:29:32.440 they were praying, they were praying, they were 00:29:32.440 --> 00:29:35.440 praying, and the Lord told this person doing 00:29:35.440 --> 00:29:37.359 deliverance, he's not generous for this time. 00:29:37.619 --> 00:29:40.319 And the wife was like, oh, shoot, you're right. 00:29:40.380 --> 00:29:42.019 He doesn't give his time to anybody. They prayed 00:29:42.019 --> 00:29:43.680 over that. They found that spirit, all the things. 00:29:43.799 --> 00:29:47.079 But it's interesting that the same virtue or 00:29:47.079 --> 00:29:50.359 vice can come out so differently in different 00:29:50.359 --> 00:29:54.339 ways in our lives. Yeah, yeah. And it's different 00:29:54.339 --> 00:29:57.299 for everybody else. 100%. It is different. So 00:29:57.299 --> 00:30:02.900 for me personally, I feel like I am very generous 00:30:02.900 --> 00:30:06.319 with my time. I love to serve. I love to do that. 00:30:07.180 --> 00:30:10.400 Money is the one that I struggle with. And it's 00:30:10.400 --> 00:30:13.140 one that I think I've even talked about that 00:30:13.140 --> 00:30:15.319 on the podcast before. But I'm just glad I have 00:30:15.319 --> 00:30:18.220 a godly wife that is more generous with our money. 00:30:18.579 --> 00:30:20.559 Praise the Lord that he sets us up with people 00:30:20.559 --> 00:30:23.460 that our strengths match. Yeah. So I guess just 00:30:23.460 --> 00:30:28.039 to land the plane for us, you pursuers, us and 00:30:28.039 --> 00:30:31.400 you, we all pursuers today, take time this week, 00:30:31.539 --> 00:30:33.559 maybe even like after you finish this podcast 00:30:33.559 --> 00:30:39.119 or after you press pause or whatever, hold a 00:30:39.119 --> 00:30:40.960 little bit of space and ask the Holy Spirit, 00:30:41.059 --> 00:30:45.480 what areas of my life are you asking me to be 00:30:45.480 --> 00:30:49.039 generous with? What areas am I giving richly? 00:30:49.390 --> 00:30:52.369 And what areas do I refuse to give richly out 00:30:52.369 --> 00:30:58.630 of fear or out of lack of security? I'm asking 00:30:58.630 --> 00:31:00.569 that question to myself. Sean, it sounds like 00:31:00.569 --> 00:31:02.190 you're asking that question of yourself, but 00:31:02.190 --> 00:31:04.430 I think that's a really good place to land the 00:31:04.430 --> 00:31:07.880 plane. And when you're on that journey. And if 00:31:07.880 --> 00:31:09.859 you're asking those questions, you're moving 00:31:09.859 --> 00:31:11.599 in the right direction. Amen. Because that's 00:31:11.599 --> 00:31:13.759 the thing. Sometimes people will struggle of 00:31:13.759 --> 00:31:16.579 like, man, am I doing enough or whatever? And 00:31:16.579 --> 00:31:18.339 we can get into that whole conversation, which 00:31:18.339 --> 00:31:21.799 we get into all the time. All the time. But asking 00:31:21.799 --> 00:31:24.680 the questions and being genuine about asking 00:31:24.680 --> 00:31:28.019 the question of like, what can, am I, where do 00:31:28.019 --> 00:31:30.380 I need to sacrifice? You're on the right direction. 00:31:30.619 --> 00:31:34.759 Yes. It's crazy. Like the heart behind the behavior. 00:31:35.500 --> 00:31:37.619 And the struggle that you're having matters more 00:31:37.619 --> 00:31:39.980 than the behavior and struggle itself. The heart 00:31:39.980 --> 00:31:41.880 is what matters. Absolutely. That's what we're 00:31:41.880 --> 00:31:46.240 seeing here in Mark with this amazing parable. 00:31:46.380 --> 00:31:48.619 This is what we've been seeing in Galatians as 00:31:48.619 --> 00:31:50.940 we've been studying it on Sunday morning. The 00:31:50.940 --> 00:31:53.400 heart is what matters. Awesome. Well, Pursuers, 00:31:53.480 --> 00:31:56.059 it's been fun. Do some introspection. We'll catch 00:31:56.059 --> 00:31:58.900 you guys next week. Well, my name is Sean Griffin. 00:31:59.099 --> 00:32:01.640 Oh, my name is Ben Smith. That's right. And I 00:32:01.640 --> 00:32:04.319 hope you guys have a wonderful, wonderful week. 00:32:04.349 --> 00:32:07.869 We'll see you soon. Pursuing Jesus is a ministry 00:32:07.869 --> 00:32:10.569 of Memorial Baptist Church in Norwood, North 00:32:10.569 --> 00:32:12.910 Carolina. To learn more about our church, please 00:32:12.910 --> 00:32:22.890 visit memorial4norwood .com. How did we get off 00:32:22.890 --> 00:32:25.089 on that? That was so stupid. What do you mean?