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Transcript

How slow is your GO! · Fostering Faith

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  Welcome back to fostering faith. My name is Tracie
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  and I'm going to be your host today. And today
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  we're going to be talking about a topic that
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  has just kind of been in scripture for me for
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  the last couple of weeks. And so I just thought
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  I would just take it to the podcast. And so if
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  you are new here, my name is Tracy. I am so excited
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  that you have tuned in today and here on fostering
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  faith today, we're going to be learning and leaning
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  into a word that has just, like I said, been
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  in through scripture. We talked about in class
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  and it's just Kind of been in scripture that
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  I've been reading and it's the word go. And so
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  let me ask you something. When God calls you
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  to go, do you actually go? Do you get up right
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  away? No questions asked, no strings attached.
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  Or do you sit back, hesitate, calculate all the
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  risks and wait until you feel ready? Here's the
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  thing. Scripture is full of people who were called
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  to go and the way that they responded says something
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  about the depth. of their faith. Some burned
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  their plows, some dropped their nets, and some
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  left their family, land, and livelihood. Others
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  hesitated, looked back, or missed out. And today
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  we're going to be wrestling with that very tension.
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  When God says go, do you go? Do you burn the
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  wagon like Elisha? Or do you stay tied to it,
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  just in case? Do you drop your nets like Peter
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  and Andrew? Or do you keep patching them while
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  Jesus is already walking down the shore? This
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  isn't just a cute little Bible like study or
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  like whatever. This is about life and death,
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  about your obedience, about your calling, and
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  how God's kingdom advances through us. And so
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  let's start with Elisha and the story in King's
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  First Kings, 1919. 21 so say that again. So first
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  Kings 19 verse 19 through 21 Elijah the prophet
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  finds Elisha Plowing the 12 yoke of oxen and
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  that's just not a couple of animals. That's a
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  lot of equipment that means Elisha had wealth
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  land Savability a 401k plan a house that he probably
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  Has paid off he had he had everything And Elijah
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  comes by, throws a cloak over him, and says,
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  this is your signal. You're chosen. God is calling
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  you. Follow me. So what does Elijah do? He slaughters
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  his oxen. He burns his plow. He throws a feast
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  for his people. And then he set out to follow
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  Elijah. Do you hear that? He literally destroys
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  the tools of his own life. I can't fall back
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  on that. No, if this profit gig doesn't work
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  out, I'll come back to the farm again. No, he
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  burns the plow. He makes it impossible to turn
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  back. And here's the application. So sometimes
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  obedience looks like closing doors so tight that
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  you can't return and go back, even if you want
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  to. That's faith. That's trust. That's saying
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  God. If you're calling me forward, then forward
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  is the only way. And so let's fast forward to
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  Matthew 4, 18 through 22. And so Jesus was walking
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  by the Sea of Galilee. He sees Simon Peter and
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  Andrew casting their nets. And he says, come
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  follow me and I will make you fishers of men.
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  The text says immediately they left their nets
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  and followed him. Not after they sold the fish.
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  not once they finished patching up their nets
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  immediately. And then he calls James and John
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  and they're in their boat with their father mending
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  their nets. And the text says immediately they
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  left the boat and their father and followed him.
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  And so let's pause and say they left their father.
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  That's family. That's identity. That's legacy.
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  And still They stepped out. We love to romanticize
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  these moments and think about the cost, no job
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  security, no guarantees, no roadmap, just Jesus
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  saying, follow me, and them saying, yes. And
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  so as we're going all the way and around through
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  scriptures, let's go back to Genesis 12, one
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  through four. And if you rewind, you will see
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  Abraham. And God tells him go from your country
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  your people and your father's household to the
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  land. I will show you Notice he doesn't even
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  tell the name of the land just I'll show you
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  That's like me telling you pack your bags. We're
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  moving and I'll tell you where we're going once
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  we get on the road Who is signing up for that?
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  Yes. There are some people out there that are
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  willing to do and go Whatever, but the majority
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  of us are like, um No, like I'm gonna need like
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  a month I need this and I need this and I need
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  this I gotta do this and I gotta call them and
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  I gotta do this and I gotta do this But Abraham
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  went Scripture says so Abraham went as the Lord
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  had told him. He didn't get a GPS coordinates
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  He didn't get a moving checklist. He just he
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  just went and faith isn't about having a full
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  itinerary It's trusting the God who's writing
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  the story. And so let's back up and ask, why
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  does God use the word go so often? Because faith
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  is not passive. Faith is not theory. Faith is
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  not something that you keep in a notebook. Faith
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  is motion. Faith is embodied. Faith takes you
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  somewhere. God tells Noah, go build the ark.
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  God tells Moses go to Pharaoh God tells Joshua
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  go across the Jordan God tells Jonah go to Nineveh
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  and Jonah goes the opposite way and we know how
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  that ended God tells his disciples go and make
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  disciples of the nations Every major move God
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  starts with go So why don't we go? Well, let's
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  be real. If you're the unknown, what if I fail?
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  What if I look stupid? What if I lose everything?
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  And there's comfort in the familiar, like my
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  job. I like my city. I like my routine. I like
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  being comfortable. And we all love comparison.
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  I'm not just... I'm not... I'm not good enough.
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  I'm not as gifted as she is. I'm not as wise
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  as him. God must have been calling the wrong
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  person. And control is my favorite. Lord, give
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  me the details first. Show me the plan. Show
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  me the blueprint. Give me plan A, B, C, D, and
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  F. And if I don't like it, then let's rewrite
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  it and let's do it this way. Or maybe we could
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  do it this way. and then I'll obey. But delayed
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  obedience is still disobedience. The longer you
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  wait, the heavier the plow feels, the harder
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  it is to drop those nets. And so let's not sanitize
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  these stories. So for Elisha, burning his plow
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  meant burning his wealth, his security, his inheritance.
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  For the disciples, leaving their nets meant poverty,
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  uncertainty. and even persecution. For Abraham,
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  leaving his home meant stepping into a foreign
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  land, strange cultures, and constant risk. In
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  their world, family and land weren't just personal
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  things. They were survival. To walk away from
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  them was radical and almost scandalous. And so
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  that's what makes obedience even more powerful.
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  And so what does go look like today? So maybe
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  God is calling you to leave that toxic relationship
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  Maybe God is nudging you to start that ministry
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  or the podcast Maybe it's time to walk into a
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  new career path that better aligns with your
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  gifts Maybe he's simply saying walk across the
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  street to introduce yourself to the neighbor
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  to invite them to church Go doesn't mean geography
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  all the time. Sometimes go just means stepping
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  out of your silence. Sometimes it means stepping
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  into forgiveness. Sometimes it means lying down
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  that pride that you've been carrying. And so
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  parents, your kids are watching you. When God
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  tells you to go, they're watching to see if you
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  obey. Don't just teach them to read Bible stories.
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  Live them. Let them see what burning the plow
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  looks like in real life. And youth, don't wait
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  till you get older. We know that and we've preached
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  this all the time, you know, that you guys set
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  the temperature for the room. God called Samuel
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  when he was just a boy. God used David as a teenager
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  to defeat the Goliath. And the disciples were
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  merely young men, not seasoned elders. Our yes.
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  Matters your yes matters when you're 12 your
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  13 your 14 your 15 60s 70s 80s 90s So maybe your
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  go is joining the Bible Club maybe it's Befriending
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  a kid who sits alone Maybe it's posting truth
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  instead of gossip It's a right now. I want you
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  to stop what you're doing and ask What's my plow?
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  What's my net What's my land of comfort? And
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  just sit with it and ask God What am I supposed
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  to give up? What are you asking me to what do
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  I have in my hand? It's so tight that I don't
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  want to give up What am I willing to drop to
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  follow Jesus What is my eyes on instead of him?
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  And so just say take a deep breath And say it
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  out loud if you have to. Write it down. Identify
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  it. Because until you name it, you're dragging
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  it behind you. And God is calling you forward.
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  Don't let yesterday's security block tomorrow's
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  obedience. And so think about missionaries who
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  pack up everything and move overseas. Think about
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  the families who foster or adopt Just because
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  God said go love those kids. Think about the
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  believers who start that business to honor God
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  even when it costs more. Obedience isn't about
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  convenience. It's about faith. And so as we wrap
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  up this week, picture yourself standing on the
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  shore. That's in hand. And God is calling. What
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  do you do? Do you drop it? Do you check your
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  schedule first? Do you call your best friend?
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  Do you call your mom? Do you call your dad? Or
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  do you just go? Do you mend your nets? Do you
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  drop them? Do you keep your oxen? Or do you burn
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  the plow? Or do you play it safe? Do you call
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  your banker? Do you call your investor? Do you
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  call your best friends? Do you check with your
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  teacher? Do you check if it's on TikTok? Do you
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  make sure that's not on Instagram? Or do you
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  go where God is calling you? And so we would
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  love to pray for you this week. Dear Heavenly
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  Father, thank you so much for these listeners.
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  Thank you so much that you are pointing out what
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  our plows are in our life. Thank you for the
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  boldness. Thank you for allowing us to walk on
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  our faith and so we can burn the plows and drop
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  the nets. Thank you that you are a father and
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  that we hear your voice. Give us encouragement
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  to say yes without hesitation and that we can
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  walk away without fear knowing that you are in
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  control. Teach us how to go even when we don't
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  know where it is. Thank you for all that you
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  do. In Jesus' name I pray. Amen. And so friends,
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  don't wait. Don't hesitate. And when God calls
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  go, He's already gone before you. And thanks
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  for joining me today on Fostering Faith Podcast.
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  If this message spoke to you, share it with a
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  friend. Share it with somebody that needs encouragement.
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  Until next week, keep fostering your faith and
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  keep going when God calls you to go. We love
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  you guys. Have a great week.