Latest / INSIGHT FOR LIVING: Biblical Wisdom For Everyday Living / The Pleasures of Passing God’s Exams │ Msg 1922

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The Pleasures of Passing God’s Exams │ Msg 1922 · INSIGHT FOR LIVING: Biblical Wisdom For Everyday Living

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  Speaker 1: A journey like we're taking through the life of a
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  Speaker 1: man like Abraham includes highs and lows and times of
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  Speaker 1: testing and times of rewarding. Today is in the latter
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  Speaker 1: category as God wonderfully rewards his servant for his obedience.
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  Speaker 1: I've given you an outline for the message in the
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  Speaker 1: worship folder. Maybe you found it. When you locate it,
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  Speaker 1: please place it at Proverbs 15, also in the Old Testament,
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  Speaker 1: Proverbs 15. We'll begin there, but before then, we want
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  Speaker 1: to read from the 22nd chapter of the first book
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  Speaker 1: of your Bible, the book of Genesis. So Genesis 22,
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  Speaker 1: beginning at verse 11, down through verse 19. As we
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  Speaker 1: think about the pleasures of passing God's exams, out of
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  Speaker 1: respect for God's word, would you stand with me for
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  Speaker 1: the reading of the scriptures, please? Genesis 22, beginning at
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  Speaker 1: verse 11. But the angel of the Lord called to
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  Speaker 1: him from heaven and said, Abraham, Abraham. And he said,
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  Speaker 1: here I am. He said, do not stretch out your
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  Speaker 1: hand against the lad and do nothing to him, for
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  Speaker 1: now I know that you fear God, since you have
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  Speaker 1: not withheld your son, your only son, from me. Then
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  Speaker 1: Abraham raised his eyes and looked, and behold, behind him
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  Speaker 1: a ram caught in the thicket by his horns. Abraham
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  Speaker 1: went and took the ram and offered him up for
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  Speaker 1: a burnt offering in the place of his son Abraham
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  Speaker 1: called the name of that place the Lord will provide
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  Speaker 1: as It is said to this day in the mount
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  Speaker 1: of the Lord It will be provided then the angel
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  Speaker 1: of the Lord called to Abraham a second time from
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  Speaker 1: heaven and said By myself I have sworn, declares the Lord,
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  Speaker 1: because you have done this thing and have not withheld
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  Speaker 1: your son, your only son. Indeed, I will greatly bless
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  Speaker 1: you and I will greatly multiply your seed as the
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  Speaker 1: stars of the heavens and as the sand which is
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  Speaker 1: on the seashore and your seed shall possess the gate
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  Speaker 1: of their enemies. In your seed, all the nations of
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  Speaker 1: the earth shall be blessed because you have obeyed my voice.
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  Speaker 1: So Abraham returned to his young men and they arose
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  Speaker 1: and went together to Beersheba. And Abraham lived in Beersheba.
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  Speaker 1: Our hope is that these ancient words will immediately have
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  Speaker 1: a relevant ring to them and a meaningful statement about
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  Speaker 1: the times in which we live, for indeed they do.
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  Speaker 1: Please be seated. I often challenge you to think about
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  Speaker 1: something before our time of prayer, and today is no exception.
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  Speaker 1: unusual though it may sound, I want you to think
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  Speaker 1: about the good times. I want you to call to
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  Speaker 1: mind some very pleasurable memories. Christians often call them blessings.
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  Speaker 1: It's a word that's a little overused and seems to
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  Speaker 1: have lost a little of its significance. If you prefer,
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  Speaker 1: the blessings of God, answers to prayer, solutions to struggles,
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  Speaker 1: relief from a stress, an answer to an anxiety that
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  Speaker 1: you've been living with during our time of prayer together.
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  Speaker 1: And as we do, may we set our minds toward
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  Speaker 1: that which is positive rather than the things in life
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  Speaker 1: that are not, and they often take our time and
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  Speaker 1: attention In fact, far too much of it. So bow
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  Speaker 1: with me, please. Our minds are filled, our Father, with
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  Speaker 1: the good things that have come from your hand. And
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  Speaker 1: like the psalmist, if we were to count them, we
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  Speaker 1: would find them numberless. You have removed our sins as
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  Speaker 1: far as east is from west. We could start there.
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  Speaker 1: Not only forgiven us, you have removed them never to
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  Speaker 1: be remembered again. In a very real sense, you have
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  Speaker 1: forgotten them. You have deliberately cast them aside and we
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  Speaker 1: are not to return to them, focus on them, or
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  Speaker 1: wallow in the guilt and shame of those acts of sinfulness.
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  Speaker 1: We also acknowledge, our Father, the good things that come
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  Speaker 1: from your hand that we do not deserve. Thank you
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  Speaker 1: for solving issues that we've struggled with and through no
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  Speaker 1: benefit from us, through no help from us, you have
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  Speaker 1: relieved us of the struggle. You have encouraged us. You
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  Speaker 1: have placed our feet out of the clay and the
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  Speaker 1: sand and you put our feet on a rock and
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  Speaker 1: given us a song to sing and many hear it.
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  Speaker 1: and give praise to you for it. Thank you for
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  Speaker 1: healing diseases. Thank you for giving answers to questions that
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  Speaker 1: we've struggled with for the longest time. Thank you for
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  Speaker 1: the joy of watching our children grow and learn and
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  Speaker 1: become their own men and women. Thank you for relief
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  Speaker 1: from the fever heat that accompanies disappointment and sadness. Thank you, Father,
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  Speaker 1: for your grace, your grace that gives us what we
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  Speaker 1: don't deserve and provides for us what we can never repay.
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  Speaker 1: Forgive us for the wasted hours we have spent focusing
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  Speaker 1: on the wrongs of life, the failures, the tragedies, the
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  Speaker 1: the sadness, the grief, the sorrow. In this world of woe,
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  Speaker 1: we have learned that song and we sing it too often.
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  Speaker 1: And we therefore focus too much on how hard we
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  Speaker 1: have it and how painful life has become. When in fact,
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  Speaker 1: the future we have is brighter than can be put
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  Speaker 1: into words. And the plan you have for us is
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  Speaker 1: a plan that gives us not only a future, but
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  Speaker 1: a hope. And so we rejoice with those today who rejoice.
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  Speaker 1: We give thanks with them to you for all your
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  Speaker 1: good things to us. We have come to realize, Lord,
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  Speaker 1: that our need for you is not every week or
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  Speaker 1: every once in a while during a month. but it's
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  Speaker 1: every hour. We need you every hour. Every hour we
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  Speaker 1: need you. And so today, as we need you to
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  Speaker 1: make our worship meaningful, we count on you to fill
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  Speaker 1: this place with the work of the Holy Spirit, that
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  Speaker 1: you would lift hearts that are heavy and you would
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  Speaker 1: open eyes that are blind You would provide hearing to
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  Speaker 1: ears that had become stopped from the fresh truths that
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  Speaker 1: come from the fertile garden of your word. May the
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  Speaker 1: aroma of our praise reach you and please you. Thank
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  Speaker 1: you for those who make our freedom possible, who fight
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  Speaker 1: on the battlefront, who without applause and without much attention
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  Speaker 1: continue on day and night doing the hard thing that
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  Speaker 1: we might know the pleasures of freedom. Overrule the decisions
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  Speaker 1: being made in high places that do not please you.
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  Speaker 1: Take charge of our nation. Guide us, our Father, in
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  Speaker 1: your will and through these difficult times so that we're
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  Speaker 1: able to say as we look at it from the
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  Speaker 1: other side, our God does all things well. Except our
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  Speaker 1: gifts now, we have them only because you have provided
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  Speaker 1: them and we give them joyfully and generously. In the
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  Speaker 1: name of our great Savior, we pray and everyone said amen.
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  Speaker 1: I'd like to talk to you about your attitude. I'll
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  Speaker 1: just come right out front and say it, especially your
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  Speaker 1: negative attitude. I have a bone to pick with our
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  Speaker 1: evangelical community. Too many have lost their joy. I mean,
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  Speaker 1: if you're not sad, you need to get with it,
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  Speaker 1: because the rest of us are. Life is all sadness
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  Speaker 1: and sorrow and tragedy and grief, and we've picked up
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  Speaker 1: the syndrome of woe is me. How hard we have it.
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  Speaker 1: Life is dreadful. People are hurting. Even the ministry is
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  Speaker 1: a burden. One of the reasons I didn't want to
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  Speaker 1: go in ministry is because all the ministers I knew
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  Speaker 1: walked around looking like this. Stooped over. Who says it's
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  Speaker 1: a burden? It's the greatest joy in the world. The
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  Speaker 1: greatest delight is to serve Christ. In fact, there are
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  Speaker 1: a lot of things in life that are downright hilarious,
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  Speaker 1: but we're too serious to notice them. Things are written
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  Speaker 1: that are funny. They're not meant to be funny, but
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  Speaker 1: when you read them, you realize the person worded that wrong,
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  Speaker 1: and it's funny. I came across a group of rules
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  Speaker 1: and regulations that were released by different municipalities in cities.
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  Speaker 1: written by very serious, frowning individuals. One large city on
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  Speaker 1: the West Coast now forbids the reuse of confetti. I
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  Speaker 1: find that rather humorous, don't you? A town up in
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  Speaker 1: Pennsylvania demands that all fire hydrants must be checked one
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  Speaker 1: hour before any fire. Really. Another metropolitan city states that
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  Speaker 1: it's illegal to carry a concealed weapon of more than
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  Speaker 1: six feet in length. You think? A state here in
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  Speaker 1: the South demands that a driver of any vehicle involved
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  Speaker 1: in an accident resulting in the death of another shall
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  Speaker 1: immediately stop and give the name and address to the
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  Speaker 1: person struck. Piece of noise abatement legislation was passed in
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  Speaker 1: a particular village that permits birds to sing for 30
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  Speaker 1: minutes during the day and 15 minutes at night. Really.
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  Speaker 1: How about some letters written to the public welfare department?
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  Speaker 1: One lady writes, I cannot get sick pay. I have
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  Speaker 1: six children. Can you tell me why? I'm glad to
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  Speaker 1: report that my husband who was reported missing is dead.
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  Speaker 1: Another letter read. I'm very much annoyed that you have
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  Speaker 1: branded my boy illiterate, as this is a dirty lie.
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  Speaker 1: I was married a week before he was born. Here's
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  Speaker 1: another one. I like this one especially. Mrs. Jones has
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  Speaker 1: not had any clothes for a year, has been visited
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  Speaker 1: regularly by the clergy. I don't think they meant it
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  Speaker 1: to sound like that. I read one in a worship
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  Speaker 1: folder one time that says, wait watchers will meet in
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  Speaker 1: the basement so you can come in through the double doors.
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  Speaker 1: That's not a good way to put it. Weather reports
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  Speaker 1: are negative. It's going to be 30% cloudy, possible rain.
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  Speaker 1: How come it isn't 70% chance of sunshine? Why is
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  Speaker 1: it 30 percent cloudy? We often hear of 20 to
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  Speaker 1: 25 percent children who are from bad home environments. Why
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  Speaker 1: not mention the 75, 80 percent of the children that
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  Speaker 1: come from happy and healthy homes? Well, it's the negative
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  Speaker 1: that gets the attention. It breaks our hearts to hear
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  Speaker 1: that 10 percent of the pastors have fallen and gone
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  Speaker 1: shipwreck in their faith. Very little mention of 90 percent
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  Speaker 1: of the pastors who have not. But negative news gets
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  Speaker 1: the attention. Churches that stay faithful to their calling never
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  Speaker 1: make the headlines, only those that are fighting and splitting
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  Speaker 1: and causing a scandal. Birthdays are now down. I saw
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  Speaker 1: a card that says, you know you're over the hill
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  Speaker 1: when your friends wear black to your birthday party. Another
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  Speaker 1: said your arms aren't long enough to hold your reading material.
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  Speaker 1: That's how you know you're getting older. You finally stop
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  Speaker 1: waiting for baby fat to disappear. There's another one. There's
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  Speaker 1: more hair stuck in your drain than on your head.
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  Speaker 1: There's another one. The law of gravity takes on new meaning.
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  Speaker 1: Birds circle over your home when you're waking up in
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  Speaker 1: the morning. That's not a good thing. Reminds me of
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  Speaker 1: a favorite little book that we read to the kids
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  Speaker 1: when they were small, Alexander and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good,
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  Speaker 1: Very Bad Day. This is a very good book. Alexander
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  Speaker 1: is one of those kids that illustrates what I'm talking about.
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  Speaker 1: Listen to his words. I went to sleep with gum
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  Speaker 1: in my mouth, and now there's gum in my hair.
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  Speaker 1: And when I got out of bed in the morning,
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  Speaker 1: I tripped on the skateboard, and by mistake, I dropped
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  Speaker 1: my sweater in the sink while the water was running,
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  Speaker 1: and I could tell it was going to be a horrible, terrible,
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  Speaker 1: no good, very bad day. At breakfast, Anthony found a
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  Speaker 1: Corvette Stingray car kit in his breakfast cereal box. Nick
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  Speaker 1: found a Junior Undercover Agent code ring in his breakfast
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  Speaker 1: cereal box, in my breakfast cereal box, breakfast cereal. I
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  Speaker 1: think I'm going to move to Australia, says Alexander.
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  Speaker 2: At school, Mrs.
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  Speaker 1: Dickens liked Paul's picture of the sailboat better than my
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  Speaker 1: picture of the invisible castle. At singing time, she said
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  Speaker 1: I sang too loud. At counting time, she said I
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  Speaker 1: left out 16. Who needs 16? I could tell it
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  Speaker 1: was going to be a terrible, horrible, no good, very
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  Speaker 1: bad day. I could tell because Paul said I was
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  Speaker 1: no longer his best friend anymore. He said that Philip
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  Speaker 1: Parker was his best friend and that Albert Mayo was
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  Speaker 1: his next best friend, that I was only his third
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  Speaker 1: best friend. I hope you sit on a tack, I
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  Speaker 1: said to Paul. I hope the next time you get
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  Speaker 1: a double-decker strawberry ice cream cone, the ice cream part
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  Speaker 1: falls off the cone and lands in Australia. On the
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  Speaker 1: way downstairs, the elevator door closed on my foot, and
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  Speaker 1: while we were waiting for my mom to go get
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  Speaker 1: the car, Anthony made me fall where it was muddy.
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  Speaker 1: When I started crying because of the mud, Nick said
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  Speaker 1: I was a crybaby. While I was punching Nick's lights out,
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  Speaker 1: my mother came back and got me in the car
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  Speaker 1: and scolded me for being muddy and fighting. I'm having
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  Speaker 1: a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day. When we
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  Speaker 1: picked up my dad at his office, he said I
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  Speaker 1: could not play with his copying machine, but I forgot. Also,
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  Speaker 1: he said to watch out for the books on his desk.
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  Speaker 1: I was careful except for my elbow. He also said
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  Speaker 1: don't fool around with his phone, but I think I
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  Speaker 1: called Australia. My dad said don't pick him up anymore.
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  Speaker 1: It was a terrible, horrible, no good, very bad day.
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  Speaker 1: I like this one. My bath water was too hot.
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  Speaker 1: I got soap in my eyes, and my marble ran
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  Speaker 1: down the drain, and I had to wear my railroad
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  Speaker 1: train pajamas. I hate my railroad train pajamas. When I
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  Speaker 1: went to bed, Nick took back the pillow he said
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  Speaker 1: I could keep forever. The Mickey Mouse nightlight burned out.
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  Speaker 1: I bit my tongue. The cat wants to sleep with Anthony,
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  Speaker 1: not with me. It's been a terrible, horrible, no good,
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  Speaker 1: very bad day. My mom says some days are like that,
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  Speaker 1: even in Australia. Why are we like that? Why are
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  Speaker 1: we like that? Oh, don't applaud. People will do more
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  Speaker 1: of that. One thing wrong goes bad in a day.
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  Speaker 1: Fifteen things go right and we focus on the one
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  Speaker 1: wrong thing. One thing happens at work that you didn't like.
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  Speaker 1: Five or six things happen that were pretty great. You
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  Speaker 1: never mention the five or six great things that happened.
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  Speaker 1: When we don't realize how important a joyful attitude is.
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  Speaker 1: How powerful it is. How contagious it is. When you're
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  Speaker 1: around people that are negative, it isn't long before you
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  Speaker 1: get in line with them. And you fall in the
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  Speaker 1: same slot. And tragically, some people think that's being spiritual.
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  Speaker 1: Because religious things are serious things. Where does it say that?
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  Speaker 1: Where does it say that? When I go to Proverbs
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  Speaker 1: 15 and I come to verse 13, I read a
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  Speaker 1: joyful heart makes a cheerful face. When the heart is sad,
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  Speaker 1: the spirit is broken. That verse alone is enough to
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  Speaker 1: spur you into a joyful day. Look at verse 15.
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  Speaker 1: All the days of the afflicted are bad. But don't
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  Speaker 1: stop there. That's only half the verse. But a cheerful
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  Speaker 1: heart What? Has a continual feast. Look at verse 20. 29.
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  Speaker 1: The Lord is far from the wicked, but he hears
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  Speaker 1: the prayers of the righteous. And verse 30. Bright eyes
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  Speaker 1: gladden the heart. Good news puts fat on the bones.
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  Speaker 1: That's what's been happening. That's how that happens. See, some
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  Speaker 1: of you didn't even see the joy in that. There's
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  Speaker 1: a fun thought in that. Look at 1722. 1722. A
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  Speaker 1: joyful heart is good medicine. A joyful heart is good medicine.
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  Speaker 1: You know what it says in the Hebrew? Causes good healing,
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  Speaker 1: but a broken spirit dries up the bones. I believe
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  Speaker 1: this so strongly that I don't believe you're healed fully
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  Speaker 1: until you have developed a joyful spirit. Because part of
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  Speaker 1: the healing process is the healing of your attitude, the
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  Speaker 1: healing of your mind, the realization that life is not
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  Speaker 1: all about sorrow and sadness and disappointment and heartbreak. I
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  Speaker 1: pastored a church up in New England that had earlier
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  Speaker 1: been a church mainly of Norwegians, Norwegians. And they always
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  Speaker 1: have funny things to say about the Swedes. The Swedes
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  Speaker 1: and the Norwegians, you've heard some of those things. One
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  Speaker 1: Norwegian lady told me about the Swede that said to
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  Speaker 1: his friend, you on the mission field? Friend said, yeah, hot,
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  Speaker 1: hot there. How hot? Oh, it's 130 degrees in the shade.
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  Speaker 1: Swede says, well, you don't always have to stand in
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  Speaker 1: the shade, do you? I think that's funny. But you're
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  Speaker 1: so sophisticated, you don't think that's funny at all. And
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  Speaker 1: I'm sorry for you. Because people who live with you
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  Speaker 1: have to live with that long face. And those kids
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  Speaker 1: can't wait to get out of your home. I mean,
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  Speaker 1: I told my kids when they were growing up, let
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  Speaker 1: me tell you, I don't want you to remember me
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  Speaker 1: as a preacher with a long face and yelled all
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  Speaker 1: the time and delivered sermons. I want you to remember
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  Speaker 1: me as the guy that threw their mother in the
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  Speaker 1: pool and lived to tell the story. Throwing her in
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  Speaker 1: the pool is no big thing. Living to tell the
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  Speaker 1: story is a big thing. I want there to be
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  Speaker 1: laughter in the memory walls of my children. I want
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  Speaker 1: there to be joyful moments where they recall days when
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  Speaker 1: we camped and had a hilarious time. I want her
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  Speaker 1: to remember the time when it rained most of the
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  Speaker 1: two weeks And their mother said on our way home, well,
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  Speaker 1: the best thing about it, we built a great memory.
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  Speaker 1: We spent a lot of time close together. What a
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  Speaker 1: great response. Rather than, oh, two weeks of rain. Camping
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  Speaker 1: was terrible. We never want to go again. Please. Now,
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  Speaker 1: what's all this got to say about Abraham? Actually, not
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  Speaker 1: a lot. No, I'm kidding. I'm kidding. I'm just joking.
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  Speaker 1: As a matter of fact, I don't think Abraham was
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  Speaker 1: a long-faced, Cranky old man. I love the prayer of
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  Speaker 1: that saint up in Chicago who prayed with his friend, Lord,
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  Speaker 1: don't let me grow up to become a cranky, crotchety
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  Speaker 1: old man. That's a great prayer. How wonderful it is
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  Speaker 1: to meet people getting up in years that are still
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  Speaker 1: seeing the bright side of life. How delightful it is
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  Speaker 1: to see a couple still happy about their marriage, joyful
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  Speaker 1: about their futures, thrilled about their church, excited about what
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  Speaker 1: the future holds for their lives. When they turn a
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  Speaker 1: corner and reach that age that many people dread, I
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  Speaker 1: don't dread any age. Age has nothing to do with attitude.
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  Speaker 1: No one really cares how old you are. They care
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  Speaker 1: that you've grown up to become a joyful, contagious individual
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  Speaker 1: You can never convince me Abraham coming down from that
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  Speaker 1: mountain with Isaac didn't have a smile on his face.
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  Speaker 1: Which is the whole point of this message. It's easy
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  Speaker 1: for us to rush on into chapter 23 where he
• 24:23
  Speaker 1: buries Sarah, his wife. And on into chapter 24 where
• 24:27
  Speaker 1: there's another challenge. And to forget that the end of
• 24:31
  Speaker 1: the testing time was a joyful time for Abraham. Listen
• 24:38
  Speaker 1: to me He had obeyed the voice of the Lord
• 24:42
  Speaker 1: and God gave him pleasure for passing that exam. Will
• 24:49
  Speaker 1: there be tests? Life's full of them. I have no idea,
• 24:53
  Speaker 1: but I can guarantee you next week we will go
• 24:56
  Speaker 1: through some testing times. The following week there will be more.
• 25:00
  Speaker 1: Next year there may be more than this year. But
• 25:04
  Speaker 1: I've determined I'm not going to focus on the testing.
• 25:08
  Speaker 1: I'm going to focus on passing the tests, knowing that
• 25:12
  Speaker 1: there's pleasure on the other side. For example, go back
• 25:16
  Speaker 1: to Genesis chapter 22. Let me remind you of some
• 25:20
  Speaker 1: things as we look here in this passage. Remember where
• 25:24
  Speaker 1: we've been. Early one morning, Abraham arose, cut firewood, loaded
• 25:31
  Speaker 1: up the donkeys, got the two servants out of bed,
• 25:34
  Speaker 1: woke up his son Isaac and said, we're going to
• 25:36
  Speaker 1: take a walk. They walked for three days and finally
• 25:39
  Speaker 1: left the servants at the bottom of the hill. And
• 25:42
  Speaker 1: they're on the way up the mountain. Isaac's carrying the wood.
• 25:45
  Speaker 1: Abraham has the blade and the torch. Isaac asked about
• 25:49
  Speaker 1: where's the sacrifice. Abraham says, the Lord will provide a sacrifice.
• 25:54
  Speaker 1: He's convinced God's going to answer the issue. He's going
• 25:57
  Speaker 1: to deal with the problem. He had already promised that
• 26:00
  Speaker 1: Isaac was the son of promise. And no matter what
• 26:03
  Speaker 1: happens to Isaac, he's going to come back. No matter
• 26:06
  Speaker 1: what I have you do, The Lord had told him earlier,
• 26:09
  Speaker 1: I want you to sacrifice your son on the mountain.
• 26:12
  Speaker 1: Let me guarantee most of the people in this room
• 26:15
  Speaker 1: would have run for cover if God were to tell
• 26:17
  Speaker 1: us that. Oh, I can't stand the thought of that.
• 26:21
  Speaker 1: Abraham gets up early. He can't wait to see what
• 26:24
  Speaker 1: God was going to do. His life is built on
• 26:28
  Speaker 1: the positive side of faith. He is determined that God
• 26:33
  Speaker 1: will solve the issue that's being raised. So he's going
• 26:36
  Speaker 1: to pass this test. They get to the altar, and
• 26:41
  Speaker 1: then he says to his son, get on the altar.
• 26:45
  Speaker 1: He wraps him up with whatever he brought to tie
• 26:47
  Speaker 1: him up, and then he raises the blade to bring
• 26:51
  Speaker 1: it down into his son's chest. And the Lord steps
• 26:55
  Speaker 1: up and says, Abraham, Abraham, don't go any further. You
• 27:04
  Speaker 1: passed the test. I call this one of God's final examinations.
• 27:10
  Speaker 1: You'll have some in your life. I've had some and
• 27:13
  Speaker 1: I will have more in my life. This was a test.
• 27:19
  Speaker 1: Wasn't anything funny about the test. It's very serious. But
• 27:24
  Speaker 1: when God breaks through the silence and says, I'm right here, Abraham.
• 27:29
  Speaker 1: Now I know. Now I know. There's no question. Your
• 27:34
  Speaker 1: loyalty and priorities lie with me not with your promised son.
• 27:39
  Speaker 1: Don't take his life. Abraham passed the test. And you
• 27:45
  Speaker 1: know what happens after you pass a final exam? It
• 27:49
  Speaker 1: may not even be the final exam, but it is
• 27:52
  Speaker 1: one of the tests from the Lord. Pleasure comes. There
• 27:57
  Speaker 1: is the rejoicing that follows. The heart is glad. The
• 28:01
  Speaker 1: spirit is filled with cheer and delight and celebration. I
• 28:07
  Speaker 1: don't believe Abraham came down from that mountain with a
• 28:10
  Speaker 1: grim face. I know Isaac didn't. They came down together,
• 28:15
  Speaker 1: probably arm in arm, talking about how God provides in
• 28:20
  Speaker 1: a marvelous way, in ways we never expected Him to.
• 28:25
  Speaker 1: In fact, there's a Psalm that says, you will show
• 28:28
  Speaker 1: me the path of life, get this, in your presence
• 28:32
  Speaker 1: is fullness of joy, at your right hand, pleasures forevermore.
• 28:38
  Speaker 1: Psalm 16, 11. Write that in the margin of your Bible.
• 28:42
  Speaker 1: That's a verse you need to memorize. You will show
• 28:45
  Speaker 1: me the path of life. That's obedience. And once you
• 28:50
  Speaker 1: have walked into that path, you will know joy, you
• 28:53
  Speaker 1: will know pleasure, you will know happiness, you will know relief,
• 28:57
  Speaker 1: you will know the absence of anxiety from then on.
• 29:02
  Speaker 1: Because with the Lord, there is that kind of future
• 29:06
  Speaker 1: we can count on. So let's think of all of
• 29:09
  Speaker 1: this as a test that Abraham has passed. Now what
• 29:14
  Speaker 1: follows is an interesting set of events. I call them
• 29:17
  Speaker 1: joyful principles after we pass the test. Joyful things that
• 29:23
  Speaker 1: occur after the test. Here are four of them for
• 29:27
  Speaker 1: you to work over in your mind. It'll help you
• 29:30
  Speaker 1: keep you more positive. Number one, when we pass, God
• 29:35
  Speaker 1: becomes more real and more personal than he ever was before.
• 29:44
  Speaker 1: Pause and think. Think about the test you went through.
• 29:48
  Speaker 1: I'll think about one in my life that I went through.
• 29:53
  Speaker 1: I've got it. And I'll remember after passing that test
• 30:00
  Speaker 1: I had an intimacy with God I did not have
• 30:03
  Speaker 1: before the test. There was something about going through that dark,
• 30:11
  Speaker 1: dark valley where God and I became inseparably connected. And
• 30:20
  Speaker 1: I could hear his voice through his word more distinctly.
• 30:26
  Speaker 1: And I could sense his presence in my life situation
• 30:31
  Speaker 1: more than I had before. Abraham, Abraham, and he says,
• 30:40
  Speaker 1: here I am. And what a relief that must have been.
• 30:44
  Speaker 1: And God says to him, do not stretch out your hand.
• 30:49
  Speaker 1: Verse 12, and do nothing to him. Now I know
• 30:53
  Speaker 1: that you fear God since you have not withheld your son,
• 30:57
  Speaker 1: your only son from me. Abraham raised his eyes, looked,
• 31:00
  Speaker 1: and behold, there was a ram caught in a thicket.
• 31:03
  Speaker 1: And he took the ram and he offered up this
• 31:05
  Speaker 1: animal in the place of his son. What a marvelous result.
• 31:10
  Speaker 1: When we pass, God becomes more real and more personal
• 31:16
  Speaker 1: than he ever was before. When we pass those tests,
• 31:22
  Speaker 1: God becomes more real, more personal than he ever was before. Question,
• 31:30
  Speaker 1: does God have any reason to know you fear him?
• 31:35
  Speaker 1: Have you given God any reason to know that you
• 31:39
  Speaker 1: truly fear him? I don't mean you're afraid of him.
• 31:42
  Speaker 1: Fear here is an awesome respect with a hatred for sin.
• 31:47
  Speaker 1: This is the kind of fear that says, oh God,
• 31:50
  Speaker 1: I'm yours and I'm no one else's like I am yours.
• 31:54
  Speaker 1: I have trusted you completely. I trusted you to give
• 31:57
  Speaker 1: us this boy and now that you're asking me to
• 31:59
  Speaker 1: take him, I trust you to bring him back. You're
• 32:02
  Speaker 1: my all in all. You're everything to me, God. And
• 32:07
  Speaker 1: the Lord says, now I know you fear God. You've
• 32:11
  Speaker 1: not withheld your son, your only son. That's bothered some
• 32:15
  Speaker 1: of you because you've reminded me He also had Ishmael.
• 32:18
  Speaker 1: Ishmael was not a son of the promise. Isaac was
• 32:21
  Speaker 1: the only son of the promise. He was the one
• 32:25
  Speaker 1: God had in mind when he said, through your seed,
• 32:28
  Speaker 1: I will bless the nations. The Lord wasn't referring to Ishmael,
• 32:31
  Speaker 1: was referring to Isaac. So he refers to him as
• 32:35
  Speaker 1: his only son, meaning his only son of the promise.
• 32:38
  Speaker 1: When we pass God's tests, he becomes more personal to us.
• 32:45
  Speaker 1: Pause and think about those you admire. Just pause. Some
• 32:51
  Speaker 1: of them appear in the scriptures, admittedly. I admire Stephen,
• 32:59
  Speaker 1: who has testified openly of his trust in God and
• 33:03
  Speaker 1: his faith in Christ and of the plan God had
• 33:06
  Speaker 1: for his people. Standing in front of him are those
• 33:11
  Speaker 1: who hate him, whose hands are filled with large stones.
• 33:15
  Speaker 1: And they stone him to death. He's the first martyr.
• 33:20
  Speaker 1: You read about him in chapter 7. Chapter 8, the
• 33:24
  Speaker 1: one who held his clothes is Paul. But then he
• 33:28
  Speaker 1: was Saul of Tarsus who smiled on that martyrdom. You
• 33:35
  Speaker 1: know why I admire that? Because Stephen says just before
• 33:39
  Speaker 1: his death, forgive them, Lord. Forgive them. Last words on
• 33:44
  Speaker 1: his lips were words of forgiveness, just like his Lord.
• 33:48
  Speaker 1: And intimacy in the midst of the test. Same would
• 33:53
  Speaker 1: be said of Paul himself. There's no word at the
• 33:55
  Speaker 1: end of Paul's life of regret. I don't find one complaint.
• 34:02
  Speaker 1: I fought a good fight. I finished the course. I've
• 34:04
  Speaker 1: kept the faith. 2 Timothy chapter 4. Therefore there is
• 34:09
  Speaker 1: laid up for me a crown of righteousness, which the Lord,
• 34:12
  Speaker 1: the righteous judge, will give me in that day, not
• 34:14
  Speaker 1: to me only, but to all those who love his appearing.
• 34:17
  Speaker 1: Verses 7 and 8 of 2 Timothy chapter 4. Those
• 34:22
  Speaker 1: are the ending words of Paul's life. We admire him.
• 34:27
  Speaker 1: He has an intimacy with God, having lived a life
• 34:32
  Speaker 1: filled with testing. I could name others. John Wycliffe. Martin Luther,
• 34:40
  Speaker 1: John Knox of Scotland, Hudson Taylor, the great missionary, buried
• 34:47
  Speaker 1: his wives in the frozen soil of China, continued on
• 34:54
  Speaker 1: as he cultivated the China Inland Mission. And then there is,
• 34:58
  Speaker 1: of course, Dietrich Bonhoeffer. Dietrich Bonhoeffer. You must read his biography.
• 35:06
  Speaker 1: who before the age of 40 was hanged by the
• 35:09
  Speaker 1: SS troops. Hitler's SS troops. Only days before that particular
• 35:18
  Speaker 1: death camp unit was liberated by the Allies. Not a
• 35:23
  Speaker 1: word of complaint, not a negative comment from Dietrich Bonhoeffer.
• 35:28
  Speaker 1: In fact, he turned and blessed the people who were
• 35:31
  Speaker 1: a part of his Bible study as he's led out
• 35:34
  Speaker 1: to his death. 9th of April, 1945. Only days before
• 35:42
  Speaker 1: they were liberated. I've spoken to many people who have
• 35:46
  Speaker 1: come to death's door physically. And I mean that literally.
• 35:51
  Speaker 1: One man told me today he was less than three
• 35:54
  Speaker 1: hours from death with the condition of his liver. If
• 35:59
  Speaker 1: he did not get a liver transplant, he would not
• 36:03
  Speaker 1: last three more hours. And I looked at him, and
• 36:06
  Speaker 1: he looked at me, and he said, obviously, what we
• 36:09
  Speaker 1: needed came through. I really feel like I'm a walking miracle.
• 36:15
  Speaker 1: Through an incredible chain of events, the liver was provided.
• 36:19
  Speaker 1: It was transplanted. He looks like the picture of hell.
• 36:23
  Speaker 1: What's the result? His face is filled with joy. He
• 36:28
  Speaker 1: feels closer now to the Lord than ever before. That's
• 36:33
  Speaker 1: what happens. I've always loved the story of the five
• 36:36
  Speaker 1: missionaries who took the gospel to the Alka Indians in Ecuador. Remember?
• 36:42
  Speaker 1: We can name them. Jim Elliott, Nate Saint, Pete Fleming,
• 36:47
  Speaker 1: Roger Yoderian, Ed McCauley. Their names are all mentioned in
• 36:53
  Speaker 1: Through Gates of Splendor, a book that Betty Elliott wrote.
• 36:56
  Speaker 1: One of the widows, not a complaint from them or
• 37:01
  Speaker 1: from her. There's an intimacy with the Almighty that's gained
• 37:08
  Speaker 1: when you go through a test. And that lifts your spirit.
• 37:12
  Speaker 1: I'll tell you, I've done enough traveling on the mission
• 37:15
  Speaker 1: field to tell you they are people with enormous sense
• 37:19
  Speaker 1: of humor. I have a good friend who spent years
• 37:22
  Speaker 1: on the mission field. He says you need two things.
• 37:25
  Speaker 1: You need a great sense of humor and no sense
• 37:27
  Speaker 1: of smell. But I think it's a great life. You
• 37:32
  Speaker 1: can handle it if you notice the order. Great sense
• 37:35
  Speaker 1: of humor. Some of you don't qualify. I'm sorry. You've
• 37:40
  Speaker 1: not cultivated a sense of humor. I don't mean that
• 37:43
  Speaker 1: to be insulting. I honestly feel sorry for you. Because
• 37:47
  Speaker 1: life has become for you so serious that even humor
• 37:50
  Speaker 1: seems misplaced to you at every turn. No, no, no.
• 37:55
  Speaker 1: I think there are moments in the Lord's life with
• 37:57
  Speaker 1: the disciples where he leaned back and laughed out loud.
• 38:01
  Speaker 1: I really do. Some of the things the disciples did
• 38:04
  Speaker 1: made him go, oh, no, they are never going to
• 38:06
  Speaker 1: get it. They are never going to get it. Other
• 38:09
  Speaker 1: times he must have laughed with Peter or John or
• 38:13
  Speaker 1: young Andrew. How great to think about moments like that.
• 38:19
  Speaker 1: I want your walk with Christ to be so intimate
• 38:22
  Speaker 1: that your laughter is a part of your praise, just
• 38:25
  Speaker 1: as your prayers. I want your joyful attitude to become contagious.
• 38:32
  Speaker 1: I want our church to be known as a place
• 38:34
  Speaker 1: where you can hear laughter rather than a place where
• 38:37
  Speaker 1: it is all serious and somber. It isn't all laughter.
• 38:42
  Speaker 1: It isn't all fun. But there's a lot of it
• 38:46
  Speaker 1: that most people miss. Here's a second. When we pass
• 38:51
  Speaker 1: God's tests, he relieves the pressure as he affirms our faith.
• 38:56
  Speaker 1: He relieves the pressure as he affirms our faith. Notice
• 39:01
  Speaker 1: Abraham immediately drops the blade, talk about relief, where God says,
• 39:07
  Speaker 1: that's enough. And he says, now I know. And the
• 39:12
  Speaker 1: Lord relieves him of the pressure and he affirms his faith.
• 39:16
  Speaker 1: It's as if God was saying, good for you, Abraham,
• 39:18
  Speaker 1: you did it. You did it. I tested you to
• 39:23
  Speaker 1: the point, the ultimate point for in a father's life,
• 39:26
  Speaker 1: and you pass with flying colors. I commend you. And
• 39:31
  Speaker 1: as a result, Abraham knows blessings as few would ever
• 39:35
  Speaker 1: know it. I want you to turn from here to
• 39:38
  Speaker 1: Philippians 4. Hold your place and let's go to the fourth.
• 39:42
  Speaker 1: One of the great chapters in the New Testament is
• 39:44
  Speaker 1: the fourth chapter in Philippians. It's filled with joyful words.
• 39:52
  Speaker 1: In fact, the whole letter is a letter of joy.
• 39:55
  Speaker 1: Look at the beginning of verse 10, Philippians 4.10. Now
• 39:59
  Speaker 1: I rejoiced, but I rejoiced in the Lord greatly, that
• 40:05
  Speaker 1: now at last you have revived your concern for me. Indeed,
• 40:10
  Speaker 1: you were concerned before, but you lacked opportunity. I rejoice
• 40:14
  Speaker 1: when I think about how much you care about me.
• 40:17
  Speaker 1: It makes me smile when I remember that you Philippians
• 40:20
  Speaker 1: cared about me when I was going through a tough time.
• 40:23
  Speaker 1: And now that you have a chance to contribute to
• 40:26
  Speaker 1: my needs, it gives me great joy to know that
• 40:29
  Speaker 1: you have given so generously to me. And he doesn't
• 40:32
  Speaker 1: stop there. Look at verse 11. Not that I speak
• 40:36
  Speaker 1: from want. Look, he's not complaining. He's not saying how
• 40:41
  Speaker 1: hard I've had it. He says, I'm not speaking from want.
• 40:45
  Speaker 1: I've learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am.
• 40:51
  Speaker 1: Note he had to learn it. Next verse. I know
• 40:54
  Speaker 1: how to get along with humble means. He doesn't stop there.
• 41:01
  Speaker 1: But I also know how to live in prosperity. Prosperity.
• 41:09
  Speaker 1: Did he say that? He said it. I know how
• 41:14
  Speaker 1: to live in prosperity. I want to know where the
• 41:17
  Speaker 1: artist's work are portraying Paul in prosperity. I've never seen one.
• 41:26
  Speaker 1: Usually it's a serious face, and I understand that. Usually
• 41:30
  Speaker 1: Paul is going through a very difficult time. I understand that.
• 41:34
  Speaker 1: I've studied Paul all my ministry life. I understand. But
• 41:37
  Speaker 1: there were times in his life that it was really easy.
• 41:42
  Speaker 1: It was fun. If you will allow me, it was luxurious.
• 41:49
  Speaker 1: I'm not a man that preaches the prosperity gospel. I'll
• 41:53
  Speaker 1: leave that to those guys that make their living from
• 41:56
  Speaker 1: people that want to hear that. This is no prosperity gospel.
• 42:00
  Speaker 1: But as a result, we've thrown the baby out with
• 42:02
  Speaker 1: the bathwater. He says, I've learned to be content when
• 42:10
  Speaker 1: things are difficult. He calls it humble means. and to
• 42:15
  Speaker 1: live in prosperity. In any and every circumstance, I've learned
• 42:20
  Speaker 1: the secret of being filled and going hungry. The going
• 42:25
  Speaker 1: hungry part, we admire. Why don't we admire being filled?
• 42:32
  Speaker 1: Who wrote the book on evangelical Christianity as it relates
• 42:37
  Speaker 1: to the good times or the hard times? Do you
• 42:44
  Speaker 1: rejoice when someone gets a promotion and is able to
• 42:48
  Speaker 1: purchase a lake cabin that he can enjoy? Do you
• 42:54
  Speaker 1: rejoice when you hear that your neighbor has come into
• 42:58
  Speaker 1: an inheritance that's relieved the pressure of finances and he's
• 43:02
  Speaker 1: now enjoying a new car, able to put his kids
• 43:07
  Speaker 1: through school without sweating every semester? It's an abundance. Do
• 43:14
  Speaker 1: you handle abundance without guilt? When you go on a cruise,
• 43:19
  Speaker 1: do you ever tell anybody? Don't talk about it. One
• 43:25
  Speaker 1: of my first comments when I go with people on
• 43:27
  Speaker 1: cruises is to say, now let me put your mind
• 43:30
  Speaker 1: at ease. Some of you are afraid your neighbor's going
• 43:32
  Speaker 1: to show up in the next cabin. Or that you're
• 43:36
  Speaker 1: going to have to go back and face somebody that's
• 43:38
  Speaker 1: envious of your being on the cruise. How ridiculous is that?
• 43:42
  Speaker 1: Former executive assistant of mine tells me a funny story,
• 43:45
  Speaker 1: a true story about her and her husband. Years before
• 43:48
  Speaker 1: she took that position, she was the wife of the pastor.
• 43:52
  Speaker 1: Her husband was the pastor of this church, rather small church,
• 43:55
  Speaker 1: but a pretty healthy church. And she said that they
• 43:58
  Speaker 1: were in need of a car, okay? This is a
• 44:02
  Speaker 1: pastor and his wife. And so her husband looks around
• 44:06
  Speaker 1: and finds out from a friend they have a car
• 44:08
  Speaker 1: they want to sell. That's in good condition. Not that
• 44:11
  Speaker 1: many miles. Problem is, it was a Lincoln. A Lincoln.
• 44:22
  Speaker 1: Wasn't a Honda. Wasn't a Toyota. Wasn't a beat-up pickup truck.
• 44:28
  Speaker 1: All of that would have worked fine. But they bought it.
• 44:32
  Speaker 1: She said, I got so tired walking four to five
• 44:34
  Speaker 1: blocks to church every Sunday because he didn't want people
• 44:38
  Speaker 1: to know he bought a new Lincoln. Why?
• 44:40
  Speaker 2: Why?
• 44:44
  Speaker 1: Or an old Lincoln. Or anything. The point is, we
• 44:49
  Speaker 1: have more than anyone in the third world. In fact,
• 44:54
  Speaker 1: if you make $ 500 a year, you make more than
• 44:56
  Speaker 1: the majority outside these United States. So we have prosperity.
• 45:04
  Speaker 1: And we're grateful. Let me teach you a little something
• 45:06
  Speaker 1: that I've learned the hard way. Never worry about what
• 45:09
  Speaker 1: someone makes. Think about how much they give. That's what
• 45:14
  Speaker 1: God honors. That's what God honors. In fact, it's a
• 45:21
  Speaker 1: shame we have to learn how to abound. I love
• 45:28
  Speaker 1: the story of the evangelist and pastor Harry Ironside who
• 45:33
  Speaker 1: years ago was traveling and on one occasion it was
• 45:36
  Speaker 1: the end of the day and he came to the
• 45:38
  Speaker 1: hotel and he found the note that was given him.
• 45:41
  Speaker 1: When you come, this is where you stay and He registered,
• 45:45
  Speaker 1: and they said, oh, welcome to our hotel. Please come.
• 45:48
  Speaker 1: I'll show you the room. They went up to the penthouse.
• 45:52
  Speaker 1: Elevator opened. He walked out, and there were double doors
• 45:56
  Speaker 1: that opened and several rooms suite, and he said to
• 46:00
  Speaker 1: his guy carrying the bags, you know, he said, I
• 46:03
  Speaker 1: think there's a mistake. I'm a preacher, and obviously this
• 46:10
  Speaker 1: is a mistake. I don't think this room was reserved.
• 46:12
  Speaker 1: He said, well, let me check. checks for the desk,
• 46:15
  Speaker 1: and the desk says, let me talk to Dr. Ironside.
• 46:17
  Speaker 1: So he gets on the phone. He said, yeah, this
• 46:20
  Speaker 1: is Harry Ironside. And the guy says, well, welcome to
• 46:22
  Speaker 1: our city. We're glad you're here. Well, thank you. He says,
• 46:25
  Speaker 1: did you get the room? And he said, yeah, there's
• 46:27
  Speaker 1: a mistake. He said, no, that's no mistake. I just
• 46:30
  Speaker 1: want you to learn how to abound for a change.
• 46:34
  Speaker 1: Would you feel guilty if somebody reserved a penthouse room
• 46:38
  Speaker 1: for you? Probably not, but you wouldn't tell anybody. Why not?
• 46:45
  Speaker 1: You didn't do it. You see what I'm saying? We
• 46:49
  Speaker 1: set ourselves up to be negative about everything in life,
• 46:54
  Speaker 1: especially God's blessings. Teach yourself the joy of rejoicing when
• 47:04
  Speaker 1: others rejoice. Learn that. Maybe you weren't raised like that
• 47:10
  Speaker 1: and maybe it's a tough lesson because you've never had
• 47:14
  Speaker 1: such nice things. So you're operating your life under the
• 47:20
  Speaker 1: hand of God. That's his call. I always say if
• 47:24
  Speaker 1: money is earned well and faithfully and honestly, go after it.
• 47:30
  Speaker 1: Just be sure that the Lord gets his part. By
• 47:35
  Speaker 1: the way, making more money never made anyone give more,
• 47:39
  Speaker 1: I've discovered. So take care of that as well when
• 47:43
  Speaker 1: the prosperity happens. Okay, back. Back to Genesis 22. There's
• 47:49
  Speaker 1: a third. When we pass God's tests, he provides additional
• 47:55
  Speaker 1: needs in surprising ways. When we pass God's tests, God
• 48:02
  Speaker 1: provides additional needs in surprising ways. There it is. He
• 48:07
  Speaker 1: supplies additional needs needs in surprising ways. Now what did
• 48:12
  Speaker 1: the Lord provide? Verse 13. He looked and behold there
• 48:16
  Speaker 1: was a ram. Abraham didn't know there'd be a ram.
• 48:20
  Speaker 1: It's just a surprise. And so he needed to sacrifice
• 48:23
  Speaker 1: and the Lord said sacrifice the ram. And in fact
• 48:28
  Speaker 1: Abraham names the place Yahweh. We call it today Jehovah Jireh.
• 48:35
  Speaker 1: It means the Lord provides. the Lord provides. Talk about
• 48:41
  Speaker 1: cultivating a positive spirit. When the Lord needed a substitute
• 48:46
  Speaker 1: for the offering, and Isaac wasn't the one, he had
• 48:49
  Speaker 1: a ram. By the way, the Lord never runs shy
• 48:51
  Speaker 1: of rams. He's full of surprises. He will continue to
• 48:57
  Speaker 1: surprise us throughout our life. In Abraham's day, it was
• 49:02
  Speaker 1: the ram in the thicket. In our day, it's an
• 49:05
  Speaker 1: unexpected answer that you never knew was coming. God in
• 49:12
  Speaker 1: grace provides that. It's one of the benefits of passing
• 49:17
  Speaker 1: his exams. There's one more I want to mention. Number four,
• 49:21
  Speaker 1: when we pass, God multiplies his blessings as he ratifies
• 49:27
  Speaker 1: his promises. You see what he says to Abram? Verse 15,
• 49:31
  Speaker 1: the angel of the Lord called to Abraham a second time.
• 49:35
  Speaker 1: When was the first time? When he was about to
• 49:37
  Speaker 1: slay his son. Now he comes a second time, but
• 49:41
  Speaker 1: it's not about sacrifice. Look at this blessing. By myself
• 49:46
  Speaker 1: I have sworn, declares the Lord, because you have done
• 49:49
  Speaker 1: this for me, because you have done this thing, notice,
• 49:53
  Speaker 1: because you have done this thing, have not withheld your son,
• 49:56
  Speaker 1: your only son, I will greatly bless you. How wonderful
• 50:00
  Speaker 1: of God to do that. I will greatly multiply your seeds. Hallelujah.
• 50:07
  Speaker 1: How greatly as the stars of the heavens as the
• 50:10
  Speaker 1: sand on the seashore and your seed shall possess the
• 50:14
  Speaker 1: gate of their enemies. You'll not only be blessed, you'll
• 50:17
  Speaker 1: be blessed with protection. You'll be given authority over enemies
• 50:22
  Speaker 1: and in your seed all the nations of the earth
• 50:25
  Speaker 1: will be blessed. Why? Because you have obeyed my voice.
• 50:31
  Speaker 1: Never mistake it. Never mistake. All these blessings are directly
• 50:36
  Speaker 1: related to Abraham's obedience. In our day of majoring in
• 50:43
  Speaker 1: the minors, I want you to remember that God is
• 50:47
  Speaker 1: at work 24-7, 365. When we can't see the bright
• 50:54
  Speaker 1: light at the end of this long, dark tunnel, believe me,
• 50:59
  Speaker 1: there is a light there. The tunnel is probably turned
• 51:02
  Speaker 1: and you can't see the light. at this particular point,
• 51:06
  Speaker 1: but it's there. And God is at work. So next
• 51:12
  Speaker 1: time you're tempted to major in the minors and aren't
• 51:15
  Speaker 1: we all, let me give you three things to remember. First,
• 51:19
  Speaker 1: something to reflect on. Second, something to refuse. And third,
• 51:24
  Speaker 1: a thought regarding renewal. Okay, first, reflect on the many
• 51:29
  Speaker 1: benefits that come your way, that have already come your way.
• 51:35
  Speaker 1: If you struggle with a negative attitude, a good place
• 51:38
  Speaker 1: to start is to remember all the benefits that come
• 51:41
  Speaker 1: your way. If you need help, put Psalm 103 down
• 51:44
  Speaker 1: and start there. Bless the Lord, O my soul, and
• 51:48
  Speaker 1: all that is within me, bless his holy name. Forget
• 51:51
  Speaker 1: none of his benefits. He pardons all your iniquities. He
• 51:55
  Speaker 1: heals your diseases. He redeems your life from destruction. He
• 52:00
  Speaker 1: crowns you with loving kindness. He satisfies your years with
• 52:05
  Speaker 1: good things. On and on he goes, listing them. In
• 52:10
  Speaker 1: that same Psalm, as far as east is from west,
• 52:13
  Speaker 1: he removes our transgressions from us. I've learned over the
• 52:18
  Speaker 1: years that grateful people are never negative people. When I
• 52:23
  Speaker 1: meet a grateful person, I know they are not behind
• 52:25
  Speaker 1: the scenes negative. Gratitude is one of the great things
• 52:30
  Speaker 1: you can cultivate if you want to develop this mentality
• 52:33
  Speaker 1: this attitude. Reflect on the many blessings that come your way. Second,
• 52:38
  Speaker 1: refuse to allow life's few negatives to eclipse the many positives.
• 52:45
  Speaker 1: Refuse to allow life's few negatives to eclipse the many positives.
• 52:51
  Speaker 1: Let me give you a project. Every day, think of
• 52:55
  Speaker 1: three things for which you are grateful. And what you
• 52:59
  Speaker 1: thought of yesterday, I don't want you to think of today.
• 53:02
  Speaker 1: That's yesterday. Start the list. You can be general or
• 53:07
  Speaker 1: you can be specific. Three things every day. And when
• 53:11
  Speaker 1: you lay your head down on the pillow, deliberately name
• 53:16
  Speaker 1: those three things. Today, Lord, I thank you for that
• 53:21
  Speaker 1: phone call that came that brought such encouragement. Second, I
• 53:25
  Speaker 1: thank you that my friend is going to visit next week.
• 53:28
  Speaker 1: Thank you for making that possible. I thank you for
• 53:32
  Speaker 1: the love of so-and-so. and how comforting it is to
• 53:35
  Speaker 1: me to have that. You name those three things, and
• 53:39
  Speaker 1: through your day, you begin from then on to look
• 53:43
  Speaker 1: for things for which you were grateful. It'll really help
• 53:45
  Speaker 1: your attitude. Refuse to let the negatives eclipse life's positive.
• 53:52
  Speaker 1: Here's a third, and finally, renew your motivation by decreasing
• 53:58
  Speaker 1: your expectations. Renew your motivations by decreasing your expectations. If
• 54:10
  Speaker 1: there were one thing I could change about our generation,
• 54:12
  Speaker 1: it is the spirit of entitlement that accompanies it. I
• 54:17
  Speaker 1: see it all the time. I'm saddened by it, honestly.
• 54:24
  Speaker 1: I see so many of the youth saying, because my
• 54:27
  Speaker 1: dad had it, I have a right to it also. Wait, wait, wait, wait.
• 54:31
  Speaker 1: You have no rights. Check how your dad got that.
• 54:36
  Speaker 1: Probably earned it. Probably worked for it. Or maybe got
• 54:40
  Speaker 1: a break that you didn't get. So? You live your
• 54:44
  Speaker 1: life and you trust God to provide and don't get
• 54:47
  Speaker 1: in a hurry. We had a lady who played trumpet
• 54:50
  Speaker 1: for a memorial service we had recently. It was actually Dr.
• 54:56
  Speaker 1: Howard Hendricks' granddaughter plays beautiful trumpet. She's two hours shy
• 55:00
  Speaker 1: of a PhD in trumpet. So I talked to her,
• 55:04
  Speaker 1: and I had heard her play at the gravesite the
• 55:06
  Speaker 1: day before, just beautiful, beautiful tone. And so I said
• 55:10
  Speaker 1: to her, you are really a fine trumpeter. What do
• 55:16
  Speaker 1: you want to do with your PhD? You want to
• 55:18
  Speaker 1: play for a symphony? She said, no, I want to teach.
• 55:21
  Speaker 1: I said, really? You're going to teach? She said, yeah.
• 55:24
  Speaker 1: I like teaching younger people how to play this instrument.
• 55:28
  Speaker 1: So I said to her, what's the hardest thing about
• 55:31
  Speaker 1: teaching somebody to play the trumpet? She said, isn't that interesting?
• 55:35
  Speaker 1: All my life, I've never been asked that question. It
• 55:38
  Speaker 1: seemed to be a pretty simple question. She quickly answered it.
• 55:42
  Speaker 1: She said, we live in a day of entitlement and
• 55:48
  Speaker 1: everybody that takes the trumpet wants to learn it in
• 55:50
  Speaker 1: a week or two. And I tell them, no, no, no.
• 55:55
  Speaker 1: You do the same thing correctly again, And again and
• 56:00
  Speaker 1: again and again. Then next week, you do the same
• 56:04
  Speaker 1: thing again and again. And she said, if I could
• 56:08
  Speaker 1: just keep them from putting their trumpet in the case
• 56:10
  Speaker 1: after about three or four months, I will have succeeded.
• 56:14
  Speaker 1: Because then they're staying at it. They're staying at it.
• 56:18
  Speaker 1: All of this led me to an interesting write-up. I
• 56:22
  Speaker 1: know what time it is. Relax. This is really... This
• 56:25
  Speaker 1: is really... This is really worth hearing. These aren't my words.
• 56:30
  Speaker 1: To a group of high schoolers, I think it was
• 56:33
  Speaker 1: a commencement. Eleven rules. They're terrific. Life is not fair.
• 56:41
  Speaker 1: Get used to it. Rule one. Rule two. The world
• 56:47
  Speaker 1: won't care about your self-esteem. The world will expect you
• 56:51
  Speaker 1: to accomplish something before you feel good about yourself. That's
• 56:55
  Speaker 1: rule two. Rule three, you will not make $ 50, 000 a
• 56:59
  Speaker 1: year right out of high school. You won't be vice
• 57:02
  Speaker 1: president with a car phone until you've earned both. Rule four,
• 57:08
  Speaker 1: if you think your teacher is tough, wait until you
• 57:10
  Speaker 1: get a boss. He doesn't have tenure. Rule five, flipping
• 57:18
  Speaker 1: burgers is not beneath your dignity. Your grandparents had a
• 57:21
  Speaker 1: different word for flipping burgers. They called it an opportunity.
• 57:27
  Speaker 1: Rule six, if you mess up, it's not your parents' fault,
• 57:31
  Speaker 1: so don't whine about your mistakes. Learn from them. Rule seven,
• 57:38
  Speaker 1: before you were born, your parents were not as boring
• 57:41
  Speaker 1: as they are now. They got that way from paying
• 57:47
  Speaker 1: your bills, cleaning your clothes, and listening to you talk
• 57:50
  Speaker 1: about how cool you are. So before you save the
• 57:54
  Speaker 1: rainforest from the parasites, of your parents' generation, try delousing
• 57:59
  Speaker 1: your closet in your room. Rule number eight. Your school
• 58:05
  Speaker 1: may have done away with winners and losers, but life
• 58:08
  Speaker 1: has not. In some schools, they have dumbed down the
• 58:12
  Speaker 1: courses and abolished failing grades. They will give you as
• 58:17
  Speaker 1: many times as you want to get the right answers.
• 58:20
  Speaker 1: This doesn't bear any resemblance to anything in real life.
• 58:26
  Speaker 1: I love that one. Number nine, life is not divided
• 58:30
  Speaker 1: into semesters. You don't get summers off and very few
• 58:35
  Speaker 1: employers are interested in helping you find yourself. Do that
• 58:41
  Speaker 1: on your own time. Number 10, television is not real life.
• 58:48
  Speaker 1: In the real world, real people actually have to leave
• 58:51
  Speaker 1: the coffee shop and go to real jobs. Rule number 11,
• 58:57
  Speaker 1: be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working
• 59:02
  Speaker 1: for one. It's good, isn't it? I do not find
• 59:13
  Speaker 1: from here on in Abram's life any time of discouragement.
• 59:19
  Speaker 1: From here on. He loses Sarah, his wife, in the
• 59:24
  Speaker 1: next chapter. His son is without a wife. And he
• 59:28
  Speaker 1: helps in the process of finding a wife for his son. Abraham,
• 59:34
  Speaker 1: through God's plan, marries again. He marries again. And if
• 59:41
  Speaker 1: you read the story, he has a whole bunch of kids.
• 59:48
  Speaker 1: I thought he was over the hill. No, God's got
• 59:53
  Speaker 1: other plans for Abraham. And you thought he was old
• 59:56
  Speaker 1: when he had a baby and he was 100. He
• 59:59
  Speaker 1: and this new lady, well, I won't go into it.
• 1:00:01
  Speaker 1: That's another whole story. But it is a blessing, okay, everybody?
• 1:00:06
  Speaker 1: It's a blessing. Why? Because it's God's plan. Abraham never said,
• 1:00:12
  Speaker 1: this is it, that's all, no more kids. He said, Lord,
• 1:00:16
  Speaker 1: I'm available. Along comes a new wife. Why not? Start
• 1:00:20
  Speaker 1: a whole new family. It's another subject, and we won't
• 1:00:23
  Speaker 1: go there. Father, thank you for the wonderful way you
• 1:00:28
  Speaker 1: guide us and for your provisions that come again and
• 1:00:31
  Speaker 1: again and again. Forgive us for ignoring the pleasures you
• 1:00:36
  Speaker 1: have brought to us by emphasizing the negatives, camping on
• 1:00:41
  Speaker 1: the minors, dealing with the pessimistic mentality rather than a
• 1:00:47
  Speaker 1: positive and hopeful future. And bring encouragement to us from
• 1:00:52
  Speaker 1: a life lived like Abraham's, who passed the test and
• 1:00:57
  Speaker 1: enjoyed the benefits that came his way. We thank you
• 1:01:00
  Speaker 1: for the grace that comes in providing for us, and
• 1:01:04
  Speaker 1: we anticipate more in the days ahead. We look forward
• 1:01:07
  Speaker 1: to them. In the great name of Christ, our Savior.
• 1:01:11
  Speaker 1: Everybody sit. Amen. Amen.
• 1:01:18
  Speaker 2: The preceding message, The Pleasures of Passing God's Exams, was
• 1:01:22
  Speaker 2: copyrighted in 2013 2014 and 2017, and the sound recording
• 1:01:28
  Speaker 2: was copyrighted in 2017 by Charles R.
• 1:01:32
  Speaker 1: Swindoll, Inc.
• 1:01:33
  Speaker 2: All rights are reserved worldwide. Duplication of copyrighted material for
• 1:01:38
  Speaker 2: commercial use is strictly prohibited.