Latest / Faith Church Podcast / Thankful for the Blessings | Pastor Kami Palmer | Faith Church

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Thankful for the Blessings | Pastor Kami Palmer | Faith Church · Faith Church Podcast

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Well, this morning, we're going to be concluding
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with the time of communion at the end of the
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service. But I wanted to spend a few moments
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on this Thanksgiving weekend out of Psalm 107.
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You're going to want your Bible today. You might
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want your notebook. As I was in Psalm 107, I
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was struck by the beauty of the pattern. that
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is seen. It was a continued pattern through the
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first half of the chapter. And as we did that,
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I'm like Psalm 107 just like wrote my sermon
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for me. But I want to just begin by opening with
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verses one and two. Give thanks to the Lord for
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he is good. His love endures forever. Let the
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redeemed of the Lord. Tell their story. That's
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just what the girls were talking about. Let the
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redeemed tell their story. Nobody else can tell
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your story. Only you can tell your story. So
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tell your story. And so Emerson said this. He
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said that if the stars came out only once a year,
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everybody would stay up all night to behold them.
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We have seen the stars so often that we don't
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bother to look at them anymore. We have grown
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accustomed to our blessings. I had that thought
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when a couple of weeks ago, Darren and I were
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flying home from Texas, from Dallas. And we were
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flying. Now, I typically don't want a window
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seat. I can't look out the window because I get
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sick. But I was doing pretty good because I had
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my Dramamine in me. And so as we were coming
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down into St. Louis, I thought it was so rude.
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The lady in my row kept her window closed the
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whole time, so I couldn't see anything. So I'm
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looking out at somebody else's window, and it
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was the peak fall colors. flying down over St.
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Louis. It was a sea of colorful trees. And then
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I start looking around the airplane, and I see
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not one person looking out the window. They all
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were on their phones and tablets. And I had the
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thought, beyond just the fact that... We have
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this sea of beauty outside our window. We've
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grown so accustomed even to the idea of flying
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that we don't look at what's outside our window.
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We grow accustomed to our blessings. And so today
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as we are reading through Psalm 107, I want us
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to take a few moments on this Thanksgiving weekend,
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and I want us to call to mind. The blessings
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that he has given to us. The Israelites had this
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problem themselves. They even in the wilderness
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had grown accustomed to their blessings. They
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were without food and they were longing for the
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food of Egypt. And they begin to complain. They
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begin to complain. And so what does God do? He
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begins to feed them every morning with manna.
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Every morning, I'm like, man, you don't even
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got to cook. You don't got to do dishes. Right?
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I have dishes I have to go home and wash today.
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This is my reality. But if food, like, I don't
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care. You have me to your house. I don't care
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what you cook for me. I didn't have to cook it,
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and I'm not cleaning it up. So I will take great
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joy in that food. But the Israelites grew accustomed
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to their blessing. And they got a bit of a complaining
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spirit. And they said this, but now our whole
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being is dried up. They're so dramatic. Our whole
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being is dried up. There is nothing at all except
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this manna before our eyes. I kind of feel this
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way when Darren's in Petersburg. He hasn't been
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there in like four months. So he's there today.
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So I can again say whatever I want because he's
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not here. I feel this way when I'm in the living
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room and I can hear Darren roaming the kitchen.
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And I hear the refrigerator being opened. And
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I know he's just standing there staring at it.
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And I'll call out suggestions. There's this in
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there. There's this in there. There's this in
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there. I'm going to go to Thornton's and get
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a hot dog. Right? This is all we have in here,
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healthy stuff. I'm drying up. I need a greasy
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hot dog. Nothing but manna. They are experiencing
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a miracle of God's provision every morning. And
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they grew tired of it. How many of you remember
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Keith Green? Some of you older ones. Darren and
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I are big Keith Green. We read his book. I read
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his book multiple times. Love Keith Green. And
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so he wrote. How many of you remember his manna
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song? Oh, yeah. Oh, no. Manna again? Manna waffles.
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Manna burgers. Manna bagels? Filet of manna.
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Manna patty? But manna bread. And then he goes
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on to say this. We once complained for something
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new to munch. The ground opened up and had some
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of us for lunch. He had a way of really getting
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to the heart of things. In Numbers 11, this is
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what happened. God finally sends meat to them.
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But in the sending of the meat, in the provision
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of the meat, God gets exasperated with them.
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And it says that they buried the people who had
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been so greedy for meat. They called the place
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graves for the greedy. Graves for the greedy.
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I don't know about you, but I don't want my life
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to be a grave of the greedy. I don't want to
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become so accustomed to my blessings that I have
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a complaining spirit and I forget to be thankful.
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And so in Psalm 107, We're going to look here
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in this rhythm of this psalm, the beauty of this
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psalm. And we're going to, some of this is going
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to apply. You're going to be like, ah, that was
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me. That's who I was before Christ. Some of you
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in here might say, that's me now. I need Christ.
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But we're going to begin, we'll just begin from
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the beginning once again in verse 1. Give thanks
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to the Lord. For he is good, his love endures
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forever. Let the redeemed of the Lord tell their
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story. Those who he redeemed from the hand of
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the foe. Those he gathered from the lands, from
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east and west and north and south. Some wandered
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in desert wastelands, finding no way to a city
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where they could settle. They were hungry. and
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thirsty, and their lives ebbed away. This person
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would be the distressed wanderer, and that might
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have been some of you, wandering from this thing
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to the next thing, hungry and thirsty, unable
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to find anything that can satisfy, anything that
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can settle your spirit to say, I'm home, I'm
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at rest, I'm at peace, I'm content. You were
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this desert wanderer, this distressed wanderer.
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When we look, we see in the New Testament a wonderful
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example of this, and Kathy was even referring
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to it. In Luke 15, we have the account of the
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prodigal. And when I read the account of the
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prodigal, I see a distressed wanderer. He, in
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verse 13, the younger son, it says he gathers
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everything that he had, and he set off for a
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distant country where he squandered his wealth
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in wild living. He was going from one thing to
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the next thing to the next thing, but nothing
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could ever satisfy. Nothing could ever fill this
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hunger he didn't know what it was for, this thirst
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he didn't recognize why it was there. And so
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it says, after he'd spent everything, there was
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a severe famine in the country, and he began
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to be in need. So he went and he hired himself
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out to a citizen in the country who sent him
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to his fields to feed the pigs. Let's remember,
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you might think pigs are cute, and we'd certainly
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enjoy eating pigs, but for him, this was an unclean
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food. This was an unclean animal. It's bad enough
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that he's going to take care of these pigs, but
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for his culture, these are unclean animals. Verse
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16, he longed to fill his stomach with the pods
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that the pigs were eating. But no one gave him
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anything. And then there's verse 17. And it says,
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he came to his senses. I pray that over my kid.
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He came to his senses. He said, how many of my
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father's hired servants have food to spare? And
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here I am starving to death. I will set out and
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go back to my father and say, I've sinned against
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heaven and you. I'm no longer worthy to be called
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your son. Make me like one of your hired servants.
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So he got up and he went to his father. What
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did he do? He went back to the source. He went
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back to that place that would satisfy the hunger,
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that would satisfy the thirst, that would be
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his resting, his home place. I am at rest here.
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He was a distressed wanderer. And in Psalm 107,
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verse 6, here's what the distressed wanderers
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do. They eventually will cry out to the Lord
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in their trouble. And he delivered them from
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their distress. He led them by a straight way
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to a city where they could settle. He brought
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them home. They cried out to the Lord, and he
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brought them home. If this is you today, you're
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saying, I don't know, there's just this thing
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I can't be satisfied. I can't seem to settle
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into anything. Some people like this will go
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from job to job to job to job, relationship to
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relationship to relationship, church to church
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to church, because they can't find in God what
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they need. And so they search everywhere. Let
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those, how many of you would say, that was me,
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I was a distressed wanderer. I had a hunger and
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a thirst and I didn't know how to satisfy it,
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right? Many of you raising your hands. And so
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those who were the distressed wanderer, if that
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is you, verse 8 and 9, let them give thanks to
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the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful
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deeds for mankind. For he satisfies the thirsty,
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and he fills the hungry with good things. How
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many of you, God has done wondrous deeds on your
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behalf. He has satisfied you. He has filled you
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with good things. Give thanks today. Give praise
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today. The distressed wanderer. In the next portion,
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we see another. In verse 10, some sat in darkness,
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in utter darkness, prisoners suffering in iron
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chains because they rebelled against God's commands
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and despised the plans of the Most High. So he
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subjected them to bitter labor. They stumbled
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and there was no one to help. Some of you came
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out of the place of great darkness. The chains
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of the kingdom of darkness were heavy around
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your neck. And it wasn't until he came, and there's
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a beautiful passage that says that he ushers
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us out of the kingdom of darkness and into the
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kingdom of light. Right? How many of you, that's
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me. I was ushered in out of the darkness and
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into the light. I read. the account of a young
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lady named Sophia. This is a little lengthy,
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but I think you're going to be blessed by her
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testimony. It was printed in Christianity Today.
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But she tells her story saying, my earliest memory
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is of crying inside a locked supply room. My
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mother had sold me as a child laborer, as she
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often did. I was three. At four, my mother sold
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me for $58 as a child laborer to the imam of
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the neighborhood's Muslim community. I lived
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in a locked room and by age 25 gave birth to
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two girls, both taken from me immediately. At
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this point, life became unbearable. It felt unbearable,
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and when I began, it's when that unbearable moment
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hit her. that she began to hear a gentle whisper
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in her ear, it's okay, just stay alive. I didn't
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know who or what this voice was, but it comforted
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me. It was powerful yet gentle. One night, not
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long after the birth of her second child, she
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awoke at three in the morning to the voice telling
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me to escape through the window. I was confused,
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but the voice said, it's time. I bargained with
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the voice. If I jump, you have to promise I'll
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get back everything I have lost. It was a second
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story window. Helped by a woman in the community,
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she was sent to another town to work where a
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U .S. Army officer began to pursue her romantically.
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She followed him to Chicago. where it was not
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the fresh start she had hoped for. During the
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next six and a half years, the man abused me.
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I tested positive for HIV, developed tuberculosis,
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and landed in the hospital, wrecked with despair.
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All the money I'd earned working in Chicago went
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toward my medical bills. Soon I had nothing left,
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and the officer sent me back to Bangkok. I never
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saw him again. For three months, I languished
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alone in a hospital bed. My legs became paralyzed,
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and though I could hear what went on around me,
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I could not move or see. I could not remember
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my name or who I was. During this season of torment,
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I silently called upon every God I knew, yet
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nothing happened. An American friend visited
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and talked about Jesus with me, asking, why don't
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you ask Jesus to be your Savior? Unable to say
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anything or acknowledge that I had heard, I cried
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out to Jesus in my heart, if you are with me,
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come save me. For three months, I languished
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alone in a hospital bed. This season in that
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torment, she called on Jesus, but nothing had
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changed, right? She didn't see any change at
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all. But what she did is what Psalm 107, verse
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13 now says again. They cried out to the Lord
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in their trouble, and he saved them from their
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distress. He brought them out of darkness, the
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utter darkness, and broke away their chains.
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She didn't know it yet, but she had called on
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Jesus, and he was at work bringing her out of
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darkness and breaking her chains of bondage and
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infirmity. Her story continues. After crying
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out to Jesus, she went for six weeks without
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food or medicine, only water. Yet strangely,
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I never felt like I was alone, because the voice
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that had spoken to me all those years ago spoke
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again, live. That's all it takes, one word, live.
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In that little house, I understood that it had
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been Jesus' voice all along. And in his presence,
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I slowly came back to life. My wounds healed.
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My spirits lifted. And one day, it seemed as
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if Jesus was telling me, come out. See, her family
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had sequestered her in isolation in that little
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room. And now Jesus is saying to her, come out.
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I stumbled out of the wooden house like Lazarus.
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My family, the villagers, and the doctors who
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tried to heal me were all shocked. A pastor in
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Bangkok had visited me while on my deathbed.
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After my miraculous healing, he brought me to
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a ministry called The Well to help me recuperate.
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I told him I wanted to learn more about the voice
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that had brought me back to life. And that's
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when I gave my life to Jesus. The pastor helped
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me enroll at a Baptist seminary in Bangkok where
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I received my biblical studies certificate. Not
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long after I graduated, I felt God calling me
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back to return to the Muslim community I had
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escaped. Only God can do this in a life. Go back,
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God said. Learn to forgive and love them. The
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community still had both my daughters, and they
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didn't want to return them to me because I had
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become a Christian. But I slowly reestablished
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connections. I brought food and had meals with
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people. I accompanied elderly women to the hospital
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and shared how Jesus had befriended and saved
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me. Eight years after I returned to the community,
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The imam who had enslaved me called me on the
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phone, was dying of cancer and wanted to see
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me. I sat next to him and he asked me to forgive
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him and said, can you give me bread and coffee?
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I was stunned. He had locked me up for years.
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Why should I forgive and serve him? What was
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I even doing sitting there next to him? Then
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I remembered Jesus and his command to forgive
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and love my enemies. I took the bread. I believe
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this is the table of the Lord. I took the bread
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and I gave it to the imam. And the chains in
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my heart broke. I felt true freedom at last from
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this man and those terrible years. Later, right
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before he died, the imam asked if I wanted to
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have my daughters back. He didn't need to ask
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twice. Today, my two daughters, 25 and 32, live
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with me. When I jumped out of that window, I
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asked God to give me everything back. He kept
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his promise. He kept my daughters safe and returned
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them to me. He has transformed my suffering into
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an open door to minister to others in dire situations
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in Thailand, including prostitutes, abandoned
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children, and those who have been trafficked
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or without homes. Listen, only God can bring
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you out of that kind of darkness. Only God can
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break those kind of chains of bitterness and
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woundedness. Only God can do that. And for some
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of you, you might say, well, my story isn't that.
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Listen, it doesn't matter. Your darkness may
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be different. Your chains may be different. They
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may be of a lighter weight chain or maybe a heavier
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chain. It doesn't matter. There's no chain that
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is too heavy or too strong for the power of Jesus
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Christ. Not one. There's no darkness that cannot
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be lit up with the light of Christ. And so for
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some of you, this was you. You were in the darkness.
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You were captured by the chains. Maybe it's you
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today. Maybe you're in a darkness. Maybe you
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have chains. We have a great deliverer, Jesus
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Christ, who's just waiting to shed light in your
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darkness and break every chain. And so those
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of you who were darkness dwellers, Psalm 107
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verse 10 calls to you. Let them give thanks to
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the Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful
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deeds for mankind. For he breaks down gates of
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bronze and cuts through bars of iron. So give
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praise, give thanks. Hallelujah. The next portion
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of Psalm 107, the next person that we find in
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this chapter, In verse 17, some became fools
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through their rebellious ways and suffered affliction
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because of their iniquities. They loathed all
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food and drew near the gates of death. This next
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person is the rebellious one. Israel, God's people
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in the Old Testament, this is their story, isn't
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it? Time and time again, they would rebel. Against
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the Lord. In fact, in Isaiah 48, he gives a picture
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of Israel. It's not a great picture. In fact,
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he says, listen to this, you descendants of Jacob.
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You who are called by the name of Israel. I knew
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how stubborn you were. Your neck muscles were
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iron. Your forehead was bronze. Some of you in
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here were very stubborn in bowing to your Lord.
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You came the hard way to bow before the Lord.
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You had a neck of iron. Your forehead was bronze.
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You could just like beat your head against the
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wall. He goes on to say, I am the Lord your God
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who teaches you what is best for you. This is
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the thing about the stubborn, rebellious one
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is they think they know what's best for themselves.
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And God is saying, no, I'm the one that teaches
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you what is best for you, who directs you in
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the way you should go. This is my favorite passage.
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Oh, if only, if only you had heeded. If only
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you had heeded and paid attention to my commands,
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you would have had peace. Your peace would have
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been like a river. Your well -being like the
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waves of the sea. How many of you, you were that
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rebellious one. You came to the Lord the hard
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way. Yeah. But there, just like all the others
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in Psalm 107 and verse 19, the rebellious cried
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out to the Lord in their trouble. The Israelites
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knew how to do that. They often had to do that.
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God brought them into captivity, and they would
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have to begin to again cry out to the Lord. And
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always he saved them from their distress. He
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sent out his word and healed them. He rescued
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them from the grave. Praise the Lord. The thing
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is, is that God's even more stubborn. His will
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is even stronger. And his will is to heal you.
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His will is to bring you up out of the grave.
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And so maybe that's you today. Some of you, that's
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who you were. But maybe today you're saying,
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I've been stubborn. I've been resisting the word
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of God in my life. Today is your day to cry out
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in trouble and receive healing. And so you today,
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who were the rebellious ones, hear the call of
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verses 21 and 22. Let them give thanks to the
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Lord for his unfailing love and his wonderful
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deeds for mankind. Let them sacrifice, thank
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offerings, and tell of his works with songs of
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joy. Sing it out. Sing out his good works, you
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who are the rebellious ones. All right, our next
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group right here, this is the last one, are the
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fearful ones. In verse 23, some went out on the
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sea in ships. They were merchants on the mighty
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waters. They saw the works of the Lord, his wonderful
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deeds in the deep. For he spoke and stirred up
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a tempest that lifted high the waves. They mounted
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up to the heavens and went down to the depths.
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In their peril, their courage melted away. They
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reeled and staggered like drunkards. They were
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at their wit's end. I think these are ones that
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started out as adventurers. They were going out
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on adventurous things on the seas. But then when
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things got a bit stormy, what happened? Fear
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came in. And they became so fearful that they
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staggered like drunkards at their wit's end.
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If that's you, you know what? You're in keeping
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here. You're in good company. Because as we look
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at some people in the Bible, they are just like
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you. They are just like you. Elijah had a great
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victory in the mountaintop where he called down
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fire from heaven, consuming the sacrifice over
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all of the other false prophets. I mean, you'd
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be like spiritually high that day. But then the
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next thing you read, he's running in fear from
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Jezebel. In fact, he has so much fear that he
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just wants to die. But it says that the Lord
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gave him food, gave him water, and gave him rest.
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And after that, he got up and ran 40 days to
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the cave, where in that moment in the cave, God's
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glory, his presence passed before him. And it's
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in that place that God says, I got a couple more
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kings for you to anoint, and it's time for you
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to go anoint Elisha to be raised up after you.
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He wasn't done yet. He got into a fearful place.
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Gideon was hiding out in the winepress from his
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enemies, declaring to be the weakest of the weak,
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when the angel comes and says, O mighty man of
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valor, and calls him to do battle on behalf of
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his people. And he brought peace to the land.
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He was hiding in fear. And then the word of the
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Lord came. Esther, she feared for her life when
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called upon to intercede with the king for her
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people. She didn't want to do it. Ultimately,
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though, we know her famous saying, if I perish,
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I perish. She went before the king and saved
30:58
her people. The disciples, following this great
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miracle of multiplication of food for 5 ,000.
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Again, a great spiritual high. Look at what God
31:09
has done. Yet they get in a boat and they face
31:13
a fierce storm. And they are in fear until Jesus
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calms the storm. Peter. Peter walked on water
31:26
until he began to sink in fear. Peter declared
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he would never deny Christ. And then you find
31:37
him three times denying him. Yet Peter was martyred
31:44
for Christ. There are many. They started out,
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yes, in adventure, I'm going to do great things.
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They ended in fear. But I want to say to you,
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if you've had fear in your life, you've got to
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do it. Psalm 107 says to do in verse 28. You
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cry out to the Lord in your trouble. And he brought
32:07
them out of their distress. He stilled the storm
32:11
to a whisper. The waves of the sea were hushed.
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They were glad when it grew calm. And he guided
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them to their desired haven. For many of you,
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this was you. You lived a life of fear until
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you found safe harbor in Christ. Some of you
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are here today, and you need safe harbor. Christ
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is here for you to cry out to in trouble. And
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so, I believe that courageous adventures are
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hidden somewhere in every heart. So if that is
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you, if you have been the fearful one that Jesus
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brought out, we heed verse 31. Let them give
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thanks to the Lord for his unfailing love. and
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his wonderful deeds for mankind. Let them exalt
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him in the assembly of the people and praise
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him in the council of the elders. Isn't that
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interesting? What an intimidating place. I remember
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when I was being ordained, having to preach to
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our presbytery and our superintendent. I was
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so intimidated and fearful in that moment. And
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I finally had to say, forget it. They need the
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gospel just like everybody else, so I'm going
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to preach it. I had to get rid of that intimidation
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and that fear. And I think it's interesting here
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that that's what this verse, it says, exalt him
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in the assembly of the people and in the council
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of the elders. You would never think that you
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could do that. But you're not a person of fear
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anymore. So you can declare and exalt the Lord.
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And so today my question for you is what is your
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trouble? What is your trouble? What was your
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trouble? What did God do for you when you cried
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out to him? We need to remember our blessings
34:06
today. We need to call to mind what God has done
34:11
for us. And maybe, just maybe, you need to cry
34:17
out to him today. Maybe today you're the distressed
34:22
wanderer, searching, hungry, and thirsty. Maybe
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you're the darkness dweller. The darkness has
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such a hold on you. Your chains have such a hold
34:35
on you. Can I say he wants to deliver you? You
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don't have to walk out of here in darkness and
34:42
in chains. You can leave them at the feet of
34:44
Jesus today. Maybe you've been the rebellious
34:49
one needing to bow in humility to your Lord.
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Maybe you're the fearful one needing to lift
34:59
your gaze to the one who does wondrous deeds
35:02
on behalf of man. Maybe, just maybe, it's you
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today and you need to cry out. We're going to
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be celebrating communion in a moment, the table
35:17
of the Lord. And we celebrate open communion.
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As long as you profess Jesus to be Lord of your
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life, you are welcome to participate in communion.
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But before we take communion, I just want to
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give a moment of opportunity for you. If this
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is you and you're saying, today I need to make
35:42
that decision. Today I need to invite the Savior
35:45
into my life. We want to make room for you today.
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And so here's what we're going to do. We're going
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to take a moment and we're just going to all
35:59
of us bow our heads, close our eyes. I'm not
36:03
going to ask anybody to come up right now. But
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I want us just for a moment to quietly before
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the Lord. If this is what Christ has done for
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you, I want you just to call to mind the beginning.
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I want you to... Call to mind the glory of what
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he has brought you out of. And if you need to
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do that today, I want you just to begin to tell
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the Lord, Lord, I need you. I'm crying out just
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like in Psalm 107. They cried out to the Lord
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in their time of distress. Today I'm calling
36:47
out, I'm crying out to you in my distress. And
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if that's you, while everybody's got their heads
36:55
bowed, I want you just to lift your hand up so
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I can pray with you this morning. Today is your
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day to be courageous and to lift up that hand
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and say yes to the Lord. I see one hand over
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here. Anybody else before we move on? Maybe you're
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saying he's done that for me once, but I've let
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those old things back in my life. And I need
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to renew my commitment. I need to renew that
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relationship. Yeah, lift your hand in the back.
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Others, here's what we're going to do today.
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We're going to just all of us pray this prayer.
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As one whole congregation, I want you just to
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repeat after me. Heavenly Father, I come to you
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as a sinner in need of a Savior. I believe that
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Jesus Christ is the Son of God and the Savior
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of the world. Today, I make Jesus Lord of my
38:05
life. I believe you died so I could be forgiven
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and rose again to give me life. I receive this
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new life. This is my new beginning. I am a child
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of God. Amen. Amen. Praise the Lord. Praise the
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Lord. I'm just going to say this here. If you
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still have chains that you are carrying and need
38:44
somebody to pray with you, don't leave this place
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at the end of service. We have elders that would
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love to pray with you this morning. And so today,
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we're concluding with a time of communion. We've
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got some of our leaders and our pastors that
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are going to help us. And so if you guys would
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head over to your stations. What we're doing,
39:08
our response time today, is this time of communion.
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It's saying, I remember, I remember Christ, what
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you have done for me. As we take this bread that
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represents the body of Christ, I receive it remembering
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that your body was broken for my brokenness.
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I receive it knowing that I cannot sustain my
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own life. I need the bread of life to sustain
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me. And as we dip this bread in this cup, we're
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acknowledging and we're remembering that it is
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the blood of Jesus that has cleansed us and washed
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us and set a new covenant in place, a covenant
39:57
of peace, a covenant of grace. And so as we move
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toward communion this morning, I want you to
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do it prayerfully. I want you to do it beginning
40:11
to give thanks to God for what he has brought
40:13
you out of. I want us to not take for granted
40:17
what he has given to us, the miraculous provision.
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We don't want to be like the Israelites. We don't
40:25
want to be like manna again, God. We want to
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say thank you, God. for your provision. Thank
40:34
you for what you have sustained me in life. We're
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going to remember what the Lord has done. Our
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lives aren't going to be the graves of the greedy,
40:46
right? They're going to be places full of thanksgiving
40:52
and gratitude, which is the language of the kingdom
40:57
of God. Gratitude and thankfulness. And so I'm
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going to invite you to stand with me this morning.
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The team is going to lead us in worship, and
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as we do, I'm going to invite you to communion.
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This here, Lila's going to start off this section.
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You're going to go back to Dan and Linda. This
41:19
section, Gary's going to start you off over here,
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and you'll make your way forward. You guys are
41:25
going to, your sections are going to come up
41:27
here. David, you're going to start them back
41:29
there to Dennis and Linda. And so as you do,
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let's just worship the Lord. Receive your communion
41:36
and then find a place worshiping at the feet
41:40
of Jesus for a few moments this morning. Make
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the declaration, I'm living my life at the feet
41:47
of Jesus. This is who I am. This is how I live,
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full of gratitude and thankfulness. Amen? Amen.