Latest / Karl and Crew / Finding Freedom in Hope with Susie Larson; Growth from pain with Nicole Jacobsmeyer; and Defining Biblical Hope with Dr. Crawford Loritts

Transcript

Finding Freedom in Hope with Susie Larson; Growth from pain with Nicole Jacobsmeyer; and Defining Biblical Hope with Dr. Crawford Loritts · Karl and Crew

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  S1: Coming to you live in studio. It's Carl and crew
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  S1: on Moody radio.
• 0:07
  S2: Listen to the text I just got. How about this
• 0:09
  S2: one for a text? Ali, I think you'll like this.
• 0:12
  S2: What a game. And my goodness, Evans was a great signing.
• 0:17
  S2: Niners fans everywhere. I completely lost my voice after DuBose TD.
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  S2: I'll get some photos to you soon. My phone is old,
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  S2: so mailing his wife took them all. That's my nephew
• 0:32
  S2: Joey calling. Drove from Brisbane to Melbourne to watch the game.
• 0:38
  S2: Watch the 40 Niners beat the Rams. How about that.
• 0:41
  S2: And he's you know why he's a major 40 Niners fan.
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  S2: Grandpa Joe my dad.
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  S3: Okay. Your dad was you had a jacket of his right.
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  S2: I still.
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  S3: Do. You do.
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  S2: I still do. See I still do.
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  S3: So cool. Yeah.
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  S2: It's so cool and I'm so pumped for so pumped
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  S2: for Joey. His name's Joey. As in.
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  S3: Text.
• 1:07
  S2: You Joseph as in grandpa? Yeah, it's kind of cool.
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  S2: It's it's wild how how small the world is.
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  S3: Yeah. You are, you are. I mean, so football season
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  S3: has officially started. Are we still in preseason?
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  S2: Oh, no. We're going, we're going. We're out of the chute.
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  S3: I gotta I.
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  S2: Know to be fair.
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  S3: Bears.
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  S2: Haven't.
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  S3: Yet. Ali's basketball all the way. But the bears haven't
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  S3: kicked off their season.
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  S2: No no no it's this week. So you've only missed
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  S2: two games. You just missed two.
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  S3: I know that the fantasy football leagues are happening because
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  S3: my my my son does those.
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  S2: So yeah. Oh yeah. Is he all in it?
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  S3: He I mean he is a big bears fan, so
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  S3: he's really tracking. Sure. And then he likes to see
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  S3: how the different players are kind of pieced together. His team.
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  S3: He likes the challenge of it.
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  S2: Yeah. Yeah. There's you know I, I do love the NFL.
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  S2: I do. I really appreciate it. And I, I just
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  S2: it's just, it's a thrill. So I'm in one of
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  S2: these fantasy leagues with some other pastors and staff and
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  S2: a few key volunteer dudes from 180 Chicago. And it's,
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  S2: it's a hoot, man. You know who's into it the most?
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  S2: I mean, bar none into it, the most studying analytics, everything.
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  S2: Take a guess.
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  S4: Doctor Coakley.
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  S2: You got it.
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  S3: Well, okay. It's probably the studying of it, right?
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  S2: Oh, this.
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  S3: Guy.
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  S2: I'm telling you, he does deep dives on this stuff.
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  S2: Deep dives. So it's kind of fun. Doctor Jim Coakley,
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  S2: who's a guest here often. Yeah he's in fantasy football.
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  S2: It's just a hoot man.
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  S3: I love that.
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  S2: Isn't that great. Isn't that great? Oh boy. We're talking
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  S2: on this Freedom Friday. A lot of hope. And, uh,
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  S2: by the way, could I just say this to you
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  S2: right now. You might have come here without hope. And
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  S2: there's a reason for that. Let me just say this quickly.
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  S2: We find in the book of Ephesians, we find this
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  S2: statement about those who are in Christ Jesus and the
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  S2: Apostle Paul's writing, and he said, you were in this
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  S2: world having no hope and without God in this world.
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  S2: But now in Christ Jesus, you who were once far
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  S2: off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.
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  S2: My friend, you may have come here today and you
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  S2: feel far off. You feel far off. Can I tell
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  S2: you that the Holy Spirit loves you so much? In fact,
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  S2: the father, the son, and the Holy Spirit together love
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  S2: you so much that they orchestrated this moment for you.
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  S2: And you might say, how can. How can it be
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  S2: that I'd feel far off and it could be a
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  S2: good moment. It's a great moment because so many are
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  S2: far from God, without hope, without God in this world,
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  S2: but in Christ Jesus, and through the power of the spirit,
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  S2: you've been brought here today. Let me tell you what
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  S2: the hope is for that chasm. Let me tell you
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  S2: what the hope is. The hope is that you will
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  S2: see today, right now, in this moment, that you are
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  S2: a sinner. What? Yeah. That you are the person that
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  S2: is causing this chasm between you and God. And that
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  S2: Jesus laid down his life to span that gap. And
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  S2: that by acknowledging I'm a sinner that created this chasm.
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  S2: By acknowledging that and saying I'm a sinner. You can
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  S2: be born again. Now I want you to look across
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  S2: that chasm this morning. You came here without hope. And
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  S2: without God in this world. But I can tell you
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  S2: with a first hand testimony that God, through His Son
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  S2: Jesus Christ, will draw you near. You say, Carl, what
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  S2: do I do? First thing. Acknowledge I'm a sinner. I'm
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  S2: a sinner. It's a. It's a powerful thing when you
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  S2: can look in the mirror of your soul and you say,
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  S2: I am missing the mark. And it's an overwhelming thing
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  S2: because there's two emotions that are happening. There's this guilt,
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  S2: and then there's this hope right behind it. See Jesus
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  S2: died for your sins, not to. Not to have an
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  S2: emotional moment. Not to have a perfunctory hand in the
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  S2: air or walk the aisle, but a moment when you
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  S2: turn and follow Jesus Christ and you give him your
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  S2: whole life. And here's what I'm confident of. There's someone
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  S2: listening right now. You came here without hope and without
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  S2: God in this world. But Jesus laid down his life
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  S2: for you, and he spanned that gap so that you
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  S2: can know Jesus personally. Is that you, my friend? And
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  S2: if that's you right now, I want you to just
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  S2: cry out to God wherever you are. You can be
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  S2: driving right now and just say, Jesus right now, Jesus,
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  S2: I'm a sinner. I caused that gap, that chasm between
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  S2: myself and God. Thank you for laying down your life.
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  S2: You laid down your life for me. And I give
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  S2: my life to you. Just tell him that. All of it.
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  S2: Now I want you to count the cost. I want
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  S2: you to give every square inch of what you are,
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  S2: who you are, the dreams that you have, all the
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  S2: aspirations that you have, all that you've done and surrendered
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  S2: all up to Jesus today. And you're going to have
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  S2: freedom in Jesus Christ. It's just a cry of the soul.
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  S2: And I just want you to pray along with me here. Oh, Jesus.
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  S2: Just tell him this. I'm a sinner. Save me from myself.
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  S2: Thank you. And today I give you my whole life.
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  S2: I'm walking this path less traveled that Jesus laid down
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  S2: his life for. And I thank you for drawing me
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  S2: near today. I give you everything that I am. I'm
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  S2: holding nothing back, friend. If that's you, you are born
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  S2: again this morning. No matter how hopeless, no matter how
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  S2: without God you are. You were when you came here.
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  S2: You are no longer that you've been saved by the
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  S2: blood of Jesus Christ. And it's a beautiful thing. Ali,
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  S2: how do we want to help these people today?
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  S3: If that's you? And today you are turning, going a
• 8:24
  S3: new direction. Today you became a follower of Jesus Christ.
• 8:27
  S3: Just text the word new NEW to 805 557898. Text
• 8:35
  S3: new to 805 557898. We're going to send you an
• 8:40
  S3: auto reply that's just going to give you some practical
• 8:42
  S3: next steps. The opportunity to fill out a form so
• 8:45
  S3: we can follow up with you. Just text new to
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  S3: 805 557898.
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  S2: You have been brought near by the blood of Jesus
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  S2: Christ today. And we are going to help you in
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  S2: your first steps with Jesus. You wipe away tears. You
• 9:03
  S2: do whatever you got to do. Get to the side
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  S2: of a road. Pull off. Get to a safe place.
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  S2: Text the word new right now. Today is a new day.
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  S2: You are without hope. Far from God in this world
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  S2: without God. And he's drawing you near. Text new to
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  S2: 805 557898. One word new to 805 557898. What a
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  S2: beautiful thing, isn't it, Ali? When God reaches into the
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  S2: darkness of someone's heart.
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  S3: And new life can begin. I mean, that's this is
• 9:40
  S3: the first day of the best days of your life.
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  S2: Yeah, it really is. Just text one word new to
• 9:46
  S2: 805 557898.
• 9:51
  S1: Tune in whenever you like. Check out the Cast and
• 9:54
  S1: Crew podcast wherever you like to stream.
• 9:57
  S2: Talking Hope today. And we got a good man with us. Crawford, Leyritz.
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  S2: We got you all sorted out here connection wise, by
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  S2: the way. How great is the hope of God, Crawford.
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  S5: It's beyond contemplation, man. I mean, our feeble, finite minds
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  S5: cannot contain the the breadth and depth of God's faithfulness
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  S5: and love for us. It is absolutely immeasurable.
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  S3: Crawford. It's with us, president and founder of Beyond Our Generation. Crawford.
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  S3: We were in a meeting here yesterday at Moody for
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  S3: something we're doing coming up, partnering with the ministry. And
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  S3: in this meeting we heard of just stories of, of
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  S3: absolute devastation of, of some of our, our brothers and
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  S3: sisters around the globe. And I started thinking about, you know,
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  S3: if every earthly thing was stripped away. If every material gain,
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  S3: if every financial gain, if everything that we know and
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  S3: love in this world, we're no longer there. And that's
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  S3: the situation for many of our brothers and sisters. Would
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  S3: we still have hope in Christ? And I and I
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  S3: wrestled with that because you know that the answer biblically
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  S3: is yes, but to try to go there in your
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  S3: mind and say, could I have hope if I lost everything?
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  S3: Speak to that. Our hope is anchored in a person,
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  S3: and sometimes it's hard for us to wrap our minds
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  S3: around that.
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  S5: Yes, our hope is anchored in a person. That is true.
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  S5: But biblical hope is not the denial of pain. In fact,
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  S5: the sadness and pain and the devastation demands our compassion
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  S5: and the realization that suffering is a part of life.
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  S5: And so it's not a denial of that, but it
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  S5: does put a focus on that which can never be
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  S5: changed about us, that which can never be tampered with.
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  S5: It puts a focus on why we were born, that
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  S5: we were not born to be anchored to this life,
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  S5: or to be anchored to just favorable circumstances. We were
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  S5: born to be anchored to a God who loves us,
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  S5: to a Jesus who never fails. In fact, I think
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  S5: of that great text in Hebrews chapter six, verse 19
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  S5: that says, uh, we have this as a sure and
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  S5: steadfast anchor of the soul, a hope that enters into
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  S5: the inner place behind the curtain. And so we, we
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  S5: don't give up because God is not giving up on us,
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  S5: that we're being prepared for his presence. And that hope is,
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  S5: is sort of a, it's sort of a nurturing, delightful
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  S5: defiance of the circumstances around us, not a denial of them,
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  S5: but a defiance of them because we're born for more.
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  S2: Yeah. Crawford writes, our guest, you know, about six months ago,
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  S2: I ran into a guy and he was talking about Christians,
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  S2: and I don't think he knew at that point just
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  S2: ran into this guy that I was a follower of Jesus,
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  S2: but he was alluding to that Christians are a little
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  S2: bit different, a little bit weak, probably in need of
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  S2: something to prop them up. And I thought to myself, precisely,
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  S2: that's exactly, that's exactly right. It's it's really true of us,
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  S2: isn't it? We're fools for Christ. We were broken and needy.
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  S5: That's exactly right. And we're not defensive about that statement
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  S5: because we were all of us were born to depend
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  S5: upon God, the real. The reality is, at any moment
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  S5: God can say, give me back my breath. You know,
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  S5: self reliance is just a relative thing. Ultimately, there's no
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  S5: such thing as anyone who's self-reliant. And we were born
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  S5: to enjoy his presence. We were born to depend upon him.
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  S5: We were born to be be lives that are yielded
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  S5: to him. And that's exactly the point.
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  S3: Doctor Crawford, the Ritz with us this morning. Well, I
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  S3: asked another guest this, and I want to ask you
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  S3: the same. What in your own personal life has challenged
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  S3: you most in this area of hope? Because we all
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  S3: have things when when the rubber meets the road where
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  S3: we have to really wrestle with it.
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  S5: Uh, just so many things. So, so many things. Uh,
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  S5: sometimes our desires become an idol. Yes. And so, so,
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  S5: you know, we, we so desire God to do something
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  S5: for us. And so we claim verses and we pray
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  S5: and then then God says no to those prayers. Well,
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  S5: if we're devastated by God's no, then that means what
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  S5: we have desired has replaced God. And so and I
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  S5: think all of us go through that. God says no
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  S5: to us sometimes because we're too attached to an outcome
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  S5: rather than being attached to him. And I think that's
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  S5: all of our journeys. You know, um, prayer ultimately is
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  S5: yieldedness to the person and yieldedness to the purposes of God.
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  S5: And so ultimately, every answer to prayer is yes, even
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  S5: when it's no. But you can't be attached to that.
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  S5: You know, it's kind of like, and this sounds strange.
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  S5: It's kind of like Genesis 22, isn't it? When Abraham
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  S5: was called by God to offer up Isaac. I think
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  S5: one of the central messages of that whole thing was
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  S5: that if we cannot give back to God what God
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  S5: has given to us, then what God has given to
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  S5: us has replaced God.
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  S2: Yeah.
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  S5: And so it's this journey of releasing our wills to him. Um,
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  S5: but sometimes we just want to hold on to things
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  S5: thinking that we are entitled to this. And then when
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  S5: God says no, we get devastated.
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  S2: Crawford. There's, this is I love this because I'm getting
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  S2: to an age now where I'm, I'm looking with anticipation
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  S2: to the other side, I am I'm I'm looking with anticipation.
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  S2: And the things of earth are growing more strangely dim
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  S2: in the light of God's glory and grace. They are.
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  S2: And yet I have found personally. Well, now let me
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  S2: ask you, how do you have those touch points where
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  S2: you go, yeah, God, it's me and you. It's me
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  S2: and you. Where does God meet you? There. Somebody needs
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  S2: to hear that.
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  S5: The way to have those touch points is constant communion
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  S5: with God. It's a daily. It's a daily reminder. Every,
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  S5: every morning, uh, I and I, I, you can, you
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  S5: can have your private devotions anytime during the day. But
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  S5: I found with me every morning. The first thing is
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  S5: that I've gotta, I've gotta have that touch point with
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  S5: him because we're prone, we're prone to wander. And so
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  S5: opening God's word, allowing God to speak to my soul
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  S5: and the Bible is the voice of God. It's not
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  S5: just motivational fodder or good, good advice to be taken.
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  S5: It is God's voice and letting him, letting him readjust
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  S5: my perspective and and speak to my soul and pouring
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  S5: out my heart to him, aligns me with sort of
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  S5: a foundation to edit the stress and the surprising challenges
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  S5: and unexpected things that's going to happen to me every
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  S5: single day. And so it helps me to see more
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  S5: clearly if I can say this through his eyes, why
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  S5: certain things happen, or to be able to rest in
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  S5: him when I don't know why. And so we need
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  S5: that constant, holy perspective so that we can appreciate and
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  S5: praise him even in the dark times, because we know
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  S5: that he ultimately is in control.
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  S2: Amen. That's so spot on, brother.
• 17:31
  S3: Doctor Crawford Lauritsen, speaker, author, pastor, founder of Beyond our Generation.
• 17:35
  S3: Just text beyond and we'll send you more text beyond
• 17:38
  S3: to 805 557898, beyond 805 557898.
• 17:46
  S1: It's Carl and Crew on Moody Radio.
• 17:50
  S2: Well, we've been discussing this morning. The reality is when
• 17:54
  S2: you get struck with this, what is it, an awareness?
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  S2: It's conviction for sure. But when you get overwhelmed with
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  S2: the sense of, Holy cow, I'm without hope and without
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  S2: God in this world, you could think that's the end.
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  S2: But many of you have just discovered that's the beginning.
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  S2: Isn't that amazing, Ali?
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  S3: It really is, because it's the beginning of real life.
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  S2: Yeah, I mean, everything's new. So Susie Larson is here
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  S2: with us right now. Susie, we were so clear with
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  S2: the gospel and clarity is important. But this gap, this
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  S2: chasm was bridged by Jesus Christ, who laid down his
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  S2: life and made what seemed impossible. We're on this no
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  S2: hope side of this chasm. And he bridged it. It's
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  S2: an old metaphor that's used, but it's a good one.
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  S2: And by recognizing I'm the problem, I caused this gap.
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  S2: Not my mom and dad. Not my brothers and sisters.
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  S2: Not the world that's pressing in around me, I caused it.
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  S2: And by admission of that sin that caused this chasm,
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  S2: we are now brought close to God. It's the most
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  S2: amazing miracle that we can possibly see. And we've got
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  S2: folks that have stepped right into it. What are your
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  S2: thoughts here? Suzy?
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  S6: Wow. Well, thank you for doing that because we're in
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  S6: a day where there hasn't the gospel hasn't been preached
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  S6: with clarity. It's been watered down. And, you know, when
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  S6: you water it down, it's no longer the gospel. Really, truly,
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  S6: you come to him. And I would say you grow
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  S6: in him in the same way through humility, through through admission,
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  S6: through repentance of your sin, and then acknowledging your need
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  S6: that you have Jesus. And the thing is, he's there,
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  S6: you have him. And when you've been transferred over that chasm,
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  S6: I think oftentimes Ali and Karl, people, even seasoned believers,
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  S6: then visualize themselves vacillating between these two statuses based on
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  S6: their own performance. But when you can really understand, you
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  S6: needed a Savior, and Jesus knew it. And he came
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  S6: to earth. He lived a sinless life. He died a
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  S6: brutal death, and he rose from the grave. The Bible says,
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  S6: this is my paraphrase. He blew to smithereens the devil's
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  S6: claim on you. So there literally is a chasm between
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  S6: these two realities. And if you can spend the rest
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  S6: of your days marveling at what Jesus did for you,
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  S6: nobody can undo to you. And as you learn to
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  S6: live loved, as you learn to know this love and
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  S6: to know this God, you will stay in awe. And
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  S6: that's really the call of God is to know him,
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  S6: to know his word. And I'll just say one more
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  S6: thing about that. What I keep thinking about is what
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  S6: stopped Jesus in his tracks. When you see him in
• 20:23
  S6: the Gospels was unbelief and faith. Those were the two
• 20:26
  S6: things that he marveled at. I he marveled at their unbelief.
• 20:29
  S6: He marveled at their faith. right? Yeah. And so when
• 20:32
  S6: the disciples came back, because he sent them out and
• 20:35
  S6: they came back and they said, Jesus, even the demons
• 20:38
  S6: obey us.
• 20:39
  S2: They are surrendering.
• 20:41
  S6: Which is like, that's, this is supernatural power marking their lives.
• 20:44
  S6: They can't get the demons to obey, but the spirit
• 20:46
  S6: of the living God on them, in them is what
• 20:48
  S6: made those demons cower. But you think because of all
• 20:52
  S6: that made Jesus stop in his tracks, he would have said, hey,
• 20:55
  S6: I told you this faith stuff is a big deal.
• 20:56
  S6: But he didn't. He said, don't marvel that the demons
• 20:59
  S6: obey you. Like I already told you that you have authority,
• 21:02
  S6: that it's my authority. He said, Marvel that your name
• 21:05
  S6: is written in the book of life. You know, truly
• 21:07
  S6: like if the wonder of what you get to do
• 21:10
  S6: now for God upstages what Jesus has already done, you've
• 21:13
  S6: already lost your way. And yet we have. We live
• 21:15
  S6: in a world of people, all about production, all about striving.
• 21:18
  S6: But if you can stay in awe that there were
• 21:21
  S6: books where your name was not in those books, and
• 21:24
  S6: then you bend the knee to Jesus, and now your
• 21:26
  S6: name is in the book. If you stay in awe,
• 21:29
  S6: your faith will stay alive, I'm telling you.
• 21:32
  S3: Oh. Suzy Larsen. Worth the price of admission.
• 21:36
  S7: All right, let's shut her down.
• 21:38
  S3: Suzy is a well-known radio talk show host. A great
• 21:40
  S3: friend of the program. Many, many books, including the one
• 21:44
  S3: we're featuring today. More than you can imagine what God
• 21:46
  S3: does when you trust him more. You know, so often, Suzy,
• 21:49
  S3: the pain of life, it can steal our hope and
• 21:53
  S3: it can steal our trust in God. How do those
• 21:56
  S3: two go hand in hand? Trust in God and hope.
• 21:59
  S6: You know, this is something I've learned through studying Scripture,
• 22:02
  S6: through walking through my own suffering, through being in media
• 22:04
  S6: and interviewing so many people and getting their backstory is
• 22:08
  S6: that the enemy is not at all threatened by your
• 22:10
  S6: Christian activity. We have a propensity to go through the motions.
• 22:14
  S6: You know, so if you are hurting on the inside
• 22:17
  S6: and you're not being honest about that with the Lord,
• 22:19
  S6: you can sing the songs and go through your laundry
• 22:22
  S6: list or your grocery list. In your mind. You can
• 22:25
  S6: show up at church, you can check the box and
• 22:27
  S6: read the Bible, do your reading plan. And those are
• 22:29
  S6: all good things. But if you do those without your
• 22:31
  S6: heart in it, the enemy is not threatened by that.
• 22:34
  S6: He is threatened by your engagement. He's threatened by when
• 22:37
  S6: you come before the Lord and you come within a
• 22:39
  S6: confessional community and you're honest about the hard parts of
• 22:42
  S6: your story, because like I said a minute ago, the
• 22:45
  S6: way that you come to Christ is humble, honest admission.
• 22:47
  S6: I'm a sinner. I need a savior. I submit to you.
• 22:50
  S6: You grow in the same way where you come to
• 22:52
  S6: these places where you go. Here again, I'm at the
• 22:54
  S6: edges of myself. This feels like too much for me,
• 22:57
  S6: and what I've learned about hope and trust is that
• 23:00
  S6: we all have areas where trust comes a little easier.
• 23:02
  S6: If you've walked with God any length of time, and
• 23:05
  S6: usually it's because you've won some battles there, you've won
• 23:07
  S6: some victories. The places where you struggle is where God
• 23:10
  S6: has allowed you to suffer. And I can tell you,
• 23:13
  S6: you can almost always draw a straight line from that
• 23:16
  S6: place where you're struggling to trust God to the enemy's
• 23:19
  S6: attack on your identity. Because if he can get you
• 23:22
  S6: distracted by thoughts of insecurity, of self-preservation, of Self-obsession. Then
• 23:28
  S6: he can dismantle your trust. He can't really touch your identity,
• 23:31
  S6: but he can get you to feel like you're doubting
• 23:34
  S6: who you are. And so what I've learned is kind
• 23:36
  S6: of follow the attack. When you see that you're having
• 23:39
  S6: a hard time trusting God, notice where the enemy is
• 23:42
  S6: attacking you and get that authority. Put him under your
• 23:45
  S6: feet and say, Lord, in this place where I have
• 23:48
  S6: not seen you come through, I am going to trust
• 23:50
  S6: you because I've seen you before and I'm going to
• 23:52
  S6: see you move again.
• 23:54
  S2: Suzy Larsen, our guest. All right. So here's a thought.
• 23:57
  S2: I was at a prayer meeting, a brand new church
• 24:00
  S2: campus at our first prayer and worship night. And it
• 24:02
  S2: was powerful. And I was praying with my bride during
• 24:04
  S2: one segment, and she prayed this prayer, O God, we
• 24:08
  S2: we really do want to trust you more. But in
• 24:11
  S2: order to do that, father, we're going to have to
• 24:13
  S2: lay down some things. That's right. There's some profound truth
• 24:16
  S2: in that. I think some of us try to trust
• 24:19
  S2: God more while we've got an arm full of substitute gods.
• 24:23
  S2: Why are those two things incompatible.
• 24:27
  S6: There will be no victory when there is idolatry. And
• 24:30
  S6: I told you that behind the scenes, Karl, I've been
• 24:32
  S6: studying on that and in Scripture. I mean, this is
• 24:35
  S6: a hard word, but it's true. Idolatry is adultery. And
• 24:39
  S6: when we are, we've got our plan A, B, and C,
• 24:41
  S6: we've got all these good things that we've made God
• 24:43
  S6: things we, by our own action, have diminished the power
• 24:48
  S6: of God's power in our life. And so he will
• 24:50
  S6: not compete with lesser gods. And I love what your
• 24:53
  S6: wife said. And the thing is, as I've explored this idea,
• 24:57
  S6: what I sense so strongly from the Lord is this
• 25:00
  S6: holy invitation. He just wants more of you. He wants
• 25:03
  S6: so much to show you his glory, his goodness, and
• 25:07
  S6: he wants you to trust him. And so when you
• 25:09
  S6: have these things that you're holding on to and you're like,
• 25:12
  S6: these are my plan B and C, in case you
• 25:14
  S6: don't do what I expect you to do. God doesn't
• 25:16
  S6: operate that way, and he's not interested in a transactional relationship.
• 25:20
  S6: But what's interesting is this walk with God is not
• 25:23
  S6: just a theology that we give a nod to. It's
• 25:25
  S6: not a box we check. So eternity is secure to me.
• 25:28
  S6: It's a relationship pulsating with life. I mean, literally, the
• 25:32
  S6: Spirit of God is so alive in us that he
• 25:36
  S6: impacts every detail of our life. And you're not really
• 25:39
  S6: one of God's kids if his spirit isn't convicting you.
• 25:42
  S6: I mean, if you're not bothered by your sin, if
• 25:44
  S6: you don't get a little poke when you pick up
• 25:46
  S6: an idol, I would wonder if you have a false
• 25:48
  S6: sense of security, because that is a proof that we
• 25:51
  S6: are God's children is that he disciplines. He course corrects.
• 25:54
  S6: He convicts, never humiliates, never condemns. But he invites us up.
• 25:59
  S6: And I think if you want a revival, invite God
• 26:02
  S6: into those places where you're. You're tempted to have your
• 26:06
  S6: idols and your tent.
• 26:07
  S3: Oh, you know, Susie, this was not the direction that
• 26:09
  S3: we planned, but this is where we're at. This is
• 26:12
  S3: where the Lord has led us. So let me ask you,
• 26:14
  S3: when we use words like idolatry or picking up an idol,
• 26:17
  S3: for many people listening, like, are we talking about picking
• 26:20
  S3: up little gold statues as simply as. You can. Give
• 26:23
  S3: the listener a framework for understanding what we mean when
• 26:26
  S3: we say picking up an idol.
• 26:28
  S6: And normally, you know, I don't reveal things I'm working
• 26:31
  S6: on next, but these words are in my heart because
• 26:33
  S6: it is. I'm working on this topic on a project
• 26:35
  S6: right now. And so I've been doing extensive study, but
• 26:39
  S6: it's not just bad things that you're going to to
• 26:42
  S6: numb your pain. It's good things that you want more
• 26:45
  S6: than God. And that's a tricky thing because you can
• 26:48
  S6: make an idol out of your family. You can make
• 26:50
  S6: an idol out of your achievement, you can make an
• 26:53
  S6: idol out of other people's opinions and how they receive you.
• 26:56
  S6: And the way that you know is how quickly you
• 26:59
  S6: lose your peace. You know, if those things get shaken
• 27:02
  S6: a little bit. And the thing is, God is not
• 27:04
  S6: a cosmic killjoy trying to take all the good things
• 27:06
  S6: away from you. But let's take family for instance. Family
• 27:09
  S6: is a gift from God. Family is not a source.
• 27:12
  S6: God is the source. Family is a gift, and family
• 27:16
  S6: is never meant to sustain a life giving source. Do
• 27:19
  S6: you know what I'm saying? So if you. If you
• 27:20
  S6: love him most. You will love them best because you're
• 27:24
  S6: drawing your life source from him and not from them.
• 27:27
  S6: If you need your family to make you look good,
• 27:30
  S6: if your kids validate your identity, that is idolatry and
• 27:34
  S6: that will create dysfunction in the family. The best way
• 27:38
  S6: to love them is to love God first and get
• 27:40
  S6: to your life source. Get your identity, get your perspective
• 27:43
  S6: from him and say, Lord. Parenting is not a formula
• 27:47
  S6: that promises an outcome. It is an offering that promises
• 27:51
  S6: a harvest. But it's going to look different than I think.
• 27:53
  S6: But I'm living with open handed, wide eyed wonder. And
• 27:56
  S6: if we can approach every area of our life that way,
• 27:58
  S6: where we notice when we're starting to make good things,
• 28:01
  S6: God things just to be quick to course correct and go, Lord,
• 28:04
  S6: I'm bending the knee here. You will be flooded with peace.
• 28:07
  S6: You will be flooded with revelation. People are so afraid
• 28:09
  S6: of this conversation, but I have found the goodness of
• 28:12
  S6: God in it more than I can even express.
• 28:15
  S2: Yeah, this dovetails too with your newest work here. So
• 28:17
  S2: here's where I want to go. I want to stay
• 28:19
  S2: down this path more than you can imagine what God
• 28:23
  S2: does when you trust him more. So when you were
• 28:26
  S2: just talking there about good things that get in God's way,
• 28:31
  S2: and we find it in Hebrews 12, I love this passage.
• 28:35
  S2: I first discovered this. I was a newborn follower and
• 28:38
  S2: I'm like, wow, this is good. It says, it paints
• 28:42
  S2: this picture that we're in this stadium we're running, and
• 28:45
  S2: we get this cloud of witnesses around us. And then
• 28:47
  S2: this is what the writer of Hebrews says. Let us
• 28:49
  S2: lay aside every weight and sin that clings so closely.
• 28:53
  S2: So I think the dominant theological perspective is, man, we
• 28:56
  S2: got to get sin out of our life. No, what
• 28:58
  S2: the writer of Hebrews is saying here, sometimes good stuff
• 29:00
  S2: is going to get in God's way.
• 29:02
  S6: Indeed. And we have our blind spots that we don't
• 29:05
  S6: know that we have. And I'm going to go first,
• 29:08
  S6: and I'll bring this confession to you. Months ago, when
• 29:10
  S6: I started pondering this topic and really bringing that before
• 29:13
  S6: the Lord, I was walking through intensely, intensely painful things.
• 29:18
  S6: And I said, Lord, show me my idols. I was
• 29:20
  S6: so scared because I thought, he's going to say, cancel
• 29:23
  S6: your Amazon account. You know, what do you want to
• 29:27
  S6: say to me here, Lord? And you know what? Consumption
• 29:30
  S6: was one of them. Consumption meaning for me. Now it
• 29:32
  S6: might be for you. It could be, you know, drinking,
• 29:35
  S6: it could be eating, it could be buying, it could
• 29:37
  S6: be scrolling, whatever consuming entertainment. But for me, and I'm
• 29:41
  S6: just being so honest because I want you to know
• 29:43
  S6: we're all in this boat and we all drift to
• 29:45
  S6: idols without realizing it. For me, it was novels and supplements.
• 29:49
  S6: I love novels, I've got friends who write fiction. I
• 29:52
  S6: love Christian novels, but I was using them as a
• 29:56
  S6: numbed out escape the supplements where God was taking too
• 30:00
  S6: long to heal me. And so I was doing my
• 30:02
  S6: own research to try to take matters into my own hands.
• 30:05
  S6: Now I want to just say, I think we all
• 30:06
  S6: know the difference, because I'm not trying to be a
• 30:08
  S6: legalist here. I think every person knows the difference between
• 30:11
  S6: freedoms that we have in Christ and numbed out indulgence.
• 30:15
  S6: So I don't have to feel what I'm facing right now.
• 30:17
  S2: Right.
• 30:17
  S6: Put it. Yeah. Those are different and it's different for everybody.
• 30:20
  S6: And what we tend to do is like, let's say
• 30:22
  S6: God's talking to me about novels. I just want you
• 30:25
  S6: to feel this pain so that you can see if
• 30:27
  S6: I am enough for you in this place. And so
• 30:29
  S6: I tell Alli, Alli, you shouldn't read novels. Well, that's
• 30:32
  S6: that's what we do. We make a law out of things.
• 30:34
  S6: But our walk is so individual to us.
• 30:37
  S2: So I think what could get lost here and needs
• 30:40
  S2: to be front and center is there's a big, holy,
• 30:44
  S2: audacious pot of great provision and gold out there. It
• 30:51
  S2: is more than we can imagine. And I think if
• 30:53
  S2: we lose sight of this, it could become, I mean,
• 30:58
  S2: searching for idols, getting rid of idols could become pretty empty. Yeah.
• 31:03
  S2: But when we keep that big, holy, audacious vision of
• 31:07
  S2: the more than you can imagine in front of us,
• 31:10
  S2: that's the fuel for the journey. And we don't need
• 31:13
  S2: to apologize for that, do we, Susie?
• 31:15
  S6: No. I'm so glad you said that. Because it isn't.
• 31:17
  S6: You don't even need to, like, go on a hunt.
• 31:19
  S6: You just ask the Lord to speak to you. But
• 31:21
  S6: you know, the title of that book comes from Ephesians
• 31:23
  S6: three 2021 and it says, and if you could see me,
• 31:26
  S6: I'd be stretching my arms out. But look at how
• 31:28
  S6: this verse reverberates. I mean, it ripples and gets bigger.
• 31:31
  S6: God is able to do exceedingly abundantly above and beyond
• 31:35
  S6: all you could ever dare to ask or imagine. But
• 31:38
  S6: the clincher is according according to his work within you,
• 31:41
  S6: he can do. He wants to. He will do if
• 31:44
  S6: you allow him to. So the question is always, how
• 31:48
  S6: much access will you give him to your story, which
• 31:50
  S6: makes us circle back. You're stuck. Maybe in your prayer
• 31:54
  S6: life you're stuck, you know, feeling like you're going through
• 31:56
  S6: the motions. Most often it is because you are not
• 31:59
  S6: giving God access to a portion of your story. You're
• 32:02
  S6: trying to control outcomes. There's no shame, there's no condemnation,
• 32:06
  S6: but there is a holy invitation. You want more of God? Unclench.
• 32:10
  S6: Loosen your white knuckled grip and offer that up to
• 32:12
  S6: the Lord to say, Lord, your ways are higher. Your
• 32:15
  S6: ways are deeper. Show me your glory in this area.
• 32:18
  S6: It's literally cease striving or, you know, let go and
• 32:21
  S6: know that He is God. When you be still and
• 32:24
  S6: you release this stuff to God, you will see him
• 32:27
  S6: in ways you never otherwise could. And I think we
• 32:30
  S6: so often approach our walk with God as fear. We
• 32:33
  S6: don't trust that he's good. And one of the purposes
• 32:35
  S6: of this book is to make a case for the
• 32:36
  S6: goodness of God. Because how do you trust someone you
• 32:39
  S6: don't believe is good? How do you trust someone you
• 32:42
  S6: don't believe has your best interest in mind? Every day,
• 32:45
  S6: build a case for the goodness of God and build
• 32:47
  S6: resilient trust when that devil comes knocking. You know what
• 32:51
  S6: to do with him, and I will trust him in
• 32:53
  S6: this space where I don't know what he's doing because
• 32:55
  S6: I've seen him come through for me before. So if
• 32:57
  S6: you want revival, dare to ask him where are there
• 33:00
  S6: places and spaces in my story? I'm not trusting you.
• 33:03
  S6: Where am I trying to control you invite him, you release,
• 33:07
  S6: and the wind of the Spirit of God will come through.
• 33:10
  S6: And you'll be so glad you trusted him. And one
• 33:12
  S6: last thing is, life gets better for everybody else, not
• 33:15
  S6: just you. When you trust God and life, people suffer
• 33:18
  S6: when you take matters into your own hands. You know
• 33:20
  S6: the full calling of God on your life is completely
• 33:23
  S6: diminished when you stay in control. So there's a lot
• 33:28
  S6: of people waiting for you to trust God because it
• 33:30
  S6: changes the story. And if you want a story to
• 33:33
  S6: tell tomorrow, you've got to trust him today.
• 33:35
  S3: Suzy Larsen with us this morning. If you want more,
• 33:38
  S3: just text imagine to 805 557898. The book called More
• 33:44
  S3: Than You Can Imagine what God does when you trust
• 33:46
  S3: him more text. Imagine 800 555, 78, 98.
• 33:52
  S1: Standing on the rock each and every day, you're listening
• 33:56
  S1: to Carl and crew.
• 33:59
  S2: I continue to hear stories that come out of nine
• 34:02
  S2: over 11 from 25 years ago. My bride was sharing
• 34:04
  S2: with me yesterday. I think she heard someone on Janet Parshall. Yeah,
• 34:08
  S2: I think that's what was happening. And it was a
• 34:11
  S2: man that was, I think he considered himself kind of
• 34:14
  S2: a closet follower of Christ, kind of hidden away. Uh,
• 34:18
  S2: and they were hunkered down, needing to escape. Couldn't find
• 34:22
  S2: a way out about 20 of them there. And he
• 34:26
  S2: poured out his heart of the gospel of Jesus Christ
• 34:29
  S2: to these 20 people that were pinned down in some
• 34:34
  S2: of the rubble of nine over 11.
• 34:36
  S3: Wow.
• 34:36
  S2: And many surrendered to Christ in that moment. And then
• 34:40
  S2: they saw a bright blinking light. And what it was,
• 34:43
  S2: was a ambulance that had been crushed, but the light
• 34:47
  S2: was still blinking. It was their only way out. Ali.
• 34:50
  S3: Wow. Wow.
• 34:53
  S2: Isn't that something?
• 34:54
  S3: I have not heard that story.
• 34:55
  S2: And there's and there's more and more stories that are
• 34:58
  S2: coming out. And this is this is one of the
• 35:01
  S2: amazing things about God is that what is horrific and
• 35:05
  S2: tragic and painful and etched in our minds, Remember this
• 35:11
  S2: God was and is in the middle of it all,
• 35:15
  S2: and he's faithful through it all. It's an amazing thing.
• 35:18
  S2: But we need to stop and remember, don't we? Ali.
• 35:20
  S2: We can't forget.
• 35:22
  S3: Yeah. I mean, it's hard to believe that it's been
• 35:24
  S3: 25 years since nine over 11 of 2001. You know,
• 35:29
  S3: there was a poem that was written by a woman
• 35:32
  S3: named Stacie Randall and voiced by Mike Kellogg. And this poem,
• 35:36
  S3: we have played this a number of years. And every
• 35:39
  S3: single time we play it, there's something about it that's
• 35:42
  S3: so grabs the heart of not just the believer, but
• 35:46
  S3: the person who's searching for answers, who is looking for meaning.
• 35:51
  S3: It's called meet me in the stairwell.
• 35:55
  S8: You say you will never forget where you were when
• 35:57
  S8: you heard the news on September 11th, 2001. Neither will I.
• 36:03
  S8: I was on the 110th floor in a smoke filled
• 36:05
  S8: room with a man who called his wife to say goodbye.
• 36:09
  S8: I held his hand steady as he dialed. I gave
• 36:13
  S8: him the peace to say, honey, I'm not going to
• 36:16
  S8: make it, but it's okay. I'm ready to go. I
• 36:21
  S8: was with his wife when he called as she fed
• 36:23
  S8: breakfast to their children. I held her up as she
• 36:26
  S8: tried to understand his words, and as she realized he
• 36:29
  S8: wasn't coming home that night, I was in the stairwell
• 36:33
  S8: of the 23rd floor when a woman cried out to
• 36:35
  S8: me for help. I've been knocking on the door of
• 36:38
  S8: your heart for 50 years, I said. Of course I
• 36:41
  S8: will show you the way home. Only believe on me now.
• 36:48
  S8: I was at the base of the building with the priest,
• 36:50
  S8: ministering to the injured and devastated souls. I took him
• 36:54
  S8: home to tend to his flock in heaven. He heard
• 36:57
  S8: my voice and answered. I was on all four of
• 37:01
  S8: those planes in every seat with every prayer. I was
• 37:05
  S8: with the crew as they were overtaken. I was in
• 37:07
  S8: the very hearts of the believers there, comforting and assuring
• 37:11
  S8: them that their faith has saved them. I was in Louisiana, Montana, London.
• 37:18
  S8: I was standing next to you when you heard the
• 37:20
  S8: terrible news. Did you sense me? I want you to
• 37:24
  S8: know that I saw every face. I knew every name,
• 37:28
  S8: though not all know me. Some met me for the
• 37:31
  S8: first time on the 86th floor. Some sought me with
• 37:34
  S8: their last breath. Some couldn't hear me calling to them.
• 37:37
  S8: Through the smoke and flames. Come to me this way.
• 37:40
  S8: Take my hand. Some chose for the final time to
• 37:44
  S8: ignore me. But I was there. I did not place
• 37:50
  S8: you in the tower that day. You may not know why,
• 37:53
  S8: but I do. However, if you were there in that
• 37:57
  S8: explosive moment in time, would you have reached for me?
• 38:01
  S8: September 11th, 2001 was not the end of the journey
• 38:05
  S8: for you. But someday your journey will end and I
• 38:10
  S8: will be there for you as well. Seek me now
• 38:13
  S8: while I may be found. Then at any moment you
• 38:16
  S8: know you are ready to go. I will be in
• 38:19
  S8: the stairwell of your final moments. You don't know who
• 38:22
  S8: I am or I think you do.
• 38:26
  S9: Be still and know that he is God. Be still
• 38:35
  S9: and know that he is holy. Be still. O restless
• 38:44
  S9: soul of mine. Bowed before the Prince of Peace. Let
• 38:51
  S9: the noise and clamor see. Be still.
• 39:06
  S8: You still seek me now, while I may be found
• 39:11
  S8: then at any moment. You know you are ready to go.
• 39:15
  S8: I will be in the stairwell of your final moments.
• 39:19
  S8: You don't know who I am or I think you do.
• 39:23
  S2: Steven Curtis Chapman. Be still and know. It's Garland crew.
• 39:27
  S2: Looking back 25 years. Nine over 11. That poem that
• 39:30
  S2: Mike Kellogg read. Wow. Some people want it. And we
• 39:34
  S2: got it for him, don't we?
• 39:35
  S3: Yeah. This is actually up on our Facebook and our
• 39:38
  S3: Instagram page. If you are not yet following us, just
• 39:40
  S3: text social to (800) 555-7898. Just text that one word social
• 39:47
  S3: to (800) 555-7898. You'll get both links.
• 39:52
  S2: Yeah. I think the big question mark when you come
• 39:55
  S2: out of a tragedy like that is what in the
• 39:58
  S2: world in the immediate aftermath, it's like, what in the world?
• 40:01
  S2: And you go through stages of grief. but there is
• 40:06
  S2: an amazing reality that good can grow out of tragedy.
• 40:11
  S2: We've seen that over and over again. We hear stories
• 40:14
  S2: of that, and that's not in any way winking or
• 40:17
  S2: diminishing the pain and the tragedy and the evil. And
• 40:21
  S2: that's just reality. And it's just the world that we
• 40:24
  S2: live in. But it's a beautiful thing for the redeemed
• 40:29
  S2: of God to be able to look back and be
• 40:31
  S2: able to look around and go, look at this. Something
• 40:33
  S2: good is growing here. I'm reminded of, uh, you know, there's,
• 40:39
  S2: there's this thing called fireweed in Alaska, and fireweed is beautiful, but,
• 40:47
  S2: you know, it doesn't flourish until the fire has gone through.
• 40:52
  S2: It's called fireweed because it's the first flowering plant that
• 40:56
  S2: grows up after a fire scorches a forest.
• 40:59
  S3: Really?
• 41:00
  S2: Yeah.
• 41:01
  S3: And that's the name of it. Fireweed.
• 41:02
  S2: Fireweed.
• 41:03
  S3: Wow.
• 41:03
  S4: Interesting.
• 41:04
  S2: Yeah. Fireweed and the blooms are a beautiful purple that
• 41:10
  S2: are just absolutely gorgeous. And it's so prolific that, you know,
• 41:17
  S2: you can grab handfuls of this anywhere across Alaska and
• 41:21
  S2: the Yukon Territory. But there, there's just a little bit
• 41:26
  S2: of evidence that good can grow out of some incredible pain.
• 41:31
  S2: And that's hopeful, isn't it?
• 41:32
  S3: It really is. And coming up, you're going to hear
• 41:35
  S3: from someone who has gone through incredible pain and she's
• 41:39
  S3: written a book, something good will grow because God has
• 41:42
  S3: shown her through her own journey that that can happen,
• 41:45
  S3: that yes, there's the pain, there's the tragedy. But what
• 41:48
  S3: she's learned and the way she's seen God move. You'll
• 41:51
  S3: hear from her coming up.
• 41:53
  S1: Tune in whenever you like. Check out the Karl and
• 41:56
  S1: Crew podcast wherever you like to stream.
• 41:59
  S2: Well, this morning we've already tackled the reality that David
• 42:02
  S2: himself said, a little self-talk can go a long way.
• 42:05
  S2: Why so downcast? Oh my soul, put your hope in God.
• 42:09
  S2: And that can sound like a refrigerator magnet. And then
• 42:12
  S2: when you get crushed with something overwhelming, that's when the
• 42:16
  S2: challenge occurs. We're talking, putting our hope in God even
• 42:20
  S2: through the toughest times in life.
• 42:23
  S3: Our guest this morning, her name is Nicole Jacobs Meyer.
• 42:25
  S3: She's a sought after speaker author. The book we're featuring today,
• 42:29
  S3: Something Good will grow. Finding God's heart in the soil
• 42:32
  S3: of suffering. Nicole, just give us a little bit of
• 42:35
  S3: your own story that you bring into this book. This
• 42:38
  S3: doesn't come from a place of theory or academics. This
• 42:42
  S3: comes from hard learned, hard fought experience.
• 42:46
  S10: Yeah. You know, I think we all have a list
• 42:49
  S10: of things that we can talk about that we've walked
• 42:51
  S10: through the hardships, the pain, the things that brought us
• 42:54
  S10: closer to the Lord in the long run. And I
• 42:57
  S10: am no stranger to pain. I have walked through sexual
• 43:00
  S10: assault and I have walked through cancer. We lost a
• 43:02
  S10: baby through miscarriage. I've had clinical depression and those are
• 43:06
  S10: just the big things, right? We all have the other
• 43:09
  S10: things the insecurities, the rejection, the loneliness. And those are
• 43:13
  S10: what really have brought me to my knees before the
• 43:16
  S10: Lord and before the throne, and trying to understand his
• 43:20
  S10: heart for me in the middle of all of that hardship.
• 43:23
  S2: Nicole, it can be true that Christ's followers can place
• 43:27
  S2: their hope in someone or something other than God, and
• 43:31
  S2: pain and affliction and overwhelming emotions can be an invitation
• 43:37
  S2: from a loving God saying, come on kids, right over here.
• 43:40
  S2: Bring your hope right back here. That's true, is it not?
• 43:44
  S10: It is. And I think that we forget how we think.
• 43:49
  S10: He's disconnected. We think he's not personal. And he is.
• 43:53
  S10: And time and time again, through all the hardships I've
• 43:56
  S10: seen that he's walking close.
• 43:58
  S3: What are some examples? Maybe even just one of maybe
• 44:01
  S3: a story of a time when you became aware of
• 44:04
  S3: just how personal God was, where you thought, man, he
• 44:07
  S3: doesn't see me. And he let you know in some
• 44:09
  S3: tangible way for you. I, I see you.
• 44:12
  S10: When I was diagnosed with cancer, that was probably one
• 44:16
  S10: of the darkest seasons that I've walked through. And I
• 44:19
  S10: had three little boys at that time under the age
• 44:22
  S10: of four. And so it was really understanding. I am
• 44:26
  S10: a weak and fragile mom right now, and I need
• 44:30
  S10: a faithful father in my life to protect and to
• 44:34
  S10: guard and to help and provide and do everything that
• 44:38
  S10: I cannot do. And he just constantly showed up in
• 44:43
  S10: every possible way, every dollar that we needed, every perfect
• 44:48
  S10: surgeon and nurse and meal made from people that we
• 44:52
  S10: had no idea who they were, the help that we
• 44:55
  S10: received for our children, and my husband was in his
• 44:59
  S10: first year, his intern year of pediatric residency. So he
• 45:03
  S10: was off doing his own thing and he couldn't be there.
• 45:07
  S10: So we had to rely on the Lord for absolutely
• 45:11
  S10: every last detail. And he showed up in every way.
• 45:15
  S2: When you're at that moment, really at that threshold where
• 45:19
  S2: you can step back and be on a mad scramble,
• 45:21
  S2: looking to find answers in what is called in the scriptures,
• 45:26
  S2: the flesh. How do we not opt for all the
• 45:31
  S2: different hope filled kind of alternatives other than God? How
• 45:36
  S2: did God draw you closer to himself without looking for
• 45:40
  S2: substitute sources of hope?
• 45:43
  S10: Well, I'm not going to pretend that I'm perfect and
• 45:45
  S10: say that I did everything right, and I just went
• 45:47
  S10: to the word and read the word, and I did
• 45:50
  S10: all the right Christian things. I was in a dark hole.
• 45:53
  S10: I absolutely hated my circumstances. I knew that God was good.
• 45:58
  S10: I knew that he was faithful. But it needed to
• 46:01
  S10: be more than just knowing that head to heart connection
• 46:05
  S10: had to happen, and I needed to see God in
• 46:07
  S10: tangible ways like that. And so I do believe what
• 46:11
  S10: I needed in that time were not just Bible verses,
• 46:16
  S10: but I need people to show up. I needed my
• 46:18
  S10: kids to be provided for. I needed my husband to
• 46:21
  S10: know that he's not forgotten in this. And I needed
• 46:25
  S10: physical strength. And so it was little by little, and honestly,
• 46:30
  S10: just going to the word in a lot of those
• 46:33
  S10: difficult times and remembering that God is so personal that
• 46:38
  S10: by his wounds we are healed. He maybe didn't walk
• 46:41
  S10: through cancer, but he knows that torment. He knows the pain,
• 46:46
  S10: he knows exhaustion and fatigue, and he understands. And so
• 46:51
  S10: while we maybe don't have exactly the same similarities or
• 46:57
  S10: circumstances that he went through. We can know that his
• 47:01
  S10: death brought our life, and he traded us his death
• 47:04
  S10: for our victory and our abundant living. And those are
• 47:07
  S10: the things that I was able to cling to, remembering
• 47:09
  S10: that he was faithful.
• 47:10
  S3: The title of the book, Something Good Will grow. You
• 47:13
  S3: unpack a pretty powerful analogy about night blooming flowers. Explain
• 47:18
  S3: that to our listeners.
• 47:20
  S10: Yeah, that was coming off of cancer and miscarriage and
• 47:24
  S10: that depression and just that really hard season. And the
• 47:28
  S10: Lord just kind of prompted me to look up flowers
• 47:31
  S10: that bloom at night. And at the time, I wasn't
• 47:34
  S10: really a gardener. And I looked it up and what
• 47:37
  S10: I found was absolutely beautiful because there are flowers that
• 47:41
  S10: bloom at night, in the dark, in the cold soil
• 47:44
  S10: and the cold temperatures where no one's watching, no one's
• 47:48
  S10: seeing the beautiful blooms, and it's sunny out and you
• 47:52
  S10: know it's all rainbows and butterflies and happy times, but
• 47:55
  S10: it's beneath the surface. And God spoke to me in that,
• 47:58
  S10: showing me that a lot of our work for the Lord,
• 48:02
  S10: our healing, our growth is beneath the surface. When it
• 48:06
  S10: is cold, it is dark. We feel like there's no
• 48:09
  S10: water getting to us. There's no light getting to us.
• 48:12
  S10: But in that hidden faithfulness, in those moments with the Lord,
• 48:16
  S10: he revealed so much of his character in that in
• 48:19
  S10: that season for me.
• 48:20
  S2: I'm glad you mentioned that word character, because two days
• 48:23
  S2: ago we were in Romans chapter five, and it talks
• 48:26
  S2: about endure suffering because through this endurance character is going
• 48:30
  S2: to grow in you. And we were just resolved that
• 48:33
  S2: the pinnacle of that character is compassion, mercy, whatever word
• 48:40
  S2: you want to use. God has probably done a work
• 48:45
  S2: in you coming out of this where you're hope that
• 48:48
  S2: you've found in God has given you great compassion for others.
• 48:52
  S2: That's our experience, is that that's the benefit to us.
• 48:56
  S2: How has that worked in you, Nicole?
• 48:58
  S10: I do see the things that have been forged in
• 49:02
  S10: the fire, and it has been the Romans five three
• 49:05
  S10: through five, the character, the endurance and the hope, and
• 49:09
  S10: really just a trust in the Lord that he has this.
• 49:13
  S10: He has me and he has my family and he's overall,
• 49:18
  S10: he's sovereign, he's good, he's almighty. And to not doubt
• 49:22
  S10: that anymore. And so I hope that I show this
• 49:25
  S10: strength to those around me and to my children that
• 49:28
  S10: hopefully see it firsthand.
• 49:30
  S3: Nicole Jacobs Meyer. The book is called Something Good Will
• 49:33
  S3: Grow Finding God's Heart in the Soil of Suffering. We
• 49:37
  S3: want to send this to you, the link, so that
• 49:39
  S3: you can learn more about the book. More about Nicole.
• 49:41
  S3: Just text grow to 805 557898. Text just that one
• 49:46
  S3: word grow to 805 557898.