Latest / Couples’ Journey Podcast Channel / [CTT-1] Coffee, Tea & Testimonies: Why Couple's Journey? (Part 1)

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[CTT-1] Coffee, Tea & Testimonies: Why Couple's Journey? (Part 1) · Couples’ Journey Podcast Channel

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  Welcome to the Couples Journey podcast channel, where marriage is restored,
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  love is relearned, and we rejoice in our living hope, Jesus Christ.
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  You're about to listen to Coffee, Tea, and Testimonies with Ray and Annie.
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  Weekly couple conversations featuring real-life stories, gospel insight,
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  and practical applications for married life anchored in Christ.
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  Many people will ask how did you see god in your
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  journey wow that's a
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  big question right now seeing god in that journey requires brokenness we were
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  more intentional about the brokenness that we felt personally brokenness will
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  exist not just in organizations how much more in this It's a very simple relationship, marriage.
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  There's brokenness in there. There's brokenness in us with our relationship with God.
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  There's brokenness in the marriage. There's brokenness in church.
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  There's brokenness in the business.
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  There's brokenness even in, of course, in the family. And to any part of those
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  entities that God has led, what was assigned to every one.
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  The world will be against it, Satan will be against it, and then the natural
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  self-absorption that we have will be also challenged on those keeping up the unity.
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  But what makes a difference on that one is how we will respond on the brokenness.
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  Welcome everyone for our pilot episode of
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  the poverty and testimony my name is ray and
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  my wife and me so how did
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  we came up with this book we talk about that more because i know many listeners
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  would like to know how to start one or maybe how we can encourage them a lot
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  of people wonders on how we can see God in our relationship.
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  I think before we dive into the details of our book and how the couples journey
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  term really came about on our journey,
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  maybe we can give them a little, maybe we can share how has been our relationship
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  from the season we're in.
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  We're not really intentional in our faith and then became intentional in our faith journey.
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  So one little overview of how has that been a journey for us,
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  like the marriage relationship that we have?
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  Well, like most people, for me, I had so many questions.
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  And some people will tell me, you know, you should read the Bible starting in John.
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  But I had, it wasn't in my, I should say, I want to learn from the beginning.
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  So I started in the book of Genesis. Right.
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  I totally agree that during the early period of you diving into the Word of
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  God, there were certain things of realization in small details.
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  So those are the things that I have to admit I'm guilty of one of those people that came to you.
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  I know that it was encouraging you to read the Bible and start in the book of
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  John or in the other New Testament.
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  But your questions, you have like 10 questions and it's quite,
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  and we share it on the book. I think it was in the chapter first,
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  chapter one, that you have five questions and you.
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  Yes, we're not trying to discourage people where they start or where to start reading.
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  That was just my preference that started from the beginning.
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  I think the reason for that is that I want to know God.
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  And you're trying to prove something. I'm trying to prove something to myself.
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  That was me.
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  That was just me. So I think in how we approach the Word of God and how we're
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  going to be typing into the Scripture,
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  is also how God or the Holy Spirit speaks or moves in our hearts.
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  Well, for me, although I've been
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  exposed to Christianity for quite a long while, since I was in my age,
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  nine years old, I mean, that was the very first age that I had this really awareness
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  of the heaven and hell, which led me to really surrender my life and accept
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  Jesus as my personal Lord and Savior.
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  But for that long journey of being Christian,
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  I realized that what I didn't never really understood it properly,
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  the way I should be understanding it, for this final episode that we're having,
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  we're going to give them, I think we're planning to share about a little bit
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  of our testimony, but our brokenness. brokenness.
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  Our main objective is to share about how we come up with the book and how we
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  came up with the term couple's journey and how we came up with a story learning
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  choice and why there is a CJ square.
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  It's supposed, it's actually CJ square. Couple's journey with Christ is just two Cs and two Js.
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  You're the one who added the square.
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  This way at the at first i was like copus johnny which is right cjjc and he was like move this,
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  yes just in a way it's just like that let's talk
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  about first when did you start
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  the book when you start journaling the impression
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  of having the book yes it was 2019 2019
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  we were that was the year that
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  we were really made a commitment to anchor and lives and marriage to God to
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  you know these new terms like Christlikeness discipleship and then I was praying
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  to the Lord and I mentioned to you that oh the Lord is impressing to me about writing a book,
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  And I think I said, oh, we're not right. We're new to the faith.
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  So I believe what you did is that you just journaled everything.
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  You know how God's been speaking to you, moving in our family.
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  And basically, you just keep track of everything that you have seen or done
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  or what has God done to us and the family.
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  Right back then and then, we're not really having the healthy spiritual habits as we have right now.
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  There's still some times that we fail to have a biblical conversations,
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  although we understand the importance of personal devotion with God,
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  but we never really had a consistent habit of having conversation on how God speaks to us.
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  So when God impressed me about the book, at first, of course,
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  when God need us to do something, normally, our reaction was like,
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  I'm not capable of doing this.
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  I'm not equipped to do this. I don't even have technical background to write a book.
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  Writing, more reading, was really not in my system.
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  Not in your forte. Not in my forte. But the thing is that my desire was just
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  to my desire is to obey God.
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  And although I don't have a clear picture about the book, what to write,
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  what the topic and how we're going to do it and what kind of resources do we need.
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  The only thing I know that back then is just to document what we're doing.
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  But many people think that journaling is not biblical.
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  And actually, if you read the story of Ezekiel, Jeremiah, God has very clear
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  instructions that whatever He said, you need to write it down.
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  Like, for example, in Jeremiah 31, it says,
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  Thus says the Lord God of Israel, write all the words
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  which I have spoken to you in a book back
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  in those days in order for them to
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  keep track of what they're saying or what God
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  is telling them what to do they wrote it
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  down yeah and what God's message to tell
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  the people yeah because initially
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  I wasn't aware about that it's biblical I
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  was just but it was really helpful for me through the
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  joy learning process I was able to express all my
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  emotions safely but it was just solidified about that it's part of the spiritual
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  habit when I read the book of Habits of Grace by David Matthews when you say
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  that writing a journal I know somebody spoke to me before tried to encourage me to do journaling.
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  Until now even my wife she kept telling me that I need to journal but.
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  No you found the secretary yeah i found the
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  secretary no no you'll be like can
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  you record this can you type this out can you include this
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  or take take note of that i think
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  but the good thing about the journaling is that like what you're saying about
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  it's accountability to yourself on how you that really spoke to you whatever
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  shortcomings that you have you're letting me know that you know i'm the one
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  who's helping you out in that area but the thing is that what they observe serve
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  with you, even though you're not journaling,
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  but this fashion is continuous.
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  If God really offers you or talk to you something in that particular morning,
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  it's a non-stop conversation, even though you're working outside.
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  What I do is that I call my wife on my break time and I would ask her,
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  Hey, what's going on with this one?
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  How is this spoke to you?
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  And if I have something to add, I would be like, okay, so this is what God's telling me.
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  I would be proactive.
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  And that is how our day goes, even on the weekend with kids.
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  Our conversation doesn't stop. Even in the morning, in the lunchtime,
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  and dinner, when we're sitting on the table.
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  Well, morning, because the kids are in school early, so they don't usually join
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  us, but for lunch, on the weekdays, they don't, but for dinner,
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  that's when we involve the whole family. Why am I saying this?
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  It's important for the family to be included, be united, and the things that
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  you guys are talking about, making sure that they understand.
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  They're part of the learning journey.
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  Yes. And I have to say this, that it's not an easy habit to adapt with.
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  There were so many challenges that we encountered, and we've been tested about it.
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  Every day up to now we're being tested about it of keeping up that habit of,
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  having to make a conversation inside the household so it's not something that
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  you can be done easily why?
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  Because Satan doesn't like it so temptation will always be there and there is
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  a broken world and there's also our weaknesses to you know being lazy or whatsoever.
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  But the important thing is that you need to make a commitment
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  know about it and discuss it and stay
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  focused where they can help out each other to be
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  encouraged to continue doing that but
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  it's a process it's a process of adapting to the particular
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  habit and don't give up if it's not being
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  consistent in your family right now you're just having like for example once
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  a month or maybe christmas easter only it's okay it's okay the timing yeah that
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  it's like that so we see the importance of recording that message,
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  the journaling and as well as how someone gave them shared about the idea of.
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  That the conversation continues. Because the learning process is to continue,
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  so the lifetime process.
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  Now, during the season that got impressed with me, the book writing in 2019,
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  that time I wasn't really fully aware of what we're going to be writing on the book.
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  Yes. The only thing that I had on that plan is, again, just to record and document
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  what we're going through, the journey that we are having.
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  The good thing about that That season in our life is that we get to experience things.
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  And when we experience things, we're journaling. And then you're journaling.
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  But for the remainder of the book that we wrote, it took us,
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  you said 2019, but we didn't release the book until 2024. Or in 24.
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  Now, during that time frame, we did that. Many people asked,
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  how did you see God in your journey?
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  Wow, that's a big question, right? How did you see God in your journey?
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  Now, seeing God in that journey requires brokenness.
• 13:21
  We were more intentional about the brokenness that we felt personally here's
• 13:28
  the thing though brokenness will exist not just in organizations how much more
• 13:34
  in this very simple relationship marriage there's your brokenness in there.
• 13:39
  There's brokenness in us with our relationship with God.
• 13:43
  There's brokenness in the marriage. There's brokenness in church.
• 13:48
  There's brokenness in the business.
• 13:51
  There's brokenness even, of course, in the family.
• 13:54
  And to any part of those entities that God has planned or designed to have unity.
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  The world will be against it.
• 14:04
  Satan will be against it. And then the natural self-sinful that we have will
• 14:10
  be also challenged on those keeping up the unity.
• 14:13
  But what makes a difference on that one is how we will respond on the brokenness.
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  I just want to add that without the brokenness, you will not see God's hand at work.
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  Because only in brokenness, it will humble you.
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  It will create good self-awareness. Self-awareness and opportunities to see
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  God's hands working in your life,
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  the life of other people, and also the miracle that people sometimes don't believe
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  in miracle anymore, you know?
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  But in the brokenness, that's when you're going to see it.
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  Yeah, but the thing is that it's not a natural thing for us humans to respond in that manner.
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  Because of the unsinful nature, when brokenness takes place,
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  we tend to dwell on the things that we're aware of and even on the emotions that we're aware of.
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  Anger, bitterness, frustration, stress, hopelessness, depression.
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  Those are the things that we're aware of. Why? Because we're selfish.
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  Naturally, by nature, we are selfish.
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  We are rightful. so we tend to look for the things to protect ourselves,
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  we're not going to be thinking about selflessness during the brokenness period
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  the natural state of a human being is to protect herself,
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  to protect himself from this brokenness and to survive but thinking about a
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  human being during the brokenness or during challenging time is to survive even
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  in its life we tend to think about being a survivor instead of living that's
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  when you will experience,
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  like I said in the book about my pain that God healed it and I asked for it back and I mean where.
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  Will you see that you're in pain and all of a sudden it will be gone one of
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  the reasons why we're making a voice in a sense of,
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  We're praying that testimony that we're having, that we're sharing,
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  people will have an idea on awareness
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  of, oh, that's still happening right now, or it's really going on.
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  At this point of time in this generation, we are gifted, actually.
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  We are gifted with good teachers, good pastors, good theologians.
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  We have good records of good theologians by far in the history,
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  and we have good Bible teachers. We have good scholars.
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  But we are needing more storytellers we
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  are needing more witnesses to have
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  it so during that time again go back to
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  the book 2019 the initial
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  god's impression to us we didn't know we don't
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  have any idea we were kind of
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  more is that that we're discouraged because we're not we don't
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  have experience about it or we're not really into it
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  but we obeyed by simply i we obeyed
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  by simply taking down notes and making sure that we're intentional about
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  our journey and finding seeking christ in every
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  single class that we're dealing with and during the time come fast forward fast
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  forward in 2022 i started making a like i created a folder in my in my file
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  system that some book ideas already and then come up 2023 that's where we started to write,
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  To consider it, to incorporate it in our schedule. The first outline that we
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  produced was somehow around September of 2023.
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  At that time, we only have five chapters of the book.
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  Again, we were doing it not really sensitive to the Holy Spirit or God,
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  his guidance of what the book really is.
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  So it was just solidified when we were having a conversation about our devotion.
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  And during that time, we were dealing with Robert's chapter 4,
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  verse 20 to 20. So let me read it to you.
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  My son, give attention to my words.
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  Incline your ear to my saying. Do not let them depart from your sight.
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  Keep them in the midst of your heart. For they are life to those who find them.
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  And health to all their body. Watch over your heart with all diligence.
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  Or from it flows the spring of life, put away from your deceitful mouth and
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  put devious speech far from you.
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  Let your eyes look directly ahead and let your gaze be fixed straight in front of you.
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  Watch the path of your feet and all your ways will be established.
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  Do not turn to the right nor to the left.
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  Turn your foot from evil.
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  That is a very beautiful Proverbs and it spoke a lot to us.
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  So how did it spoke to us about the journey?
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  Verse 30 to the 7 it comes with different commands different parts of the body.
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  The verse 30 is about the ears. What are you listening and to,
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  you know, God wants us to incline our ears to what His words is.
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  And then verse 31 is to keep them in the midst of our heart.
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  So we need to get to really our devotion, our attention to the Word of God,
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  not just about have knowledge about it, but to really embracing it.
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  And then verse 33 was watch over your heart with the diligence,
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  meaning there's an accountability of healthy self-awareness.
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  It's not about Nazism, but it's about the truth is that that's the reality that that's God's truth.
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  And if you make a decision to really follow, be a follower of friends or to
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  really have this intention of faith, join me.
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  Then your approach or your behavior towards the scripture is that you really
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  have to have a personal accountability.
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  You don't need to be determined. Yeah, commitment. And, you know,
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  it's your self-awareness. And then put away your disciple in the mouth.
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  And at verse 25, it says, let your eyes directly ahead. So, you know,
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  how we should be looking at, where are we looking at. And then verse 7 is turning
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  your foot from the evil, meaning you're mocking commands, making a choice.
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  But one thing that really spoke to me about this, it's all command,
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  but it's a continuous command.
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  It's a joining because the command that's mentioned there, you cannot get it
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  in one sitting down like a conference, in a Bible study, or in seminar, nor in school.
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  It's just the beginning of your learning period to learn all of this God story.
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  But the application and really the full adaptation of that and embracing it
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  to yourself, it's a journey of transformation.
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  So that's when first year came to me is the word journey.
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  Now it becomes helpful because during a difficult time that we're having with,
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  we realize how important it is to have a united, married, chino,
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  a unity in the commitment together.
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  To obey God or to seek God first. So the response to brokenness is not about
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  what we're seeing in this world right now.
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  But actually, it's a more in-depth seeking to God. We need to go back to basic.
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  Yes. And what does a basic look like?
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  Well, simple. With God's Word.
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  Read the Bible. You know, and if you see something that you don't understand,
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  Discuss it with your wife or trusted friends or a pastor or fellow believers.
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  So you care for that one, you know, if you don't understand it.
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  Because, you know, that's the only way you can really go back to basic.
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  It's to understand what you are reading.
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  But the biggest thing that we have learned is applying it.
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  Finding it is very hard because it will hurt your ego, your pride,
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  stubbornness, present.
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  You know, but it takes time to remove all those.
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  But God will show it to you, what you need to remove, what you need to do,
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  you know, because he will always guide you.
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  Thank you so much for listening to the first episode of Coffee,
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  Tea, and Testimonies with Ray and Annie.
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  We're so grateful you joined us as we began unpacking Why Couples Journey?
• 23:08
  If this episode encouraged you, please subscribe so you don't miss part two next Saturday.
• 23:14
  Ray and Annie will continue the conversation. Want to connect or share your
• 23:18
  testimony? Send a message on our social media accounts or email us at info at couplesjourney.org.
• 23:25
  We'd love to hear how God is moving in your marriage. Thanks again for being part of this launch.
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  Join us next Saturday for part two. Until then, keep seeking God together.
• 23:38
  Before we close, we want to invite you to engage with us and support the Couples
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  Journey podcast channel.
• 23:43
  By following this channel, leaving comments, and sharing episodes with your
• 23:47
  family and friends, you're helping us in our mission to transform marriages today.
• 23:51
  Your support encourages more couples to seek God's guidance and grow stronger together.
• 23:56
  Learn more about this movement on thecouplesjourney.org. Thank you for being
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  part of this journey. Together, we can make a difference.
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  Stay tuned to the Couples Journey Podcast channel weekdays from Monday to Friday
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  for our blog series podcast, short audio reflections from the Couples Journey
• 24:13
  blog to encourage your daily faith in marriage.