Latest / Eurasia Region Podcast / S2-E27 | Everyday Eurasia |  Zhaneta Yordanova

Transcript

S2-E27 | Everyday Eurasia |  Zhaneta Yordanova · Eurasia Region Podcast

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  This week on the Everyday Eurasia Podcast, we will be
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  joined by members of the Eurasia Holistic Child Development Team
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  as we explore holistic child development programs across the
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  region. Today you will hear from Sanieta
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  Jordanova, pastor of Manastiska Reka Church of the Nazarene and
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  District Superintendent in Bulgaria.
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  Alongside her husband and local church congregation, Sayeta is
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  actively involved in compassionate ministries that
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  serve both children and adults in her community.
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  Today she will share a devotion titled Jesus Places the Child in
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  the Midst. Today we're traveling back in
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  time to a dusty St. in Capernaum.
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  Imagine a group of men, Jesus's disciples.
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  They're walking and arguing intensely, not about
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  spirituality, but about status. Their question is, who is the
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  greatest? Who will be at the top of the
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  new hierarchy? And then Jesus does something
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  that is not just an illustration, it is a total
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  revolution. He does not point to the most
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  educated or the strongest among them.
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  He calls the little child and places the child right in the
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  middle of them. Let's listen to these words from
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  the Bible which redefined greatness for all of us.
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  In Matthew 18, verses 2 through 4, it says He called the little
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  child to him and placed the child among them.
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  And he said, truly, I tell you, unless you change and become
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  like little children, you will never enter the Kingdom of
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  heaven. Therefore, whoever takes the
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  lowly position of this child is the greatest in the Kingdom of
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  heaven. Why is this so radical?
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  In those times, children were loved, but they had no social
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  weight. They were the ultimate symbol of
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  dependency. A child cannot boast about a
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  career, a bank account, or influence a child simply
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  receives. When Jesus says unless you
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  change and become like little children, he is not calling us
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  to be childish. He is calling us to trust.
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  The Bible uses the phrase takes the lowly position.
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  A child does not worry if they are worthy of their lunch, they
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  know their family will provide, they accept love without masks
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  and they don't care about climbing the ladder.
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  What does it mean to put the child in the centre to day?
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  Real greatness is not about looking down on others.
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  It is about having the courage to admit we need help and being
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  willing to serve. Jesus says we must change.
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  This means letting go of our prideful desire to be seen as
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  the best and embracing a simple, honest faith.
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  Jesus later says that whoever receives such a child, receives
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  him. It is a call to prioritize those
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  whom society overlooks. Let's ask ourselves what is in
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  the centre of our day? Is it our ego, our tasks and our
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  to do lists? Or is it their room for that
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  lowly position of trust? The next time when we feel
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  pressured to be the greatest in the room, we shall remember the
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  child in Capernaum. We need to remember the shortest
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  path to heaven is not about the letter of success.
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  It is the the choice to be small enough to be held by God.
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  Look at the world today through the eyes of a child, with hope,
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  with wonder, and with a heart that is ready to change.
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  Thank you for listening to the Everyday Eurasia podcast,
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  Inspiring Fate for everyday. For more Everyday Stories,
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  subscribe on this podcast channel, follow our socials,
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  Facebook and Instagram, or our newsletter Snapshots.
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  For our newsletter and further information about the Eurasia
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  region, visit our website, eurasiaregion.org.