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Up Again The Wall | Pastor Kami Palmer | Faith Church · Faith Church Podcast

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Now, this morning, we have already had a time
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of prayer concerning when we are up against the
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wall, right? And a good number of you raised
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your hands. And when we're up against the wall,
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we do continually believe and are praying for
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the wall to come down. There is something in
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the wall experience that I believe we need. This
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morning, the text, we're going to read it in
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its fullness, is in Philippians 4, and we're
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going to start in verse 11. This is Paul, the
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Apostle Paul, right? Great man of God. Not that
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I speak in regard to need. offering that had
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been given from the church in Philippi, and they
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had not been able to give to him or had the opportunity
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to give the way they had wanted to. And so he's
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addressing them in this, and he said, not that
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I speak in regard to need, for I have learned
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in whatever state I am to be content. I know
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how to be abased, and I know how to abound. Everywhere
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and in all things, I have learned both to be
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full and to be hungry. Truthfully, I think we
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mostly know how to be full, right? As soon as
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we enter into a fast, we quickly discover that
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we don't know how to be hungry very well. Because
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suddenly the Holy Spirit is saying, okay, your
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fast is over. When really your flesh is saying,
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feed me. I don't like to be hungry. I don't like
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to be abased. I don't like to be without. But
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Paul said, I've learned both to be full and to
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be hungry, both to abound. Oh, we do well in
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the abounding. But have we learned to do well
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when we suffer need? And then it's in this verse
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right here that he says, I can do all things
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through Christ. who strengthens me. And this
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morning, what I want is to come along Paul. And
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I love the wordage that he uses here. He says,
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what? I just know how to be in lack. I know how
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to do it really well. No, he didn't say that,
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did he? What did he say? I have learned. I have
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learned to be full. and I have learned to be
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in need. And the truth is that we do like it
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better when we're full and when we're abounding
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and the blessings are flowing. But even in that,
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we have to learn. We have to learn to abound
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so as not to be proud, to not be secure in our
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own self -sufficiency. or for using that abundance
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for selfish purposes, right? We have to learn
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how to abound well. Today, what I want us to
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really see, though, is that in the times of abasement,
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the times when we are brought low, when we are
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restricted, the times of suffering and need,
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there is a temptation that can come in that place.
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In that place of suffering need is our temptation
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to lose comfort in God. It's temptation to distrust
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his provision. Well, I've been tithing for years.
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And when it doesn't feel like we're abounding,
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right? Many of us have been there. We begin to
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distrust, is God really providing? It is in those
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moments that we are tempted to make the blessing
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happen on our own. Abraham and Sarah knew something
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about that, didn't they? Thus was born Ishmael.
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These are temptations that we have to learn to
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navigate when we are up against the wall. And
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so this morning, We're going to be taking a little
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journey through the life of David. About a month
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ago, I had a brief dream, and I have discovered
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in my life that there have only been a few times
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when I have had dreams that I know are from God.
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One was in our previous church. And I had had
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a very vivid dream about gossip. I get chills
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even now. And in the church, it was very demonic,
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like just vomiting. And that was a very vivid
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dream that I had. I had a dream concerning my
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son. I had a dream one morning. It wasn't really
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a dream. It was more the Holy Spirit. in those
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waking before you're awake, a command to pray
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for the spreading of the Holy Spirit through
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the region. And about a month ago, I had a dream.
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It wasn't a dream, really. It was more like the
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voice of God speaking in my sleep. And I think
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sometimes he does that because every time I've
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had those moments, I've had need to stand in
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faith, believing. And it's like he knows that
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in that state of being, it's like my spirit just
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is open. And it was very simple and very quick.
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And all I heard was, I have restrained you so
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I can expand you. That was it. And I just kept
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on sleeping. But I woke up having heard that.
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And ever since I heard that, it's been just resonating
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within my spirit. I have restrained you so I
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can expand you. And the question that came out
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of that was this. Do I trust the restraint of
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the Lord? over abundance in my life? Is knowing
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that God is in the restraint of my life, do I
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trust being in that place with him? Or is it
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only when I feel his abundance that I trust him?
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And from that question, I've been saying, God,
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teach me like Paul. Teach me how to be in the
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restraint. Teach me how to be in the place of
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suffering need. Teach me how to be in the place
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of being brought low. Of feeling like every time
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I turn around, I hit that wall. And I think that
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Paul understood that. I think that Paul often,
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every time he turned around, it was like he was
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getting slapped in the face. He endured such
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hardship that every time he turned around, that's
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what he was being faced with. And he says, I've
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learned how to be in this place. And so this
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morning, I want us to walk through quickly. Five
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seasons that were critical in the life of King
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David. Often when we think about restraint and
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how to live well in the places of restraint,
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we do think about the life of Joseph. But I have
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this strong pull toward King David. Because I
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feel like he's just so real, right? He just,
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he made so many mistakes. He endured so much
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up and down that I feel like he could just relate
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with stuff in our life. And so we're going to
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quickly, it's 1117 already, so we're going to
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quickly move through. I would encourage you,
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though, this is, we're going to be in 1 and 2
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Samuel today. I would encourage you at your leisure,
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in your private study, to just slowly walk through
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the life of David. and see his interaction with
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God. The first season that we're going to look
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at is his season of Bethlehem. This is his childhood.
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Now, how many of you know your childhood often
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can make and break your life if it's not dealt
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with as an adult? And David didn't have it always
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the easiest growing up. when it came time for
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the kingdom to be removed from King Saul, and
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Samuel was sent to anoint another king, and so
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he goes to the house of Judah, he goes to the
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house of Jesse, and he invites them to sacrifice
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to the Lord with him and his sons. Do you think
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that Any of them, not the father, none of the
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brothers, thought to call David in from being
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out in the field watching the sheep. No, not
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one of them said, hey, do you think we should
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invite David? It did not occur to any of them
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to invite David to sacrifice with the great prophet
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Samuel. And so all of the sons passed before
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Samuel. And God says, no, no, no, no. Get to
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the end of the line of the sons. Nope. And Samuel's
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like, what's up? There's got to be another son.
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Don't you have another son? Oh, well, yeah, he's
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just David out on the field. Call him in. I want
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David to walk in front of me. And so Samuel said
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to Jesse, send him, bring him, for we will not
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sit down till he comes here. This is in 1 Samuel
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16. I'm summarizing for you. So he sent and brought
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him in. He was ready with bright eyes and good
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looking, and the Lord said, Arise, anoint him,
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for this is the one. Then Samuel took the horn
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of oil and anointed him in the midst of his brothers.
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Oh yes, this is going to cause such brotherly
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love. I'm sure the brothers were just Yeah, one
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of us gets to be king. The Spirit of the Lord
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came upon David from that day forward. This season
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of David's life had been a season of dirt, hardworking,
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smelly sheep. It had been a season of learning
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how to fight. the animals, becoming a warrior.
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It was learning how to worship when he's alone
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in this field and everybody has overlooked him.
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This was a season that formed David for his future.
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I think that in the next chapter here, we have
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an additional look at... the brotherly affection
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that was happening. If you go over to chapter
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17, we have the account with David and Goliath.
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And so David is taking some food to his brothers.
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And I think it's interesting to see here his
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interaction in verse 28 with Eliab, his oldest
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brother. He heard David and his anger, because
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David's like, what's going on here? Why are you
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Why aren't you out fighting? And he gets so angry
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with David. And he said, why did you come down
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here? Who did you leave the sheep with in the
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wilderness? He said, I know your pride and the
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insolence of your heart, for you have come down
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to see the battle. Man, Eliab did not have strong
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feelings. Well, he had strong feelings toward
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his brother. We're not seeing overly amounts
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of love, though, are we? And I love David's response
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because I feel like it's the response of many,
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especially the baby. I don't know. I think Faith
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left. She's the baby of the family, so maybe
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she can identify. But David's response to his
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brother is, what have I done now? Obviously,
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this was a common occurrence of interaction for
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David and his brother. What have I done now,
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Eliab? I just brought you food. What have I done
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now? So we can see that in his childhood years,
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it was not this wonderful, blissful, I'm just
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lying in the grass, strumming my harp, worshiping
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the Lord with pretty little sheep around me.
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No, it was hard, nasty work. And he was overlooked
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by his family. And yet it was in that place he
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learned to fight and he learned to worship. He
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learned to fight. It's in this season of abasement
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that David embraced. He could so easily have
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become embittered. He so easily could have been
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resentful. And what we find is that he learned
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to fight and he learned to worship. What are
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we doing in our season of abasement? What are
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we doing in our season of lack? Are we just becoming
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disgruntled because we've been overlooked? Because
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we've been passed over time and time again? Are
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we learning to worship? At the end of chapter
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16, see, he had been, and we're going to go into
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our next season, but we find him already in the
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courts of King Saul, and he's going back and
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forth between home and with King Saul. And even
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in this space, the brothers had no respect. He
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was still the annoying little brother. Running
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errands for his father. Listen, it might feel
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degrading. It might feel because you've been
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overlooked and you're in the season of just hard
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work that nobody sees. You're busy running errands
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for your father or whoever. Listen, it was when
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he was running errands for his father. That he
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encountered Goliath. If we will learn how to
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be in the season of need and lack and do it well.
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This is why I feel that this is so important.
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Because I know so many of you carry God -given
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purposes. And we have yet to see the fulfillment
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of all of it. Listen, if we will get these places,
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these spaces right. then we are setting ourselves
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up for the God moment. And it was in the basic
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running of errands to serve his brothers who
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overlooked him and found him annoying that God
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gave him his Goliath moment that sent him off
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into his future. How well will we do our season?
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Like Paul, I felt especially this, overlooking
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when I was writing this, that some of you here,
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I don't know, it may be in your job, your family,
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whatever, you've felt overlooked. Can I say to
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you, it does not matter if a man sees you, if
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God sees you. That's all that you need to know.
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God sees you. God, in that moment, nobody else
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can hear your worship. Nobody else can see you
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faithfully caring for the sheep. But God sees
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you. God does not overlook you. Man can overlook
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you on every side. But when it comes time, God
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has seen you, and he's the only one that matters.
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He sees you. He has not overlooked you. His second
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season that was transformational was Gibeah.
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And Gibeah was the city in which King Saul had
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set up as his royal city. And so King Saul, if
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you'll remember, now the kingdom had already
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been taken from him. And so what happened was
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the spirit of the Lord had been removed from
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King Saul, and now he was experiencing tormenting
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spirits. And so Saul, being tormented, said to
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his servants, provide me now a man who can play
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well and bring him to me. Oh, oh, here's a skill
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needed by the king in which David had learned
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when he was being overlooked. And one of the
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servants answered and said, Wow! One moment he's
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being overlooked and the next he's being lifted
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up to King Saul. How would you like that to be
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said about you in the king's presence? And so
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David is sent for. And whenever King Saul was
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tormented by these spirits, he would call for
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David and David would begin to play. And when
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David began to play, King Saul would be at peace.
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And so it's in this season, he's going back and
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forth between being in King Saul's residence
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and his father's residence. And so what is happening?
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He's beginning to see promotion. He's beginning
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to find, I have known abasement, but now I'm
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beginning to find provision. Now I'm beginning
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to be well fed. And it's from this place that
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he faces Goliath. And after he kills Goliath,
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He begins to be sent out by King Saul. And he
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begins to develop a reputation. And in fact,
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here's the testing in his time of beginning to
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be promoted. Proverbs actually says it in chapter
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27, verse 21. The crucible for silver and the
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furnace for gold. But people are tested by their
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praise. You will find when people begin to praise
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you, it becomes a testing time. And think of
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that when David in 17 .5 says this, David went
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out wherever Saul sent him and behaved wisely.
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And Saul set him over the men of war, and he
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was accepted in the sight of all the people.
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Can you imagine this young man having been overlooked
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by his family to suddenly being accepted by men
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everywhere? And not just men. Now, as it happened,
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they were coming home from battle. And when David
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was returning from the slaughter of the Philistine,
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the women had all come out of the cities of Israel
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singing and dancing. Can you imagine a young
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guy who has been overlooked by everybody suddenly
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coming into town and having it lined with singing
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and dancing of women? You can't tell me there
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was not testing. They've got their tambourines
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and their instruments. This is the language of
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David. David is a singer. David is a dancer.
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They are speaking his language. And as they sang
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and as they danced, they said, Oh, this had to
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just get Saul's goat. Saul has slain his thousands.
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David his... Tens of thousands. No king wants
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to hear that being sung throughout the land.
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But it's in this moment that the shifting takes
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place for David. He marries Michael and jealousy
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occurs and King Saul begins to turn from him.
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And it says that Saul saw and he knew that the
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Lord was with David. And Saul was more afraid
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of David, so Saul became David's enemy continually.
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It says that David acted more wisely than all
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the servants of Saul, and his name became highly
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esteemed. He began to come into promotion. He
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began... Far, far away did the fields of abasement
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and overlooking feel. Now he is being elevated.
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Now he's being sung praises. But now the king
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is against him. And suddenly all of that praise,
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all of that glory is gone. He had a taste of
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it for a moment. And it's gone. And suddenly
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he finds himself in his third season in the cave
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of Abolem, the cave of difficulty, about 16 miles
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outside of Jerusalem, the cave of Abolem. And
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this began seven years of running from King Saul.
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Can you imagine? He lives overlooked, and suddenly
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he's being anointed king. And then he's thrust
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into promotion, and suddenly it's all taken away
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from him, and he is now running for his life
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from King Saul. And all of the people that surrounded
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him was everybody in distress, everybody in debt,
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and everyone who was discontented. Way to build
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a kingdom. 400 of them. I'm just imagining 400
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of the lowest of the low, disgruntled in debt,
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discontented, now surrounding. These are his
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companions. And for seven years, he runs from
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King Saul. And we find him in chapter 27, where
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he said in his heart in verse 1, Now I shall
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perish someday by the hand of Saul. There is
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nothing better for me than I should speedily
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escape to the land of the Philistines. And Saul
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will despair of me. to seek me anymore in any
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part of Israel, and I will escape his hand. In
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this moment, the anointing he received to be
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king from Samuel was like a distant dream. Suddenly
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his future, what it looks like, is not being
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king. It is being killed by King Saul. He has
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mentally here given up. The anointing of being
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king. And all he sees in front of him is perishing.
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Has anybody ever been there? You've had the dream.
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You've had the anointing. You've had a prophetic
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word. And years down the road, you've yet to
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see the fulfillment of it. And you find yourself
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like King David. Well, I guess I'll just try
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to live this life the best I can live and die
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and go be with Jesus. Listen, that is not what
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he has for you. It's not what he planned for
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King David. It's not what he's planned for you.
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Following this season of running for seven years,
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in that season, I'm just going to quickly remind
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us of two things in this season. We have the
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scenario of Ziklag. Do you remember Ziklag? When
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David and his men had been out fighting and they
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came home to discover their wives had been taken
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captive, their sons and their daughters had been
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taken captive, and everything had been set fire.
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It feels a little bit like Job, doesn't it? He's
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already running, and now everything, the little
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bit he has, has been taken. How does David respond
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in this season? How would we respond? Lord, I've
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given you everything. I've said yes to you. And
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now you've taken my sons and my daughters. Now
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you've taken my wives. Now you've burned all
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my belongings. Is this what I get? Is that what
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David said? No. It says this, but David strengthened
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himself in the Lord. David strengthened himself
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in the Lord. He didn't go on Facebook complaining
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so that everybody could comfort him in the comments.
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He didn't go complaining to everybody that they
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knew would receive the complaining. No, he went
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straight to the Lord. And he strengthened himself
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in his God. It wasn't even that he had been taken.
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All of these things had been taken. And what
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he was facing was an extreme isolation because
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his own men had turned against him and were talking
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of stoning him because of what had happened.
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Again, his family that is around him. is ready
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to stone him. And how well does he handle his
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abasement? How well does he handle it? He strengthens
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himself in the Lord. I get challenged every time
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I read that account. It's a good account to read
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when everything feels like it's going bad in
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your life. Just pull out the story of Ziklag.
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And then read how David strengthened himself
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in the Lord. And it gives you a little perspective,
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doesn't it? Following this account, we read that
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Saul has died. The king has died. And this brings
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us into his next season of life. In Hebron, the
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beginning of his prophetic purpose. And this
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is interesting because if you heard the news
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that the king who had been chasing you to kill
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you had died, what would your immediate response
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be? Oh, this is it. It's time for me to be king
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of Israel. I was anointed for it. Saul is gone.
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it's time for me to be the king. This is my moment.
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You know, this isn't how David responded. In
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2 Samuel chapter 2, in chapter 1, we read of
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the death of Saul. In chapter 2, it says, it
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happened after this that David inquired of the
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Lord, saying, shall I go up to any of the cities
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of Judah? to his clan, to his tribe. And the
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Lord said to him, go up. And he then followed
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with, well, where shall I go up? And God said
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to him, to Hebron. I love his heart. He's now
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entering again. He's leaving the abasement. And
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now he's about to come again into the place of
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abundance. Such an up and down life he had. And
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he's about to enter into promotion once again.
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But his immediate response, I love, God, what
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now? God, what should I do? He's not just going
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and demanding, hey, everybody, Samuel anointed
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me to be king. I'm up. It's my turn. Tag, I'm
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it. He didn't do that. No, he said, God, where
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should I go? What should I do? And it's in this
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place. This is his tribe. And it says that Judah,
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the men of Judah came to David after he had gone
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back. They came to David and they anointed him.
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They anointed him to be the king over the house
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of Judah. So what we find in this season is the
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partial promotion. He is not king over all of
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Israel in this moment. He is only king of the
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house of Judah. And in this place, He could begin
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to say, God, it's my time. You anointed me over
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all of Israel. I've only got Judah behind me.
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I thought I was supposed to be king over all.
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I feel like David's heart is in such a place
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that if God had said to him, David, I want you
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to go back to Bethlehem, I believe he would have
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done it. I want you to go back to your homeland.
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I believe he would have done it. His heart was
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open. God, what should I do? Where should I go?
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And so in this state of abundance, he's begun
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to move toward the fulfillment of it. He stayed
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in this place for seven and a half years in a
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partial fulfillment of his purpose. Seven and
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a half years. And here's my takeaway from his
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initial promotion. Right after he returned to
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Judah, there were men from Jebesh Gilead who
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had buried King Saul with honor. And David hears
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of this. And he sends a message to the men of
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Gilead. And he says to them, of the man that
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was trying to kill him, you are blessed of the
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Lord, for you have shown this kindness to your
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Lord, to Saul, and have buried him. This strikes
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me because I just wonder what I might have done.
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About the person that had been trying to kill
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me. When I got into my place of promotion and
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provision and abundance, and I look back to the
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last seven years of running from King Saul, I
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wonder what my attitude would have been toward
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him. Look at the trauma you caused me, King Saul.
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Look at everything I lost because of King Saul.
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with an embittered spirit for those last seven
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years, and you do not see that. He blesses and
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honors the men that buried his enemy. There's
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a lesson here. When we're in our places of blessing
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and provision, how we view those that have wounded
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us, those that have been out after us and against
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us. God needs to be able to trust us with our
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enemies. He concludes in 2 Samuel 3. as we're
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coming into the end of his season in Hebron.
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Now there was a long war between the house of
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Saul and the house of David, because there was
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another that had tried to rise up and take that
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house of Israel. And so there was a long season
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of conflict. It says, though, David grew stronger
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and stronger, and the house of Saul grew weaker
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and weaker. Listen, God will do it. God will
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do it. God will make you stronger and stronger
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and stronger. And your enemy weaker and weaker
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and weaker. But how we handle the abundance.
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And then he finally moves into his fifth season,
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the glorious season. Zion, the promise fulfilled.
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How many of you love that place? This is the
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place. Yes, Lord, this is what you have destined
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me for. And in 2 Samuel 5, finally, all the tribes
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of Israel come to David. And David took the stronghold
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of Zion. That is the city of David. And it says
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in verse 10, so David went on and became great,
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and the Lord God of hosts was with him. Now here's
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an interesting verse. These are the things we
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have to learn in the places of abundance. And
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we only learn them, I think, if we learned the
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season of lack well. It says David knew. He knew.
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That the Lord had established him as king over
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Israel. He knew it didn't come from his own manipulation
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of trying to make the promises of God come true
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for himself. God had established him as king.
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And that he had exalted his kingdom for the sake
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of David? No. For the sake of his people, Israel.
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Israel. David knew this. And the times that David
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struggled in his season of abundance, because
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David didn't always handle his abundance well,
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did he? He had seasons of pride. I think of the
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census when he began to count his men and the
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Lord had to bring consequences to him. He had
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his seasons of self. absorbedness with Bathsheba
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and her husband. He didn't always handle it well,
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but what you find is that David was a repentant
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man, and this is good news for us. Because we
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don't always handle our lack well, and we don't
41:00
always handle our abundance well. But if we will
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have a heart toward God, a heart of repentance,
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if we will recognize that God's mercies are new
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every morning, and I can come before him just
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as David did, and I can repent, he is restoring
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God. He will restore us. I think of when King
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David, because even in his fulfillment of becoming
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king of Israel, it doesn't mean that everything
41:34
went okay for him. And I think of when his own
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son, Absalom, wanted the kingdom. And his own
41:45
son betrayed his father, David. His own son tried
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to win the loyalty, the affection in the hearts
41:54
of Israel so they would make him king. And David,
41:58
because of his own son, had to run again in the
42:02
wilderness. I can't imagine. Again, he's lost
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his home. He's lost his kingdom for these moments
42:14
as Absalom is taking the throne. And as he is
42:20
running, there is one from the house of Saul
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that begins to curse him and curse him. And David's
42:28
man wants to go and kill him. And I love even
42:31
in this moment, if David once again in the place
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of abasement, after being king of Israel, he
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says, no, you don't know that God didn't send
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him. You don't know that that is not from God.
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Can you imagine? Continually a heart of saying,
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God, have your way in my life. In the good, in
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the bad, in the ugly, have your way in my life.
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There was a saint back in 225. 225. This was
43:18
the early church. And St. Lawrence was born in
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Spain. And St. Lawrence served as a deacon in
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Rome during time of major persecution. And one
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of the most notable stories of St. Lawrence is
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that of his martyrdom. It's interesting. Sometimes
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we get turned away because we hear the word saint
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and we think of, you know, Orthodox or Catholic.
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But a lot of these men and women were amazing
43:57
men and women of God. And he is martyred for
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his faith. The emperor at the time had it out
44:09
for all Christians. But he specifically had his
44:14
sights. on St. Lawrence. He gave Lawrence the
44:21
opportunity to save himself, asking Lawrence
44:26
to show him where all the church's gold and silver
44:30
were. He wanted in in the money bags of the church.
44:38
And so when asked for the gold and the silver
44:41
of the church, Lawrence returned three days later.
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And he had with him the poor, the sick, the handicapped.
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And he presented to the emperor, here, this is
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the wealth of the church. They had a different
45:04
view of lack. Of a basement? Enraged, he put
45:14
Lawrence, he had him burned in public on a griddle.
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And I love, this is the beauty of martyrs. There's
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a grace that comes on those, I believe, being
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martyred. And they are always known in those
45:31
moments to have such joy. The martyrs of the
45:35
early church were known for their joy and their
45:38
singing as they were being led to their death.
45:41
And St. Lawrence was no different. He's in that
45:46
moment of execution. He's joking with the guards.
45:50
And he's saying, it's time to turn me over. I'm
45:55
done on this side. Can you imagine? Flip, it's
46:00
time to flip me over. I made pancakes this weekend.
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What does he have? There is in, it's a spirit
46:09
that Paul had. It matters not whether I am in
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the place of provision or poverty. I have learned
46:19
how to do both well. And I often think that the
46:23
breakthroughs we believe for aren't happening.
46:27
Because we have yet to learn some things well
46:30
in the places of restraint and restriction that
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God wants us to get. I know you guys get so excited
46:41
and amening at my sermons. You're like, bring
46:44
Darren back. Let's believe for breakthrough.
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Think about the life of Paul. How much he spent.
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imprisoned, being beaten. He wrote 13 of the
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27 books of the New Testament, four of those
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he wrote while being imprisoned, a home imprisonment,
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but still he was restrained and restricted. And
47:16
he wrote Philippians while being imprisoned.
47:23
So while he's in restraint, he's saying, hey,
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I know what it is to abound and be well fed.
47:30
And I know what it is to be restricted and abased.
47:33
As he's imprisoned, he writes this. And he says,
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I can do all things through Christ who strengthens
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me. I can do all things, the abasement, the poverty,
47:46
the restriction. I can do all things. He wrote
47:49
Ephesians while being restricted. I love Ephesians.
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Ephesians talks about how we are rich in Christ.
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It talks about how he lavishes all grace on us.
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And we read that and we think, oh, God's lavishing
48:06
all grace. I'm going to do all this great stuff.
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Listen, he lavishes grace on us. so that in poverty
48:12
and in wealth, we can do all well because we
48:17
have grace. 2 Corinthians chapter 12, Paul wrote
48:26
this. Therefore, in order to keep me from becoming
48:32
conceited, isn't it good to know our own weaknesses?
48:39
I was given a thorn in my flesh, a messenger
48:42
of Satan to torment me. Three times, much like
48:47
Jesus, he pleaded that it would be taken. Let
48:51
this cut pass. But he said, my grace is sufficient
48:56
for you. For my power is made perfect in what?
49:01
In strength? In weakness. We have to learn to
49:07
do weakness well. Because it's there that his
49:11
power is made perfect in your life. But when
49:15
we have unforgiveness, when we have resistance,
49:18
when we are just frustrated and upset with God
49:21
because we're in this place of weakness, we're
49:24
cutting off the source of strength. Therefore,
49:32
he said, I'll boast in my weaknesses so that
49:35
Christ... power may rest on me. Therefore, for
49:42
Christ's sake, I delight in weakness, in insults,
49:47
in hardships, in persecutions, and in difficulties.
49:53
I'm wondering when we're getting together, are
49:58
we delighting in, hey man, everything went wrong
50:01
for me this week. Praise the Lord. That must
50:05
mean he's doing, that means I have access to
50:08
his power. That must mean God's up to something.
50:11
Praise the Lord. I've had trials this week. I've
50:14
had difficulties this week. I fear that that's
50:17
not how we're talking about our struggles. For
50:23
when I am weak, then I am strong. We cannot wait
50:29
for the places of abundance to begin to walk
50:32
out. what God has called us to do. He's looking
50:35
for us in the places of restraint and restriction
50:39
to begin to do it. You can't wait for a better
50:43
moment. You can't wait for a perfect opportunity.
50:46
It is the call of obedience. God, you've called
50:49
me to do this, so I'm going to do it in the lack.
50:52
I'm going to do it in the restraint and the restriction.
50:55
Paul carried out his purpose. He didn't say,
50:59
well, I'm imprisoned, everybody, so get in touch
51:02
with one of the other apostles, please. He didn't
51:09
wallow. He didn't complain. Was it hard? Yes.
51:13
Would he have preferred to have the cup passed
51:16
from him? For sure. In fact, he said, I persevered
51:25
in demonstrating among you. the marks of a true
51:29
apostle, including signs, wonders, and miracles,
51:33
even in the hardship. I'm going to ask the worship
51:37
team to come. I know that I preached a little
51:39
longer today, but I really believe with all of
51:45
my heart that God's given to each of you, God
51:49
-given purposes and promises, and the years have
51:56
gone by. I've yet to really see in the Bible
51:59
great men and women that have not gone through
52:03
seasons of abasement and trial before they were
52:09
brought into the fulfillment of God's purposes.
52:12
I've yet to really see them, even in the fulfillment
52:15
of it, to not see them in difficulty. And I want
52:21
us I want us to grab hold of Paul's attitude.
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I have learned. God, I'm not handling my lack
52:31
well. I'm not handling my physical ailments well.
52:36
I'm not handling my financial situation well.
52:39
I'm not handling my loneliness well. Would you
52:44
teach me? I want to learn like Paul learned.
52:48
Would you teach me contentment in these places?
52:53
Would you teach me to be satisfied by your presence
52:57
in these places? I don't want to be a fair weather
53:01
follower. I want to follow you on the path of
53:07
Gethsemane if need be. I want to be where your
53:12
presence is at. And for some of us that may mean,
53:17
I've had to in my heart as I've asked this question,
53:21
Lord, do I trust your restraint on my life? It
53:27
doesn't feel safe. It doesn't feel secure. The
53:31
unknown is scary. Do I trust your restraint in
53:35
my life? I've had to ask myself hard questions.
53:39
I've had to repent of attitudes. in the restraint.
53:47
And for some of us today, that might be you saying,
53:51
I've not been doing it well. In fact, I've not
53:54
even been open to learning how to do it well.
53:58
In these final moments as we worship, I want
54:03
you just to find a space, whether it's at your
54:05
seat or at this altar, I don't care. But can
54:09
we begin to just say to the Lord, Lord, Forgive
54:14
me for being resentful and carrying unforgiveness,
54:19
for despising the places of lack, for being discontented
54:27
and embittered. Would you forgive me? I want
54:32
to make those spaces now sacred spaces of your
54:37
presence. Places where I encounter you. Your
54:44
presence is enough, Jesus. Your presence is enough,
54:50
Jesus. And so if you'll stand with me in a few
54:54
moments, we'll be finished. But I don't want
54:57
to leave without creating a space to respond
55:00
to the Lord. I'm walking out of here saying,
55:04
I'm going to do the difficult places differently.
55:11
them places where the power of Christ is displayed
55:15
I'm gonna make them the places where I encounter
55:18
the suffering of Christ the fellowship of the
55:22
suffering of Christ he wants to encounter with
55:26
you in those places he wants to encounter with
55:31
you And so as the team leads us, I want you to
55:35
be respectful. If you're having to leave, if
55:38
you could just slip out quietly, because we want
55:40
to make this place a place of response to the
55:44
Lord, a place of encounter to the Lord. Thank
55:50
you, Lord.