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Transcript

Sent | Carrying Christ Into the World · Wilder Whispers Podcast

• 0:07
  SPEAKER_00: Hey friend, welcome to Wilder Whispers, a space where we slow down and listen for God's voice in the ordinary moments of life.
• 0:15
  SPEAKER_00: I'm Shay Wooden, and I'm so glad you're here.
• 0:18
  SPEAKER_00: We often expect God to speak through big moments, a sermon, a breakthrough, a perfectly quiet prayer time, and he does, but so often he chooses quieter ways, in the middle of everyday life, in the unnoticed moments, in gentle whispers that invite us closer.
• 0:36
  SPEAKER_00: Each episode, I'll share one simple story and the quiet truth God revealed through it.
• 0:42
  SPEAKER_00: Not because it was extraordinary, but because he was present.
• 0:46
  SPEAKER_00: So wherever you are right now, take a breath, let's slow down and listen together.
• 0:56
  SPEAKER_00: Last episode, we talked about transformation, how the Holy Spirit renews our minds, reshapes our hearts, and forms the character of Christ within us.
• 1:06
  SPEAKER_00: And the more we become like Jesus, the more we begin carrying his heart for people.
• 1:11
  SPEAKER_00: We begin seeing people differently, loving differently, responding differently.
• 1:17
  SPEAKER_00: Because when Christ is formed within us, his love begins flowing through us to the world around us.
• 1:22
  SPEAKER_00: And that's what today's episode is about.
• 1:25
  SPEAKER_00: What happens when transformed people are sent people?
• 1:30
  SPEAKER_00: I remember the first time a homeless person asked me for food when I worked in downtown Chicago.
• 1:35
  SPEAKER_00: I immediately thought about the verse where Jesus said, When you've done it unto one of the least of these, you've done it unto me.
• 1:41
  SPEAKER_00: Honestly, there were so many homeless people downtown that it could feel overwhelming sometimes.
• 1:46
  SPEAKER_00: And if someone asked me for food, I would always buy them food.
• 1:50
  SPEAKER_00: One day I was picking up a catering order for a work party, and as I came out of the restaurant, a homeless man asked me if I could help him get something to eat.
• 1:58
  SPEAKER_00: But I was in a hurry that day.
• 1:59
  SPEAKER_00: I had food to deliver.
• 2:01
  SPEAKER_00: People were waiting on me.
• 2:02
  SPEAKER_00: A cab had already pulled up to the curb.
• 2:05
  SPEAKER_00: So without really thinking about it, I told him no.
• 2:08
  SPEAKER_00: I flagged the cab down, got inside, and shut the door.
• 2:12
  SPEAKER_00: But I knew I was supposed to help him.
• 2:14
  SPEAKER_00: I can't really explain it except to say that I felt the Holy Spirit nudging my heart.
• 2:19
  SPEAKER_00: So I got back out of the cab, went back into the restaurant, and bought him a gift card for food.
• 2:25
  SPEAKER_00: And when I handed it to him, tears started running down his face.
• 2:30
  SPEAKER_00: He thanked me and told me he hadn't eaten in three days.
• 2:33
  SPEAKER_00: And I still think about that moment sometimes.
• 2:36
  SPEAKER_00: Because over the years, downtown Chicago slowly stopped feeling like just the place where I worked.
• 2:41
  SPEAKER_00: It started feeling like a mission field.
• 2:44
  SPEAKER_00: There were days I would give my lunch away because I didn't have time to stop and get another meal.
• 2:49
  SPEAKER_00: Sometimes I would pack sack lunches and walk the streets handing them out.
• 2:53
  SPEAKER_00: And somewhere along the way, God was changing the way I saw people.
• 2:59
  SPEAKER_00: And as I look back on that season, I think the Holy Spirit was teaching me something.
• 3:04
  SPEAKER_00: Being sent doesn't always start with the platform.
• 3:08
  SPEAKER_00: Sometimes it starts with seeing the person right in front of you.
• 3:11
  SPEAKER_00: The hungry person, the hurting person, the overlooked person, the person whose pain nobody else sees.
• 3:20
  SPEAKER_00: And that's what the Holy Spirit was teaching me.
• 3:23
  SPEAKER_00: The more we become like Jesus, the more we begin seeing people the way he sees them.
• 3:30
  SPEAKER_00: In Matthew 9, Jesus looked at the crowds and saw people who were weary, scattered, and without a shepherd.
• 3:38
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus was not merely looking at an outward need, he was seeing spiritual hunger.
• 3:43
  SPEAKER_00: People searching for hope apart from God.
• 3:46
  SPEAKER_00: And Scripture says he was moved with compassion.
• 3:49
  SPEAKER_00: And compassion is just love and action.
• 3:51
  SPEAKER_00: It's not merely feeling sorry for someone, it's love that notices, love that moves toward people, a love that responds, love that reflects the heart of God.
• 4:02
  SPEAKER_00: And what strikes me is that Jesus didn't see people as interruptions, he saw people that were deeply loved by the Father.
• 4:10
  SPEAKER_00: And I think one of the clearest signs that we are becoming more like Christ is that our hearts begin responding differently to people as well.
• 4:17
  SPEAKER_00: Not with irritation, not with indifference, not with superiority, but with compassion.
• 4:25
  SPEAKER_00: And honestly, the more time we spend with Jesus, the harder it becomes to look at people only through a natural lens.
• 4:32
  SPEAKER_00: The Holy Spirit begins helping us see beyond outward appearances.
• 4:36
  SPEAKER_00: We begin recognizing that many of the people around us are carrying burdens nobody else can see.
• 4:42
  SPEAKER_00: After Jesus looked at the crowds with compassion, he turned to his disciples and said, The harvest truly is plentiful, but the laborers are few.
• 4:51
  SPEAKER_00: Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.
• 4:56
  SPEAKER_00: And I love that Jesus first told them to pray.
• 4:59
  SPEAKER_00: Because prayer has a way of aligning our hearts with his.
• 5:03
  SPEAKER_00: The more time we spend with Jesus, the more we begin loving what he loves, wanting what he wants, seeing people the way he sees them.
• 5:12
  SPEAKER_00: And what's so powerful about this passage is that after Jesus told the disciples to pray for laborers, he sent them.
• 5:20
  SPEAKER_00: The ones praying eventually became part of the answer to the prayer.
• 5:24
  SPEAKER_00: And I think that's important because Scripture says in James that faith without works is dead.
• 5:30
  SPEAKER_00: In other words, real faith eventually moves.
• 5:33
  SPEAKER_00: It responds, it puts feet to our prayers.
• 5:36
  SPEAKER_00: Sometimes that looks like praying for someone who is hurting.
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_00: Sometimes it looks like encouraging someone who's weary.
• 5:43
  SPEAKER_00: Sometimes it means making ourselves available when the Holy Spirit interrupts our plans.
• 5:48
  SPEAKER_00: Sometimes it means speaking truth to someone who's lost, deceived, or struggling.
• 5:53
  SPEAKER_00: Or simply stopping long enough to truly see the person standing right in front of us.
• 5:59
  SPEAKER_00: Because compassion was never meant to remain only a feeling.
• 6:03
  SPEAKER_00: Biblical compassion moves us toward people the way Jesus moved toward people.
• 6:08
  SPEAKER_00: And honestly, I think that is often how God works in us too.
• 6:12
  SPEAKER_00: As the Holy Spirit transforms us, we begin carrying the heart of Jesus into the world around us.
• 6:18
  SPEAKER_00: The things that move his heart begin moving ours.
• 6:21
  SPEAKER_00: What once felt like interruptions start to become opportunities to love people well.
• 6:26
  SPEAKER_00: Because the Great Commission isn't simply about accomplishing a task, it's about revealing Jesus to people who need him.
• 6:33
  SPEAKER_00: And that kind of compassion can't be manufactured through guilt or religious pressure.
• 6:39
  SPEAKER_00: It flows from spending time with him.
• 6:42
  SPEAKER_00: The disciples didn't change the world because they were naturally extraordinary people.
• 6:46
  SPEAKER_00: They changed the world because they had been with Jesus.
• 6:49
  SPEAKER_00: And over time his heart became their heart.
• 6:53
  SPEAKER_00: After Peter was restored by the love of Jesus, everything changed.
• 6:57
  SPEAKER_00: The same man who once denied Christ around a fire eventually stood publicly and boldly proclaimed the gospel.
• 7:04
  SPEAKER_00: And what's powerful is that Peter preached knowing a rejection would come.
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_00: Persecution came, the mocking came, the opposition came.
• 7:13
  SPEAKER_00: But once Peter encountered the transforming love and power of Jesus, silence was no longer an option.
• 7:20
  SPEAKER_00: And honestly, I think that's important because being sent isn't always comfortable.
• 7:24
  SPEAKER_00: The Great Commission isn't simply about being kind people.
• 7:27
  SPEAKER_00: It's about carrying the truth of Jesus Christ into a world desperate for hope.
• 7:32
  SPEAKER_00: The world still needs Jesus.
• 7:35
  SPEAKER_00: They need his truth in the middle of deception, his freedom in the middle of bondage, his light in the middle of darkness.
• 7:42
  SPEAKER_00: And Scripture says that we are ambassadors for Christ.
• 7:45
  SPEAKER_00: We are agents of reconciliation.
• 7:48
  SPEAKER_00: In other words, God makes his appeal to the world through surrendered believers.
• 7:53
  SPEAKER_00: That's weighty.
• 7:54
  SPEAKER_00: Because we're not called to carry our opinions into the world.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_00: We're called to carry Christ, his heart, his truth, his compassion, his holiness, his gospel.
• 8:07
  SPEAKER_00: We need his eyes to see people the way he sees them, his ears to hear the cries people never say out loud, his voice to speak truth with love and boldness, and hearts willing to go wherever he sends us.
• 8:21
  SPEAKER_00: There are still people searching for hope, still people trapped in darkness, still people waiting to encounter Jesus.
• 8:29
  SPEAKER_00: And part of being sent means understanding that not everyone will receive the truth.
• 8:34
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus Himself was rejected.
• 8:36
  SPEAKER_00: The disciples were rejected.
• 8:38
  SPEAKER_00: The gospel will offend darkness, but rejection doesn't remove our responsibility to carry the light.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_00: We are called to faithfully reveal Jesus and leave the results in his hands.
• 8:50
  SPEAKER_00: And honestly, I think sometimes we reduce the Great Commission down to a moment, a sermon, an altar call, a social media post.
• 9:00
  SPEAKER_00: But Jesus didn't simply tell us to make converts, he told us to make disciples, people who follow Him, obey Him, and allow their lives to be transformed by Him.
• 9:12
  SPEAKER_00: And that kind of discipleship happens in everyday life.
• 9:16
  SPEAKER_00: Through truth, compassion, obedience, witness, and ordinary faithfulness over time.
• 9:22
  SPEAKER_00: It happens as people watch us walk with Jesus in real life.
• 9:26
  SPEAKER_00: The way we handle pressure, the way we respond to difficulty, the way we love people, the way we speak truth, the way we carry hope into dark places.
• 9:38
  SPEAKER_00: Because discipleship isn't merely taught, it's lived.
• 9:42
  SPEAKER_00: And honestly, I think this is where many believers underestimate what God wants to do through surrendered lives.
• 9:48
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus said in Mark 16, these signs will follow those who believe, not just preachers, not just people with platforms, believers.
• 9:57
  SPEAKER_00: People filled with the Holy Spirit, carrying the authority and power of Jesus into the world around them.
• 10:03
  SPEAKER_00: Jesus said in John 14 that those who believe in him would do the works he did, and even greater works, because he was going to the Father and sending the Holy Spirit.
• 10:14
  SPEAKER_00: That doesn't mean we become celebrities.
• 10:16
  SPEAKER_00: It means the life of Jesus continues working through his people.
• 10:20
  SPEAKER_00: His light still confronting darkness, his truth still setting people free, his power still transforming lives.
• 10:28
  SPEAKER_00: And I truly think the world is desperate for believers who genuinely carry Christ.
• 10:33
  SPEAKER_00: Not perform Christianity, not build platforms for themselves, but faithfully reveal Christ in everyday life.
• 10:41
  SPEAKER_00: Because the harvest is still plentiful, and there are still people waiting to encounter the hope found only in Christ Jesus.
• 10:51
  SPEAKER_00: And honestly, I think this forces us to ask some difficult questions.
• 10:55
  SPEAKER_00: When was the last time we asked God to help us truly see the people around us, not just look at them, see them?
• 11:03
  SPEAKER_00: The weary coworker, the anxious teenager, the hurting neighbor, the person smiling outwardly while silently falling apart inwardly.
• 11:13
  SPEAKER_00: Because people are all around us searching for hope, truth, and peace.
• 11:18
  SPEAKER_00: And many of them may never walk into a church building before first encountering Jesus through the life of a believer.
• 11:24
  SPEAKER_00: And maybe part of fulfilling the Great Commission is realizing that being sent is not reserved for a few spiritually gifted people.
• 11:32
  SPEAKER_00: It's the calling of every believer.
• 11:35
  SPEAKER_00: And honestly, I think sometimes we wait for a big assignment while overlooking the people God has already placed directly in front of us.
• 11:43
  SPEAKER_00: But maybe the mission field begins closer than we think.
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_00: And honestly, I think back to all those moments walking the streets of downtown Chicago, what seemed ordinary at the time became opportunities to reveal the love of Jesus to people who were hurting, overlooked, and hungry for hope.
• 12:01
  SPEAKER_00: Because the world doesn't need more performative Christianity.
• 12:04
  SPEAKER_00: It needs believers who genuinely carry the presence, truth, compassion, and power of Jesus into everyday life.
• 12:14
  SPEAKER_00: So maybe the invitation today is simply this: ask God to make you available.
• 12:19
  SPEAKER_00: Available when He wants to interrupt your schedule.
• 12:22
  SPEAKER_00: Available to speak truth with love.
• 12:25
  SPEAKER_00: Available to notice the people others overlook.
• 12:28
  SPEAKER_00: Available to carry the hope of Jesus into places where darkness, fear, confusion, and hopelessness still exist.
• 12:36
  SPEAKER_00: Because the harvest is still plentiful and the world still needs Jesus.
• 12:42
  SPEAKER_00: Not just preached from a platform, but revealed through surrendered lives.
• 12:47
  SPEAKER_00: And maybe the beautiful thing is that God often works through ordinary moments in ordinary people who are simply willing to say, Lord, here I am, send me.
• 12:58
  SPEAKER_00: And honestly, maybe that's where this all begins.
• 13:01
  SPEAKER_00: Not with having all the answers, not with feeling qualified, but with simply being willing to say, Lord, help me see people the way you do.
• 13:10
  SPEAKER_00: Because one surrendered life can carry the hope of Jesus into someone else's darkness.
• 13:16
  SPEAKER_00: And today's whisper to carry with you is this the more we become like Jesus, the more we begin carrying his heart into the world around us.
• 13:28
  SPEAKER_00: Thanks for spending this time with me on Wilder Whispers.
• 13:32
  SPEAKER_00: I hope today's story reminded you that God is closer than we often realize and that he's still speaking, even in the ordinary moments of life.
• 13:40
  SPEAKER_00: Whispers are the language of closeness.
• 13:42
  SPEAKER_00: They invite us to lean in.
• 13:44
  SPEAKER_00: God is not far away.
• 13:46
  SPEAKER_00: He's not silent.
• 13:47
  SPEAKER_00: He's near and he's speaking.
• 13:50
  SPEAKER_00: Until next time, keep listening.
• 13:52
  SPEAKER_00: This is Wilder Whispers, and I'm Shay Wooden.