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The Gift of Hope | Pastor Darren Palmer | Faith Church · Faith Church Podcast

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I feel like there's a refreshing spirit in this
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place that wants to give people something perhaps
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that they haven't had in a while, and that is
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the gift of hope. Hope. Hope deferred. makes
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the heart sick, but a longing fulfilled is a
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tree of life. Praise God. He wants to give people
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hope. I'd like you to turn with me to Ephesians
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chapter 1. Ephesians chapter 1 hallelujah hallelujah
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Paul in Ephesians chapter 1 offers one of what
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we have come to call the apostolic prayers and
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they are places in the New Testament where the
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Apostles Many by Paul in his letters, but others
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as well, actually pray prayers for the church
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that are powerful. And this is one of them. And
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in verse 16, he says, I have not stopped giving
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thanks for you, remembering you in my prayers.
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Remembering you in my prayers. I believe... that
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God is calling our church to a new season. And
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part of that new season is fanning prayer into
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flame. I want you to join me in prayer. There's
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an act of obedience that God has called me to.
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And in fact, I don't think it was an audible
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voice, but it felt like one. I've never heard
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the audible voice of God. It felt like one because
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I was sleeping, and I was in that place where
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I was half asleep and half awake. Have you ever
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been there when, and God sometimes can speak
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to you. Now sometimes it can just be your own
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imagination. You need discernment in it for sure,
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but God can speak to you in that place. And there
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I was and I felt the Lord speak to me and say
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this, mobilize the seniors in the region to pray.
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And I woke up and I felt that just. go into me
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just and something is going to happen. A movement
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that goes way beyond this house that mobilizes
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people that thought that they were forgotten.
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And God brought me to Simeon and to Anna in the
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New Testament that were waiting for God to work
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that had given themselves for in one case. decades
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had been giving themselves to prayer and God
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wants to mobilize people that thought that they
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were forgotten to re -engage in the kingdom in
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an assignment that they can fulfill. Intercession.
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And so I feel like God is about to bring us into
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a new season. And I just throw that out there
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for you to pray with me because I don't know
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what that's gonna look like yet. But I believe
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that God is gonna mobilize seniors. One reason,
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because seniors have time. Another reason because
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seniors have seen God work and move. But this
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is not to get together and reminisce about the
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old days. It's not to get together and to just
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talk about all of the difficulties that we're
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having as seniors. You know, the older I get,
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the more people talk about their body functions.
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Am I wrong? You what? The other side. Organ recital.
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Organ recital. Oh, recycle, recycle. Oh, yeah,
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yeah, yeah. This and that. But I want to see
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I want to see seniors help usher in the new move
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of God for the next generation, for their generation,
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but for the next generation. I believe a key
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to what God is doing is the older generation
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imparting into the younger generation. Amen?
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Amen? Praise God. And so he says, I remember
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you in my prayers. How many of you prayed for
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Faith Church this week? Oh, wow. Look at that.
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Look at that. That is incredible. You don't know
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how encouraged I am right now because this is
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the reason God is working, because people are
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praying. Hallelujah. as we increase prayer for
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one another for the church God begins to move
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in power and he begins to do incredible things
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I have not stopped giving thanks to you remembering
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you in my prayer hallelujah Connie do you want
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to share your testimony come on up here I want
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Connie to share what what happened in her life
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recently and this happens because of prayer At
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the first of the year I told the Lord I really
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want to dig in I want to know him more and Deeper
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and one thing I was praying was God your perfect
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love casts out all my fear And I didn't have
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any particular fear at that time But it I just
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wanted to pray that over and over after I prayed
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it for a few months I was having trouble with
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my eye And they took a picture of it and said,
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my ocular nerve is swollen, which is usually
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a sign of MS. So he sent me to a neurologist.
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And they took all sorts of pictures and stuff.
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And he said, I want you to take one more test.
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It's a lumbar puncture. And then I'll decide
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definitely that you have MS. I said, so there's
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a chance? He said, no, there's no chance. He
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said, well, next time you come in, we'll discuss
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medicine and our treatment plan. And what he
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didn't know was I served the great physician
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and I have wonderful Christian praying friends
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and I had no fear and I think Lord had been preparing
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me all that time and I had no fear and I went
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into the thing I took my son and we were sitting
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there and the doctor opens the thing and he looked
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at it and he said Your spinal fluid is clear
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He looked at it again and he was reading and
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he goes you don't have any sign of MS Come on
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give God a shout of praise. Yeah Hallelujah Oh,
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glory to God. Now, we don't know if she just
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never had it or if God healed her from it, but
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she's had symptoms. And we're believing, we're
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believing in this house for an increase in miracles
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and for God to be touched. Two weeks ago, on
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Monday, I got a bunch of texts that people forwarded
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me. There was a back that was healed. There was
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a shoulder that was healed. There was something
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else, a hand, a hand that was healed right, right
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down there, right down there. God is touching
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people in small ways and in big ways in things
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that only He can do. And do you know why that
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happens? Because we pray. Yes. Wow. Wow. Praise
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God. That's amazing. That's the power of God
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at work. And that's what Paul said. Paul said,
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when I came to you, brothers, I did not come
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with wise words of human wisdom. He didn't want
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their faith to rest upon his ability to persuade.
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Because friend, if you can be persuaded by words
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into Christianity, guess what? Somebody smarter
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is going to come along. and will persuade you
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with words out of Christianity. And Paul said,
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I don't wanna just give human words of wisdom.
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He said, I came to you. When I came, I came with
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a demonstration of the Spirit's power. Hallelujah.
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So that your faith might not rest merely on words
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of teaching, but that your faith might rest upon
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the power of God. Hallelujah. Oh, glory to God.
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My son. who's away from the Lord. One of the
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last things he said to me is, Dad, I could never
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deny God. I've seen too much. I've seen too much.
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Do you know what is in his heart? The demonstration
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of the Spirit's power. Glory to God. Okay, I
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gotta get to my word this morning. Because prayer
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is the foundation of it all. And it's no wonder
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the enemy works so hard to keep you and to keep
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me out of the prayer closet. He works overtime
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to distract you and to keep you from praying.
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But we are in covenant relationship with one
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another. And so we're praying for one another
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and we're believing God. We are standing with
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you. We are standing with you. Amen? We are standing
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with you. Praise God. We're standing with each
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other glory to Jesus Joshua was in the valley
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fighting But Moses was up on the mountain with
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his hands raised up and as long as Moses continued
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with his hands raised up in intercession Joshua
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fighting the battle was victorious glory to God
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verse 17 This is my main text this morning And
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I'm reading in the New International Version
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today because of how this verse is phrased in
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verse 17. I keep asking that the God of our Lord
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Jesus Christ, the glorious Father, may give you
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the Spirit of wisdom and revelation so that you
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may know Him better. Isn't that good? I want
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to I want to read that verse one more time I
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keep asking that the God of our Lord Jesus Christ
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the glorious father may give you the spirit of
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wisdom and revelation So that you might know
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him better This is called discipleship This is
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what it's all about Becoming a follower of Jesus
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Christ knowing him more and More now we're gonna
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talk about some keys to that and some some things
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that will happen as you know Jesus more and more
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Primarily we talk we just talked about miracles,
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but you know what we are not miracle chasers
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Right We are not just after the latest goose
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bumps and We go through seasons as a church where
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it feels like God isn't working as much in the
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realm of miracles our Faith and our in our foundation
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and our pursuit Primarily is not miracles Our
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pursuit is Jesus the miracle worker Amen We are
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not just looking to his hand We are looking in
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his face Amen Now as you have children you have
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children, you know, they often look to your hand
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Right. I want I need I wish Can I do this? Can
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I do that? Can I have some money? You know what
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they're looking for? Your hand. And you know
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what? Your hand is a good thing. Aren't you glad
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your kids don't look to somebody else's hand?
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But they're looking to you. God designed family
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for kids to look to the hand of their mom and
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dad. But as they grow up, my daughter's birthday
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was yesterday, and she turned 28. she's out she's
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out west on the coast sitting by the ocean looking
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at looking at not seals the bigger one not a
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walrus what'd you say no sea lion sea lion she
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was watching a sea lion swim in the ocean while
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she was talking with us it was awesome actually
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And you know what? She doesn't look at our hand
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anymore. You know what she does? She looks at
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our face. Because now it isn't about what mom
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and dad can do for her. It's about relationship.
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And we are in pursuit not of what Jesus can just
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do for us. But we are in pursuit Him Jesus I
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want to know you I Want to know you better I
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want to know you more Hallelujah Hallelujah There's
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little ones in the house today And we can hear
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them it's wonderful if you ever had a little
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one That you try to lock eyes with that little
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one and it just looks everywhere else But doesn't
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it feel good when all the sudden they just stop
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and they just look at you. I love that Because
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they see and so often times we're looking so
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many other places But God wants us to know him
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Do you understand the privilege that it is to
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be invited to know Jesus? To walk in relationship
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with Jesus? To know God? This has been His heart
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all along. He wants His people to know Him. Hallelujah.
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Glory to God. Let me read to you some verses
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John 17 verse 3 Now this is eternal life That
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they know you The only true God and Jesus Christ
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whom you have sent This is eternal life that
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they know you The the scriptures honestly were
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talking about what heaven is like. There is really
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not a lot of material in the Bible about what
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heaven is like. There is a little bit in Revelation,
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but people ask me all the time, is my pet going
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to be in heaven? Am I going to have relationship
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with my spouse in heaven? Some of those answers
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are very obscure. There's a few verses. We don't
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know a lot. And so we know some things that are
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for sure about heaven, but this is eternal life.
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Not that you have been healed of this or that,
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not that you have gone through religious exercise,
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all of that. This is eternal life, that you know
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Jesus, that you are walking with Jesus. Hallelujah
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now Enoch did not know the Lord as Jesus because
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he hadn't been revealed the the Son of God has
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not had not been revealed until the New Testament
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as Jesus but Enoch in the book of Genesis has
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an incredible testimony and Enoch it says it
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says of Enoch that he Let me just read it to
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you. Genesis 5, 21. When Enoch had lived 65 years,
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he became the father of Methuselah. After he
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became the father of Methuselah, Enoch walked
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faithfully with God for 300 years and had other
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sons and daughters. Altogether, Enoch lived a
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total of 365 years. Enoch walked faithfully with
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God, and he was no more because God took him
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away. This is the substantive testimony that
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we have from Scripture about Enoch. There's some
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extra biblical works about Enoch, but in the
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Scriptures, this is what we have. Enoch walked
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faithfully with God. Do you know what that sounds
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like to me? That Enoch knew God. He had a relationship
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with God. Nothing else is revealed. All the testimonies
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along the way of this happening and that happening
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are not recorded. Just the fact that Enoch walked
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faithfully with God. Wouldn't that be awesome?
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Wouldn't that be awesome for that to be said
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about every person from faith church? That we
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walked faithfully with God Whatever else happens
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Whatever else takes place praise the Lord for
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it, but the people of faith church know God and
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They walk with him. Oh hallelujah How many of
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you are on that journey? now listen knowing God
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and walking with God is incremental it is incremental
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it is you start on the journey when you receive
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him as your Lord and Savior and So you get on
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the path But then there is this growing in your
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relationship with God an understanding of who
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he is that increases. And Paul knew this because
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he experienced it in his own life. He thought
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that a relationship with Jesus, he thought that
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all that was just cultish. In fact, he was trying
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to squelch it out, but then guess what happened?
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He met Jesus. He met Jesus on the road to Damascus
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and he went, whoa, I was wrong all this time.
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And he got on the road and he began a relationship
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with Christ that increased and increased and
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increased. And so as he is praying for the Ephesian
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church, he says, I am praying that you might
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know him. Better and better. More and more. And
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that's my heart for you. Now I want to ask you,
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Christian, that, you know, how many of you have
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been a Christian for longer than 15 years? Okay.
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Longer. So how many of you less than 15 years
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have been walking with Jesus? Okay, fewer hands
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are up. This is a church of a lot of established
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believers. When you are an established believer,
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it can become easier to coast. Right? It can
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become easier to just rely on the fact, well,
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I'm in it now. I'll be in it. I know I'll be
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in it. And you quit. having expectation of increased
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relationship with Jesus. The newer you are in
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the faith the easier it is to get excited about
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every little thing that you discover. But Paul
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did not allow that to be part of his life. In
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fact, at the end of his life, I don't have this
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in my notes, I don't have the exact scripture
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reference this morning, but at the end of his
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life, he said, I want to know Christ. Sharing
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in the sufferings of fellowship, of everything
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that Paul had experienced, he was still pressing
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into more of God. I want something fresh to come
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on you today that will say, Jesus, there's more
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of you for me to have. There's more of you for
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me to know. There's more of you. And so I'm believing
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for something fresh. Perhaps you feel like you've
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stagnated in your walk with God. The Lord wants
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to jumpstart you this morning, and He wants to
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get you going. Hallelujah. And He wants to get
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you seeking and pressing in and having expectation
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of Him again. Hallelujah. Jeremiah chapter 9
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says this. This is what the Lord says, nor the
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strong boast of their strength, or the rich boast
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of their riches." Now, let me tell you something.
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This is all things God does. Okay? God gives
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wisdom, right? But let not the wise boast of
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that wisdom. God gives strength, right? He gives
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strength. Isaiah 40, it's the promise. They that
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wait upon the Lord shall renew there When you
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got that word from the doctor Connie, did you
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feel strength come into you? Yes Strength comes
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from God. It's something that we need but let
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not the strong boast of their strength or the
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rich boast of their riches is there anybody in
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this room that got wealth from Somewhere else
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than from the Lord. It all comes from him. Right?
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These are things that God gives. He gives wisdom.
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He gives strength. He gives riches. Oh, but let
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us not boast in that. Let's not boast in those
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outward fruits of our relationship with God.
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But let the one who boasts boast about this that
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they have the understanding to know me that I
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am the Lord who exercises kindness and justice
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and righteousness on the earth for in these I
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delight If you're gonna boast, make this your
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boast. God's given me understanding to know Him.
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And I've discovered that He is good. And that
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He is kind. And that He loves people. Lord, you
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are here in this moment right now. Do you know
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that one of the jobs of the Holy Spirit is to
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enable you to know God? Do you think He's big
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enough to do His job? Yeah? Let me read a verse
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from 1 John chapter 5. Verse 20 says, we know
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also that the Son of God has come and has given
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us understanding so that we might know Him who
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is true. And we are in Him who is true by being
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in His Son Jesus Christ He is the true God and
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eternal life If you don't know how to increase
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in your relationship with God guess what you
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can do You can ask God to help you Lord give
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me understanding of who you are Do you think
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that if you pray that that God will answer it?
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He certainly will Lord my prayer this morning
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isn't that you would bless me or that you would
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heal me or that you would provide for me My prayer
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this morning is that you would help me Understand
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you more Do you think that God will answer that
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prayer throughout your day? Oh, He will. He will.
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He doesn't just want to do things for you. He
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wants to walk with you. More than that, He wants
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you to walk with Him. Hallelujah. There's a difference,
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you know. We find that out every time we go to
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Kickapoo Park Because the sign there's a sign
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on the gate that says walkers go this way Well,
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which of us Kami or myself Do you think is more
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of the rule follower? So which way do you think
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I want to go? I want to go left every time. Do
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you know what I discover in that moment? I discover
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this, she's not walking with me, I'm walking
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with her. Because she goes this way to follow
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the rules and which way do you think I go? You
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know sometimes we say Jesus I Want you to walk
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with me, but there is a difference when we say
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Lord I Want to walk with you There is a yieldedness
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There is a humility There is a willingness Hallelujah
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Hallelujah now So we want to know the Lord. Three
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things that need to happen. These are my three
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points. One minute for each point. Jesse is laughing
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at me. Verse 18. I pray that the eyes of your
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heart might be enlightened. Linda prayed this
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this morning in prayer Lord let the eyes of our
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heart be enlightened You have eyes in your spirit
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that go beyond your physical eyes isn't that
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right brother bill we have eyes in our spirit
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and Those are the eyes that are blinded before
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we come to the Lord But when we come to the Lord
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just like Saul our spiritual eyes are opened
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And Paul is praying for the believers, and he's
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saying, God, keep their eyes open. And what are
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they open for? May be enlightened in order that
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you might know the hope to which he has called
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you. Hope. Hope. Now the verse says other things.
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But I want to focus on this because we live in
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a hopeless world. But Jesus wants his people
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to walk in hope and victory. And that can happen,
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friend, this morning because our hope is not
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rooted in temporal things. Our hope is rooted
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in eternity. Glory to God. Our hope is rooted
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on where we're headed. Hallelujah Cathy's looking
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at her watch am I over a minute? I'm over a minute
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already God wants to restore hope to his people
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Shake your neighbor right now and say God wants
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you to walk in hope Glory to God. He wants you
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to walk in hope. He wants you to walk in victory
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Not because of your circumstance in fact the
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glory of the church is that we don't lose our
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hope even in seasons of suffering even in seasons
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of difficulty Connie did not lose hope even before
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she got the good news and So it does not matter
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the believer has hope beyond the grave and So
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that's the hope that we walk in in Jesus name
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if you have sacrificed your hope pray, God, enlighten
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my eyes that I might understand the hope that
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you've called me to. You want me to be a believer
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that, God, you are going to do it. God, you are
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going to make a way. God, you are going to come
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through. God, you want me to walk in hope. When
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nobody else has hope, believers should have hope
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in Jesus' name. Glory to God. Eyes of your heart
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being enlightened. Secondly, as you know Christ,
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as you make Christ your aim and your understanding,
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don't be surprised when His power manifests in
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greater ways in your life. Verse 19, His incomparably
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great power for who? for us Who believe The power
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of God is something that Pentecostal people talk
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about often because it is our portion Okay, I
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just got done saying we're not chasing miracles
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we're chasing Jesus But as we know him better
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the power of God is going to work amongst you
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in incredible ways What's the source of that?
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Let's keep reading. That power is the same as
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the mighty strength he exerted when he raised
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Christ from the dead. If you believe in the resurrection,
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that took an incredible amount of power. for
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God to raise. In fact, He stretched forth, the
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Father stretched forth His right hand to raise
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Jesus out of the grave. And what Paul is saying
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is we have no different source, that our power
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is exactly the same. Now we need our understanding
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of that power to increase. so that we can tap
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into it, so that we can see it work and see it
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operate. It's no wonder Paul saw peculiar miracles.
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He didn't glory in the miracles. He gloried in
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the God that gave them. As you pursue Jesus,
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the power of God will increase in your life.
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Thank you, Lord. Thank you, Lord. And finally,
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there is There is so much more in these verses
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that happen. But Jesus is in love with His body,
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the church. I want you to look around right now.
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I don't know offhand how many people are in this
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room, maybe a hundred. or in the building, maybe
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100, maybe 75 in this room right now, I don't
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know. This is your church family. And Jesus loves
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the body of Christ. He calls his church his body.
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Just got this picture of him being a bodybuilder.
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Listen to the description of Paul concerning
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the church in verse 23. His body The fullness
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of Him that's Jesus the body is the fullness
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of Jesus Who fills everything in every way The
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church is the fullness of Christ Jesus fills
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everything in every way But the church is the
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fullness of Jesus Wow The church is not just
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a building on a corner The church is the fullness
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of Christ And people have come to the conclusion
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that I do not need the church. I'm a lover of
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Jesus. I love Jesus. I follow Jesus. I don't
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have anything to do with the church. And I do
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agree that there are groups of people that are
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masquerading as the church. That are not the
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church. But the church that he is building The
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church that that Jesus shed his blood for to
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purchase from every tribe and every tongue and
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every nation That church is the fullness of Christ
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And when we come against the church We are coming
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against Jesus I don't understand at all. It's
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a mystery. It's a mystery. He loves his body.
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He loves this small expression. There's over
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a billion, some people say close to two billion,
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forms of Christianity people in the earth today.
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Two billion. We have about a hundred of them.
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Pretty small deal, but not to Jesus. This church
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is the expression of the fullness of Christ.
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In each of us lives the King of Kings and the
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Lord of Lords. Every single one of you that are
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following Christ can can teach me something about
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Christ that I haven't currently known We need
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each other We need each other so I love what
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happens at breakfast tables around the tables
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people talking about What Jesus has done for
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them if you've not been to breakfast tables at
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at nine o 'clock? Come an hour early And you're
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sharing Jesus with each other. You're not looking
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at the back of somebody's head listening to a
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sermon that's probably too long. You're touching.
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You are touching people. You are imparting what
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God has done in your life to others. I encourage
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you to become a part of faith groups because
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you're going to share Jesus with other people.
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Ladies, go to the bonfire this Saturday night.
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You're going to share Jesus with somebody. Amen?
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Part of the fullness of Christ is locked in you,
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and you share that with the other believers,
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and the believers grow and become everything
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that God wants us to be. It's why It's why it's
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so vital that we're in relationship with one
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another more and more And so these three things
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as we draw near to Jesus as we know him better
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and better our Hope increases the power of God
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increases our love and affection and connection
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to the body increases Why because we are after
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his heart. Oh Hallelujah Hallelujah If you are
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new to the church family, I want you to know
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that there this this church is not perfect Because
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I'm a part of it But I want you to know that
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this church has love for one another and we stand
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with one another. Hallelujah. Hallelujah. Praise
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God. My new friend back there, Carlos, that C
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stands for Carlos. And his wife and beautiful
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family are from Puerto Rico. This is their second
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Sunday here. And I just want to welcome you guys.
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And I want you to know that we are in your corner.
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And we are going to love you and your family.
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And we're going to care about you and your family.
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Others of you that are here. The body of Christ
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is so important. I told you three minutes and
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it's been 15. But can you sense the love of God
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in this room? I pray that the eyes of your heart
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will be enlightened. Hope. Power. Love. The spirit
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of wisdom and revelation. That you might know
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him better He loves us oh He loves us oh He loves
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us oh He loves us. Oh He loves us. Oh He loves
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us. Oh He loves us. He loves us. He loves us
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Oh He loves us Oh He loves Hallelujah Lord I
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pray for the people in this room. I feel like
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we're all at an altar together right now I just
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ask God that you would stir in your people hope
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Lord some in this room have had their eyes on
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the wrong thing They've had their eyes on their
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on their family on their spouse on their kids
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Not that they shouldn't be concerned But they
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have not had their eyes on Jesus this morning
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Lord I pray that you would help us to get our
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eyes back on Jesus that hope will be restored
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God I pray that the power of God would be made
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manifest in our midst not just here in this building
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but in living rooms and bedrooms in phone conversations
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and in in social media I pray God that the power
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of God will be released. And God, I pray that
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our love for one another will get bigger and
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bigger and bigger as we draw near to Jesus. Hallelujah.
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Hallelujah. And everybody's sad. Amen.