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Enjoying the Journey Together, Part 1 · Enjoying the Journey

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  In our busy world, family time is frequently
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  neglected. It is vital that we give attention to our families
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  while we can, and it is especially important
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  to give attention to what God says in his word about our
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  homes. For the next few moments, Let's join Scott Pauley as
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  we open the Scriptures and find God's message for
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  your family.
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  Many years ago, we chose— I believe we're divinely
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  led to this expression— Enjoying the Journey for
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  all of our resources and our studies. The idea is we
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  know we're going to enjoy heaven, we know we're going to enjoy the destination,
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  but God has designed it so that his followers can also enjoy the journey.
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  And how do we enjoy the journey? We enjoy the journey with him.
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  It's the presence of Christ. Well, in no other place,
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  I think, is this more vividly seen than in the story we're
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  studying in Luke chapter number 24, because as
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  we established last time, this is a married couple making a journey from
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  Jerusalem to Emmaus, dealing with difficulty, dealing with
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  hardship, which we all have, but learning that the companionship
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  of Christ radically changes everything.
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  Oh, dear friend, would you look for Jesus along the way today?
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  I promise you, along your path, Christ himself
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  is drawing near. He's wanting to be known to you. And really, the story in
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  Luke 24 not only teaches us how to enjoy the journey It
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  teaches us how to enjoy the journey together,
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  because I remind you, this couple is together when they meet Christ.
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  They're together when Christ speaks to them. They're together when their
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  hearts are lifted. And I believe God wants to do his
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  highest, holiest work in our homes.
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  Your home, dear friend, is to be holy ground because
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  of the presence of God. So today and in our
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  next study, I'd like to walk you through this story and just give you some
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  practical ways that you can enjoy the journey together. Let's begin
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  at the beginning of the story. Verse 13 of Luke 24 says, and behold,
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  2 of them went that same day to a village called Emmaus, which was from
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  Jerusalem about threescore furlongs. And they talked
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  together of all these things which had happened. And it came to pass
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  that while they communed together and reasoned, Jesus himself drew
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  near went with them, but their eyes were holden
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  that they should not know him. And he said unto them, what manner of communications
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  are these that you have one to another as you walk and are sad?
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  Let's begin with the most obvious thing, the most practical thing,
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  and it is this: if you want to enjoy the journey together,
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  number one, you enjoy the journey together by communicating,
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  communing with one another. Notice,
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  please, They're not just walking along in silence. They're pouring
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  out their heart to each other. They're talking to one another.
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  Could I recommend that in your marriage, that with your family,
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  that with your children, it's important to talk?
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  We're living in a world today where people are doing everything except communicating
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  with each other. We're the most connected and the most disconnected
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  generation in history. Look at the average family. Everybody's looking
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  at some mobile device, but few are talking to one another.
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  And so I want to recommend talk together. Now turn
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  the noise off for a little while and just talk to the person
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  that lives in your home. Share your hearts with one another.
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  Do you remember in marriage what we said? For better or for
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  worse. That means on the glad days and
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  on the sad days. And frankly, this couple in Luke 24, they're, they're walking
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  a sad trail. They're on a a mournful
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  mile marker at this particular juncture, and yet they're talking.
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  There is something very practical too about walking and talking.
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  If you take a walk, that might be a good place to
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  start because it gets you away from all the distractions. It's just the two of
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  you along the road. I think sometimes we're all too busy and too distracted.
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  And if I could give this one admonition, it would be this: be careful who
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  you share your heart with. I find that so often
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  Husbands begin sharing their heart with someone
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  outside their home. Wives begin sharing their heart with
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  someone outside their marriage, and pretty soon they've given their heart away, or at least
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  a portion of their heart away, to the wrong person. You know how you give
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  your heart away? Through your mouth, through your talking.
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  Read the story of Samson. He told her all his heart.
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  Guard your most intimate, private, personal conversations.
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  Your deepest thoughts, emotions, desires, dreams,
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  heartaches— all of that should be shared with your family.
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  And so if you want to enjoy the journey together, begin by communicating to
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  one another. But don't stop there. If the story stops there, they're still sad.
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  Number 2, if you want to enjoy the journey together, begin to communicate
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  with Jesus. Did you notice that when the Lord showed up, he didn't
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  show up telling them something. Instead, he begins by asking
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  them, why are you sad? Why are you talking this way?
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  Now listen to the answer. Verse 18, and the one of them whose name
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  was Cleopas, answering, said unto him, art thou only a stranger
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  in Jerusalem, and hast not known the things which are come to pass there in
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  these days? And he said unto them, what things? There's a
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  beautiful divine humor in this. They didn't recognize him,
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  and Jesus plays along. And they said unto him, concerning Jesus of Nazareth,
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  which was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the
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  people, and how the chief priests and our rulers delivered him to be condemned to
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  death and have crucified him. But we trusted— do you hear the
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  past tense here? We trusted that it had been he which should have redeemed
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  Israel. And beside all this, today is the 3rd day since these things were done.
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  Yea, and certain women also of our company made us astonished, which were early at
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  the sepulchre. And when they found not his body, they came saying that they had
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  also seen a vision of angels which said that he was alive. And certain of
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  them which were with us went to the sepulcher and found it even so as
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  the women had said, but him they saw not.
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  You see how they're still living by sight instead of by faith?
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  Do you see how they're still living by their feelings instead of by
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  faith? Oh, may I just tell you, if you let emotions
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  run your home, emotions will ruin your home.
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  Someone said, for feelings come and feelings go and feelings are deceiving. My hope
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  is in the word of God, naught else is worth believing. Don't listen to
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  your feelings. Your feelings will lie to you. The heart is deceitful above all things
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  and desperately wicked. Who can know it? But what are they doing?
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  They're pouring out their heart to Jesus.
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  That's a great thing to do. Jesus invited them to do that.
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  He wanted them to do that. He wanted them to talk to
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  him. You know what prayer does? Prayer brings Almighty
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  God into the conversation. Casting all your care upon him,
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  for he careth for you. He does care for
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  you. Uh, someone said it's all right to complain as long as you
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  complain to the one person who can do something about it. Well, that's what they
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  were doing. Maybe you have some complaints in your home. Maybe things
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  aren't going well right now. Here's my recommendation today.
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  Turn your complaint into prayer instead of just talking
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  to one another about it ad nauseam. That only goes so far. And frankly,
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  sometimes it makes it worse. Instead of just dwelling on it,
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  instead of just rehashing it to yourself and to your loved ones over
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  and over again, why don't you get down on your knees together and talk to
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  Jesus? Why don't you talk to God and turn it to prayer?
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  Communicate with one another, yes, but then communicate with heaven.
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  Communicate with God. Pray for one another.
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  Share your needs. Bear one another's burdens and so fulfill
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  the law of Christ. Pray with one another.
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  I think this is something that's sorely missing. I know it has been too many
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  days in our home where we didn't pray with one another nearly enough.
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  Do more than talk among yourselves. Lay it out before the Lord.
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  You know, you can talk to each other until proverbially
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  they say you're blue in the face, and you can accomplish nothing and
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  change nothing. Dear friend, when you begin to pray and
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  talk to God, God can do more in a moment than we can in
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  a lifetime. I have a dear pastor friend who loves to say,
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  don't miss what you can't replace. A friend,
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  don't miss what God has given you in your home, and don't miss what God
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  has given you through access to God in prayer in
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  your home. Don't miss what you can't replace. If you want to
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  enjoy the journey together, then I recommend 2 things to you today. First of
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  all, talk to one another and then turn the conversation heavenward
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  and talk to God. May the Lord help all of us to
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  meet Jesus along our way today.
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  For more resources for your marriage and family, visit us
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  at etj.bible and click on the Take the Next
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  Step link where you'll find many Bible resources that will
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  strengthen your marriage and equip you to raise your children
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  in the ways of the Lord. We highly recommend Scott's
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  book New Testament Marriage. In it, you'll discover timeless
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  biblical principles from the husband and wife team Aquila and Priscilla,
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  and these principles are very applicable to your marriage
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  today. From all of us at Enjoying the Journey,
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  thanks for listening today, and until next time,
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  we pray that you will enjoy Enjoy the journey.