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When You Cannot Hear, Hold On to What You Know · Fostering Faith

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Welcome back to Fostering Faith. I'm going to
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be your host Tracy, and we are going to be in
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episode three of October. And this is something
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that you don't want to miss when you cannot hear
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and hold on to what you know. And so in this
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episode, we're going to be talking about uncertain
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seasons, every thought. feeling coincidence,
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an open door cannot begin to look like a message
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from God. And we're going to offer a grounded
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approach for discernment through scripture, the
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character of Jesus, wise community, and a faithful
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next step. Drawing from Elijah at Horhab and
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the wisdom of James, this episode helps resist
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both frantic sign seeking and spiritual paralysis.
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And so welcome back. To Fostering Faith, I am
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gonna be your host again. We are here fostering
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our faith together. We do not have it all figured
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out, but we are just walking together because
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we are better together. And so in this week three,
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when God feels silent, faith in the waiting.
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And so we had talked about the difference between
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silence and absence, and we've talked about waiting
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without losing heart. And today we're gonna be
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facing practical questions. What do we do when
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we need direction and cannot hear a clear answer?
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Should I stay or should I go? Should I say yes
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or should I say no? Start now or wait. Have a
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conversation or give it time. And sometimes we
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wish God would send a message so unmistakably
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that no faith, wisdom, or courage would be required.
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We wait. We want the cloud to move. We want the
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door to glow. We want the answer to give us a
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name on it. But every day discernment is quieter
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than that. And God has given us his word, his
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spirit, his wisdom, his community, a renewed
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mind and the ability to take responsible steps.
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Disperiment is not decoding a secret universe.
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It is learning to recognize that consistent with
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God's revealing character and walking in humility.
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And so let us pray. Father God, give us the wisdom
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from above. Pure peace, loving, gentle, open.
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to reason, full of mercy and good fruit. Quiet
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our fear, our pride, our impulse. Guard us from
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calling, our preferences, your voice. Help us
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recognize that you have already made clear and
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trust you with what remains uncertain. In Jesus'
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name I pray. Amen. And so let's get into this.
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In First Kings 19, Elijah is exhausted and afraid
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after a dramatic victory on Mount Carmel. He
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runs for his life from Jezebel. He has literally
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just defeated all of these people with God's
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power. And you have a woman named Jezebel that
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has threatened to kill him. And so therefore,
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what does he do? He runs. And while under a broom
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tree, he asked to die, and God responds first
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with care. And so, what does he do? He says,
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no, you need some rest, you need some food, you
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need some water, and you just need to be with
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me. And so that that detail matters. Before God
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gives Elijah further direction, he cares for
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his depleted body. Exhaustion can make discernment
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harder. Sometimes the next spiritual step is
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not another hour of analysis. It is rest and
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nourishment. At Horhab, Elijah experienced a
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powerful wind, an earthquake, and a fire, but
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the Lord is not described as being in those manifestations.
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Afterwards, God comes in this translation rendered
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as gentle whisper, a lower voice, a sound of
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a thin silence. The lesson is not that God only
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speaks quietly. Everywhere else, He speaks with
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thunder and prophets and scripture. Dreams in
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a voice of Jesus. That point is that Elijah cannot
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reduce God's presence to this dramatic sign that
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he experiences. We make the same mistake as we
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assume God's presence must feel intense and,
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oh, I didn't cry at worship or I didn't get goosebumps.
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And so a strong emotion is not automatically
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the Holy Spirit. This unusual coincidence is
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not automatically command. A viral sermon clip
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is not your automatic answer. God can use circumstances,
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impressions, and counsel, but they need tested.
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Not everything that you want to see is from God.
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And so begin with what God has already said.
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When we cannot hear something new, we return
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to what God said the last time. Are we doing
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what He said? And so a lot of times, He will
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give us step -by -step plans, not jump from point
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A to point Z. You got to do B before you get
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to C. And so what's the last thing that He said?
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Scripture may not tell you what job to accept,
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but He tells you not to build your decision on
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greed, neglect, of those that you've entrusted,
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deception, exploitation. Scripture may not name
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the person that you should marry, but it gives
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you a vision of a covenantal faithfulness, mutual
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honor, truth, wisdom, shared devotion to Christ.
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Scripture may not tell us what city to live in,
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but it calls you to love your neighbor. Practice
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justice, participate in a Christian community,
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and steward your responsibilities. And sometimes
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ask God for specific guidance while ignoring
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general obedience. We want the word about our
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future while resisting His clear word about forgiveness.
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Honesty, generosity, purity, humility, and reconciliation.
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Do the next clear thing before demanding the
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next hidden thing. This is not a way to earn
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revelation. It is not a way to become trustworthy
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with the light we already have. In Psalm 119
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calls God's word a lamp to our feet and a light
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to our path. A lamp is usually gives enough light
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for the next step and the floodlight over the
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next 10 years. A couple years ago my mom gave
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me a headlamp to run in the morning and because
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the one that I had it was I mean it may experience
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the word of God because it was not very light
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and I really couldn't see with it. But you just
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had to trust the process and hope you didn't
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fall in the hole or step on something that you
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weren't supposed to. This light is like a LED
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and it will give me light three and four light
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poles ahead of me. And so I always know where
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I'm going. I can see it's bright. I mean, it's
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kind of like running at noon at five o 'clock
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in the morning. And so you're not really scared
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to run out there. But as time goes, it needs
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to be charged. And so just like us, and so sometimes
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We are walking and we know exactly what we're
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supposed to be doing because we're connected
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to God. We've recharged. We've spent time in
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His presence. And so our spiritual battery is
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full. And a lot of times, whenever we disconnect
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and we get busy and doing things, all of a sudden
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we don't see. We don't know the next step because
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we've not charged our spiritual battery. We've
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not looked and seen and sought after Him. We
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charged ourselves on Sunday. And then by Wednesday,
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we're kind of like... I don't see anything. I
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don't see anything. Wednesday, two weeks from
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now, one month from now. And so sometimes a charge
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can last for a long time. And then the next thing
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you know, like, hey, where am I? How come I can't
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see anything? When was the last time that you
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charged your spiritual battery? Where are you
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at? Are you living over here without an LED?
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I mean, and so a lot of times we have to sage
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spiritually charged. We've got to stay connected,
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just like we got to stay connected to the vine
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to see our fruit. And so just like this, to be
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able to see where we're going, we're asking him,
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we're seeking him. You know, we're knocking at
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that door. And so... you know, over time we've
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got to make sure that our lit path is being recharged
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and so we can keep walking with him, step by
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step, step by step, that we're not running a
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race without him. And so those voices that we
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ask, and so 1 John 4 tells believers not to believe
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every spirit but to test them. Discernment requires
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humility. Before our own desires, can sound pretty
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persuasive. How many times have we talked ourselves
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into bad things? Because it sounded real good
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and we can talk ourselves into doing pretty stupid
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things. And so here are some four tests that
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we can use. The spiritual test. Does this direction
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contradict any clear teaching in scripture? God
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will not guide you to sin and then call it peace.
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He's not gonna tell you to stay in that relationship.
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He's not gonna tell you to keep doing things
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that are not He's not going to tell you to be
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in a sexual relationship and you're not married.
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He's not going to tell you to keep doing drugs
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or overeating and, oh, this just feels so good.
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He's not going to tell you to do that. And so
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test those voices. And then the Jesus test. Does
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this look like a character of Christ? Truth and
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grace, courage and humility, holiness and love.
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A choice can be technically permissible and still
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form you away from his character. What does it
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look like? Are all those something that you can
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point towards? The fruit test. What is the direction
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producing over time? The fruit of the spirit
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includes love, joy, peace, patience, kindness,
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goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self
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-control. Peace alone is not only a test. Avoidance
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can feel peaceful for the moment because you
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swooped it under the rug. Oh, I feel peace. I
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don't have to deal with it. But look at the whole
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pattern of the fruit. Where is this going to
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be? What's this going to turn into? The community
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test. Can you bring this into light with wise,
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mature believers who know you well? Proverbs
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repeatedly emphasizes this wise safety council.
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Choose people. who will not simply echo what
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you want. And so many times, whether you're on
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a fitness journey, when you're on a spiritual
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journey, whenever you need to have those decisions,
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you need to give people authority and pick people
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that will tell you no. And so a lot of times
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we want a really bad idea. And so we go to the
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person that is going to say, absolutely, that
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sounds great. You deserve it. Let's go. And,
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you know, oftentimes my friend Nicole says, if
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I want to eat a dark peanut butter, I'm not going
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to call Tracy because I know that she's going
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to tell me no, but she's going to call her other
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friend. And she's gonna be like, absolutely,
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I'll bring you a spoon. Because we have people
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in our lives that love us dearly. But also, too,
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we have people in our lives that are not afraid
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to tell you no. And so also, too, community.
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Hopefully we are in a Bible -believing church
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in that we are in small groups and that if you
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are in your 40s and 50s, you need to be asking
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70s and 80 -year -olds questions because God
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gave them white hair and they have wisdom and
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they've walked through it. They've seen these
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things. And so picking people that are older
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and wiser, that have been walking with Jesus.
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But also too, I mean, we often say that, you
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know, the disciples were our teenagers' age.
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And so oftentimes kids will teach us, God will
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use them to teach us too. But also seeking wise
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counsel, seeking those people that have been
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in the game for decades longer than we have is
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so essential. But also realize that no human
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counselor is infallible. The group agreement
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is not the voice of God. And so if you're in
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a group text with all these people, they're like,
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absolutely do it. That does not mean it's God's
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voice, but isolation makes self -deception easier.
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And so theology practiced by itself is dangerous.
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And so you can talk yourself into a lot of things.
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And so bringing those major decisions and those
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decisions that are important to you, because
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if they're important to you, they're important
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to God, bring them to trust somebody that is
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trustworthy. And so, and stop chasing signs.
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In the anxious season, we can become spiritually
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superstitious. If this next car is blue, then
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I will say yes. If this next number, if I see
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this next number again, then that's God confirming.
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If the song plays at the right time, I know the
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relationship is meant for me. God is free to
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use circumstances, absolutely. But we are not
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instructed to turn ordinary coincidences into
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private codes. Sign chasing can make us dependent
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on constant confirmation and afraid to use wisdom.
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Gideon's fleece is sometimes treated as a decision
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-making formula, but the story takes place after
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God has already spoken clearly. Gideon's repeated
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testing reflects his fear more than a universal
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method. that God's commands us to copy. Instead
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of asking for endless signs, ask for wisdom.
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In James one, we read that this morning in class,
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and so James one five, but if any of you lack
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wisdom, let us ask God who gives us liberally
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without reproach and it will be given to you.
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And so we also have Solomon who asked for wisdom
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in first Kings three, nine through 12. And so
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if we want. to make sure that we're able to make
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these decisions, we are guided by the Holy Spirit.
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And so we have scripture to go to. And so this
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is a skill of faithful living shaped by God's
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truth. And sometimes after prayer and scripture
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and counsel and thoughtful and careful thought,
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two options may remain morally wise. In those
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moments, you have the freedom to choose, that
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you may feel less spiritual than receiving a
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supernatural instruction, but freedom is not
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abandonment. A loving father can guide his children
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without controlling every preference. Consider
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the responsibilities, the gifts, the limits,
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the season, and likely fruit. of each choice
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and make the best decision you can with the information
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available. And then move forward humbly, ready
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to adjust if new wisdom comes. Oftentimes, He'll
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give you more instruction as you walk. And do
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not demand certainty that God has not promised.
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Faithfulness is possible even when uncertainty
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is not. And if you make an imperfect choice,
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God is not standing there at the distance waiting
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for you to ruin His entire plan. Repent where
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needed, learn, seek counsel, and take the next
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faithful step. God knew you're going to make
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that decision anyway. It's not like you can ruin
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His plans. God provides a larger and His providences
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are larger than your ability to choose flawlessly.
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And so a discernment page for this week. And
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so take one decision and write it on the top
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of your page. and divide the page into five short
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sections and then label it. What is clear in
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scripture? What facts do I actually know? And
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what am I assuming? And I think that's a lot
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of people, even myself, we assume things. We
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actually, facts are facts. And what did we assume?
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And what desires or fears may be influencing
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me? What do wise people see? What is one reversible
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Next step. And so that last question can reduce
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a little bit of fear. You may not need to make
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a final decision today. You may need to gather
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some more information, schedule a conversation,
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visit the place, ask better questions, and review
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the budget or set a reasonable deadline. Small
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faithful steps often reveal what endless internal
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debate cannot. And so as we close, ask yourself,
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Am I waiting for new guidance while resisting
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something God has already made clear? What is
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it? What did He tell you to do last? What voice
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needs testing? Where have I confused intensity
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with truth? And what wise next step can I take
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without pretending to know the entire path? And
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so let us pray. Dear Heavenly Father, thank you
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so much for these listeners. Thank you so much
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for today. Thank you that we are not the sons
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and daughters of the author of Confusion. Thank
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you that you do not put us to shame for needing
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wisdom. Anchor us in scripture. Form the character
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of Jesus in us. Give us honest friends and mature
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counsel. Free us from superstition, panic, and
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paralysis. Where a decision is clear, give us
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courage to obey. Where faithful options remain,
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give us freedom to choose humbly. And when we
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cannot see far ahead, let your word be enough
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light for the next step. And we pray this in
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Jesus' name, amen and amen. Thank you guys so
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much for listening. Share this episode with someone
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that's facing a decision and remind them they
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do not need to manufacture certainty and walk
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faithfully. And so follow us on Fostering Faith.
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Go to our website, Fostering Faith Media, for
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our comparison companion reflection guides. Hopefully
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we're taking this into small groups as small
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group seasons. This is my endless and always
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will be plug for small groups. Get connected
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with small groups. Get into a community. Get
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in with women and men that are facing battles
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because there's often best friends waiting on
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you in these small groups. Until next week is
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gonna be our final episode and we're going. And
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to the deepest part of the conversation, how
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God meets us in the dark when silence feels lost.
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Until then, stay tuned. We love you guys. Bye.