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Finding Encouragement in Three C's · Fifteen Minutes With Fritz - Where Scripture Meets the Sidewalk

• 0:09
  SPEAKER_01: Good morning everyone.
• 0:11
  SPEAKER_01: You're listening to Fifteen Minutes with Fritz, a weekly podcast where Scripture meets the sidewalk.
• 0:20
  SPEAKER_01: We're looking in the book of Psalms for encouragement in the daily grind of life, and we are currently in the very first Psalm.
• 0:28
  SPEAKER_01: Listen to what it says.
• 0:31
  SPEAKER_01: Blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, or stand in the way of sinners, or sit in the seed of mockers.
• 0:41
  SPEAKER_01: But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.
• 0:48
  SPEAKER_01: He is like a tree planted by streams of water, which yields its fruit in season, and whose leaf does not wither.
• 0:56
  SPEAKER_01: Whatever he does prospers, not so the wicked.
• 1:02
  SPEAKER_01: They are like chaff that the wind blows away.
• 1:05
  SPEAKER_01: Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the assembly of the righteous.
• 1:12
  SPEAKER_01: For the Lord watches over the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish.
• 1:19
  SPEAKER_01: I propose that this psalm can be divided into two major sections.
• 1:24
  SPEAKER_01: One section speaks about the godly life, the other section speaks about the ungodly life.
• 1:32
  SPEAKER_01: It's a simple outline that is easily remembered.
• 1:37
  SPEAKER_01: We began our discussion with a review of what happens when we compromise, not the compromise of seeking common ground between two different sides of an issue, but the compromise of letting our guard down, of allowing ourselves to dabble in things we shouldn't, to stray from the straight and narrow path we know is the right one.
• 2:01
  SPEAKER_01: To bring this home to us I use the Old Testament example of Abraham's nephew Lot.
• 2:09
  SPEAKER_01: This psalm contains several warning signs of what to look out for when we find ourselves starting to compromise.
• 2:16
  SPEAKER_01: Unfortunately Lot ignored every one of them, and ultimately he walked in the counsel of the wicked, he stood in the way of the sinners, and he sat in the seat of mockers.
• 2:32
  SPEAKER_01: My wife reminded me of an important part of Lot's story that I failed to mention last week.
• 2:38
  SPEAKER_01: The apostle Peter provides some insight as to what was going on behind the scenes in Lot's situation.
• 2:46
  SPEAKER_01: Lot, a righteous man, was distressed by the filthy lives of lawless men in Sodom and Gomorrah, for that righteous man, living among them day after day, was tormented in his righteous soul by the lawless deeds he saw and heard.
• 3:05
  SPEAKER_01: That's in Second Peter chapter two.
• 3:10
  SPEAKER_01: In other words, Lot didn't just fall headlong into sin without giving it a second thought.
• 3:16
  SPEAKER_01: The Holy Spirit was warning him again and again that he was on the wrong path.
• 3:22
  SPEAKER_01: He was distressed, he was tormented in his very soul.
• 3:28
  SPEAKER_01: Nevertheless, he chose to allow himself to be compromised, and it ended in personal tragedy.
• 3:37
  SPEAKER_01: So if you want to be blessed by God, if you want to find encouragement in your daily grind, you need to listen to the urgings of the Holy Spirit and resist those temptations to allow yourself to be compromised.
• 3:53
  SPEAKER_01: Okay, how do I do that?
• 3:55
  SPEAKER_01: How do I keep myself from following Lot's chosen path?
• 4:00
  SPEAKER_01: That's where I suggested that a commitment is needed.
• 4:04
  SPEAKER_01: Again, this psalm is pretty clear.
• 4:07
  SPEAKER_01: The man or woman who is blessed by God meditates on his law day and night.
• 4:14
  SPEAKER_01: Then and only then can we avoid compromise.
• 4:19
  SPEAKER_01: And so I challenged you to keep your Bible in a prominent place, making it easy to pick up and read every day.
• 4:27
  SPEAKER_01: And since we're making psalms the focal point of our study on encouragement, I suggested that you read one psalm every day.
• 4:36
  SPEAKER_01: Or if that doesn't suit you, read the psalm we're actually studying that week Psalm one in this case, read it each day throughout the week.
• 4:47
  SPEAKER_01: Will that keep you on the straight and narrow path?
• 4:50
  SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.
• 4:52
  SPEAKER_01: How can I be so sure?
• 4:54
  SPEAKER_01: Well, because Psalm one hundred nineteen tells us exactly what will happen.
• 5:00
  SPEAKER_01: How can a young man or woman keep his way pure?
• 5:04
  SPEAKER_01: By living according to your word.
• 5:07
  SPEAKER_01: I seek you with all my heart.
• 5:10
  SPEAKER_01: Do not let me stray from your commands.
• 5:13
  SPEAKER_01: I have hidden your word in my heart, that I might not sin against you.
• 5:19
  SPEAKER_01: Praise be to you, O Lord, teach me your decrees.
• 5:24
  SPEAKER_01: With my lips I recount all the laws that come from your mouth.
• 5:28
  SPEAKER_01: I rejoice in following your statutes as one rejoices in great riches.
• 5:34
  SPEAKER_01: I meditate on your precepts and consider your ways.
• 5:39
  SPEAKER_01: I delight in your decrees.
• 5:41
  SPEAKER_01: I will not neglect your word.
• 5:45
  SPEAKER_01: Very similar language, isn't it to what we read in Psalm one?
• 5:50
  SPEAKER_01: Sounds like commitment to me that will prevent compromise, followed by God's blessings and encouragement.
• 6:00
  SPEAKER_01: I now want to turn our attention to a third C contrast.
• 6:05
  SPEAKER_01: Contrast is a popular literary tool that helps us understand things by highlighting differences.
• 6:13
  SPEAKER_01: In our case, we want to contrast the difference between a godly man, a man blessed by God and an ungodly man, one who is not.
• 6:26
  SPEAKER_01: We find this contrast in our psalm by locating the word like.
• 6:31
  SPEAKER_01: The godly man is like a tree planted by streams of water, whereas an ungodly man is like chaff that the wind blows away.
• 6:43
  SPEAKER_01: If you're not familiar with it, chaff is the dry protective husk that is separated from the seed during harvesting.
• 6:52
  SPEAKER_01: Farmers tossed the stalks of wheat up in the air, allowing the wind to blow the chaff away, while the heavier wheat fell back to the ground.
• 7:02
  SPEAKER_01: The Psalmist used this well known process to paint a picture of the ungodly man.
• 7:09
  SPEAKER_01: These two things found in nature, trees and chaff are completely different from one another, just like a godly man is completely different from an ungodly man.
• 7:22
  SPEAKER_01: Let's look at some of those differences.
• 7:26
  SPEAKER_01: A tree is planted and remains anchored in one place.
• 7:30
  SPEAKER_01: Chaff, on the other hand, is blown about by the wind.
• 7:35
  SPEAKER_01: A tree has roots that allow in a dry in nourishment to prevent withering, while chaff is dry and lifeless.
• 7:45
  SPEAKER_01: A tree is firmly grounded, but chaff is directionless and moves at the mercy of the wind.
• 7:52
  SPEAKER_01: A tree yields fruit.
• 7:55
  SPEAKER_01: Chaff, on the other hand, has no use.
• 7:58
  SPEAKER_01: It is ultimately gathered up and burned.
• 8:03
  SPEAKER_01: Do you see the contrast?
• 8:05
  SPEAKER_01: Not just between a tree and some chaff, but between a godly man and an ungodly man.
• 8:12
  SPEAKER_01: The godly man or woman remains anchored, firmly planted in one place.
• 8:19
  SPEAKER_01: He or she draws nourishment through their roots which generates fruit that blesses others.
• 8:26
  SPEAKER_01: The ungodly man or woman drifts about, latching on to the latest trend or fad.
• 8:33
  SPEAKER_01: Their life has no eternal meaning.
• 8:36
  SPEAKER_01: They are lost without purpose.
• 8:41
  SPEAKER_01: And so I think this leaves us in a good place.
• 8:44
  SPEAKER_01: In order to find contentment in life, in order to overcome the challenges of our daily grind, in order to be blessed by God we need the three Cs.
• 8:57
  SPEAKER_01: We need to avoid compromise.
• 9:00
  SPEAKER_01: We don't dip our toe in the clutches of sinful activities, but we listen when the Holy Spirit warns us, like he did with Lot, that we are starting to slide down the slippery slope of sin.
• 9:17
  SPEAKER_01: The way to ensure that your life is not characterized by compromise is to make a commitment.
• 9:23
  SPEAKER_01: That commitment involves getting into God's word on a regular basis.
• 9:28
  SPEAKER_01: I like this quote We address God through prayer, and He answers and instructs us chiefly through His written word by the work of the Holy Spirit.
• 9:42
  SPEAKER_01: I encourage you to start today seeking to find that small still voice of God that whispers into our soul.
• 9:51
  SPEAKER_01: And finally, recognize that avoiding sinful compromises and making a commitment to God's word will change your life.
• 10:01
  SPEAKER_01: Those around you will be able to see the contrast between your life, a godly life and the ungodly characteristics of the world around you.
• 10:14
  SPEAKER_01: Before I close, let me leave you with a couple of final thoughts.
• 10:18
  SPEAKER_01: First, I need to be honest with you.
• 10:23
  SPEAKER_01: Most days I'm pretty good at opening my Bible and reading it, and I've found that it helps me remain grounded and puts me in a position to deal with life's challenges.
• 10:36
  SPEAKER_01: And I'll admit that some days I discover nuggets of truth that cause me to sit back in my chair and just say wow.
• 10:45
  SPEAKER_01: But I also have to admit that there are other days where my mind is wandering and I get to the end of a passage and I have no idea what it means or what God is trying to say to me.
• 10:59
  SPEAKER_01: And in spite of my best efforts to remain committed to reading scripture regularly, there are still days when I just feel like chaff.
• 11:10
  SPEAKER_01: I feel as though I'm being tossed about by the wind.
• 11:14
  SPEAKER_01: I don't think I'm getting any nourishment nor am I providing any spiritual fruit for myself or anyone else around me.
• 11:23
  SPEAKER_01: And I ask myself, why is this happening?
• 11:28
  SPEAKER_01: What am I doing wrong?
• 11:30
  SPEAKER_01: What am I supposed to do?
• 11:33
  SPEAKER_01: The good news is God doesn't leave me hanging.
• 11:38
  SPEAKER_01: Although I probably deserve it, he doesn't say buckle up buttercup, pull yourself together and man up.
• 11:46
  SPEAKER_01: No.
• 11:47
  SPEAKER_01: He reminds me to continue to go to the same source and find encouragement.
• 11:55
  SPEAKER_01: Let us not become weary in doing good, it says in Galatians six, nine, for at the proper time we will reap a harvest if we do not give up.
• 12:07
  SPEAKER_01: And Isaiah forty verse thirty one tells us those who hope in the Lord will renew their strength, they will soar on wings like eagles, they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint.
• 12:24
  SPEAKER_01: These verses are underlined in my Bible because I have gone to them often in my times of need when I'm feeling like chaff.
• 12:34
  SPEAKER_01: I find these words to be encouraging.
• 12:37
  SPEAKER_01: They remind me that God will never leave me or forsake me in spite of my shortcomings.
• 12:46
  SPEAKER_01: And so I would encourage you to highlight them in your Bible and turn to them when you're feeling like chaff.
• 12:54
  SPEAKER_01: Second, I want to bring your attention to one final contrast.
• 13:00
  SPEAKER_01: Notice the difference between the very first word of the psalm and the very last word in the psalm.
• 13:07
  SPEAKER_01: The first word is blessed.
• 13:11
  SPEAKER_01: The last word is perish.
• 13:15
  SPEAKER_01: If you choose to follow these simple truths, to avoid compromise, to make a commitment to be in God's word on a regular basis, you will be like a tree planted by streams of water, and you will be blessed.
• 13:32
  SPEAKER_01: But if you choose to ignore these simple truths, if you decide to compromise, if you fail to make a commitment to drink in the nourishment of God's Word, you will suffer the consequences.
• 13:45
  SPEAKER_01: You will be like chaff and you will perish.
• 13:50
  SPEAKER_01: It's your choice.
• 13:52
  SPEAKER_01: Let's pray.
• 13:56
  SPEAKER_01: Our gracious, loving, Heavenly Father, continue to remind us, we pray, that your yoke is easy and your burden is light.
• 14:07
  SPEAKER_01: And when we take your yoke upon us, remind us that we will find rest for our souls.
• 14:14
  SPEAKER_01: Instill in our hearts a love for your word, and let us delight in it, and let us find encouragement for our daily grind.
• 14:23
  SPEAKER_01: For your glory.
• 14:25
  SPEAKER_01: Amen.
• 14:28
  SPEAKER_00: May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit.
• 14:39
  SPEAKER_01: This is the end of our podcast, but it's not the end of our story.
• 14:44
  SPEAKER_01: Thank you for listening.