Latest / Time with God with John North / Growing Closer To God Through Intentional Relationships Pt. 1

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Growing Closer To God Through Intentional Relationships Pt. 1 · Time with God with John North

• 0:05
  Speaker 1: Good morning. Heading into a new week, let's start it
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: the best way possible. Let's spend some time with God.
• 0:14
  Speaker 1: And you know, opening the Bible, listening to what God
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: says to us through His word, that's how you spend
• 0:21
  Speaker 1: time with Him. Let Him speak to you first through
• 0:25
  Speaker 1: the Bible, and then you think about what he's saying
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: about your own life, what he's saying to you personally,
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: and talk to Him in prayer. That's a relationship, and
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: that's what God wants with you. That's why each weekday
• 0:41
  Speaker 1: morning at this time.
• 0:43
  Speaker 1: We start by spending some time with God in the Bible,
• 0:46
  Speaker 1: and this week I want to talk with you about
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: a topic that, that is very dear to me because
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: of the deep impact it's had on my own spiritual
• 0:56
  Speaker 1: life and walk with God, and that is this growing
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: closer to God through intentional relationships. Growing closer to God
• 1:08
  Speaker 1: through intentional.
• 1:10
  Speaker 1: Relationships. And each day I want to bring you a
• 1:12
  Speaker 1: different principle about how to do that, and here's the
• 1:16
  Speaker 1: one for today.
• 1:18
  Speaker 1: Choose carefully the people who will influence your life.
• 1:25
  Speaker 1: Choose carefully the people who will influence your life. Listen
• 1:29
  Speaker 1: to what King David said in Psalm 101 in the Bible.
• 1:34
  Speaker 1: He said, I will sing of steadfast love and justice
• 1:39
  Speaker 1: to you, O Lord. I will make music. I will
• 1:42
  Speaker 1: ponder the way that is blameless. Oh, when will you
• 1:47
  Speaker 1: come to me? I will walk with integrity of heart
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: within my house. I will not set before my eyes
• 1:56
  Speaker 1: anything that is worthless.
• 1:59
  Speaker 1: I hate the way of those who fall away. It
• 2:03
  Speaker 1: shall not cling to me. A perverse heart shall be
• 2:08
  Speaker 1: far from me. I will know nothing of evil. Whoever
• 2:12
  Speaker 1: slanders his neighbour secretly, I will destroy. Whoever has a
• 2:17
  Speaker 1: haughty look and an arrogant heart, I will not endure.
• 2:22
  Speaker 1: I will look with favour on the faithful in the
• 2:26
  Speaker 1: land that they may dwell with me. He who walks
• 2:31
  Speaker 1: in a way that is blameless shall minister to me.
• 2:35
  Speaker 1: No one who practises deceit shall dwell in my house.
• 2:39
  Speaker 1: No one who utters lies shall continue before my eyes.
• 2:43
  Speaker 1: Morning by morning. I will destroy all the wicked in
• 2:46
  Speaker 1: the land, cutting off all the evildoers from the city
• 2:49
  Speaker 1: of the Lord.
• 2:51
  Speaker 1: Well, he says a few things in there as king
• 2:53
  Speaker 1: about what he's going to do, but did you notice
• 2:55
  Speaker 1: what he said about his own personal relationships with people?
• 3:01
  Speaker 1: Whoever has a haughty look and an arrogant heart, I
• 3:04
  Speaker 1: will not endure. I will look with favour on the
• 3:07
  Speaker 1: faithful in the land that they may dwell with me.
• 3:11
  Speaker 1: He who walks in the way that is blameless is
• 3:15
  Speaker 1: the one who will minister to me.
• 3:18
  Speaker 1: Well, David chose carefully the people who would influence his life,
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  Speaker 1: who would get close to him.
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  Speaker 1: Who would shape his own life and relationship with God,
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  Speaker 1: and you need to do the same in your life.
• 3:34
  Speaker 1: Of course there's people who are a part of your life,
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: not because you chose them, but just because of the
• 3:39
  Speaker 1: circumstances of your life, but there are also people who
• 3:43
  Speaker 1: you actively look for personal time with because you want
• 3:48
  Speaker 1: to be close friends with them, or because you want
• 3:50
  Speaker 1: to learn and grow from them.
• 3:52
  Speaker 1: So be very intentional about this second group. Actively choose
• 3:59
  Speaker 1: to spend time with people who are going to draw
• 4:02
  Speaker 1: you closer to God. As I think back over the
• 4:05
  Speaker 1: years of my walking with God, names come to mind
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  Speaker 1: of these people in my own life Steve and Glenn,
• 4:14
  Speaker 1: Dean and Kent, Rob and Andy.
• 4:17
  Speaker 1: The breakout group in my Bible study when I lived
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  Speaker 1: in Epping, Homer and Dave, Ed and Paul, Glenn and Gabby,
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  Speaker 1: I mean, uh, these are the people that I've chosen
• 4:30
  Speaker 1: to spend time with who have really grown my relationship
• 4:33
  Speaker 1: with God.
• 4:35
  Speaker 1: In Hebrews chapter 10 verse 23, it says, Let us
• 4:38
  Speaker 1: hold fast to the confession of our hope without wavering,
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  Speaker 1: for he who promised is faithful, and let us consider
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  Speaker 1: how to stir up one another to love and good works,
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  Speaker 1: not neglecting to meet together, as is the habit of some,
• 4:56
  Speaker 1: but encouraging one another and all the more as you
• 5:01
  Speaker 1: see the day drawing near.
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  Speaker 1: Choose to get close to people who are going to
• 5:06
  Speaker 1: help you get close to God. I'm John North.
• 5:12
  Speaker 2: To go deeper in your faith, visit AFCI.com.au.