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<v Speaker 1>We are in a summer sermon series on what the Bible teaches us about how to be happy or blessed.

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<v Speaker 1>If you like a sermon outline, didn't get one, or ushers have one for you, just raise your hand and I'll give you one Again.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm going to start with a question for us this morning, and the question is how is your walk with God?

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<v Speaker 1>You know there are some signs that your walk with God may need a boost.

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<v Speaker 1>For instance, you may need a boost if you go to church faithfully just so you can hear Pastor Jim's jokes.

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<v Speaker 1>Your walk with God is going to need a boost.

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<v Speaker 1>Okay, you're going to need a boost if the last time you attended a Bible study was when there was only one translation of the Bible, or if your life verse is still John 11, 35, which says Jesus wept, or if your daily quiet time consists of a short nap after lunch.

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<v Speaker 1>And you know.

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<v Speaker 1>Your walk with God may need a boost if you can't remember where you left your Bible in 2003.

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<v Speaker 1>And you can't remember whether it was Moses or Noah that walked on water.

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<v Speaker 1>And lastly, you walk with God may need a boast if you get tired of hearing the same sermons over and over again.

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<v Speaker 1>One about Jesus' birth and the other about Jesus' resurrection.

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<v Speaker 1>This summer we've been studying the ways our walk with God can get a boost by following the clues given in the biblical phrase blessed is the one or blessed is the man.

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<v Speaker 1>You know, I ran across an alarming piece of news recently.

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<v Speaker 1>The article reported that something very strange had happened in this neighborhood.

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<v Speaker 1>Freak accident, no, somebody see a UFO.

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<v Speaker 1>No More tariffs.

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<v Speaker 1>No, turns out, a woman in Florida had posted a heart-shaped sign on the door of her condo that said God bless this house, and the condominium board told her that she had to take it down because she's not supposed to put anything strange on her door.

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<v Speaker 1>Apparently, the condominium board thought a sign of God's blessing was something very strange.

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<v Speaker 1>Actually, according to the Bible, it's just the opposite.

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<v Speaker 1>God's blessing isn't something strange at all, but something so good.

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<v Speaker 1>It's like experiencing a little taste of heaven.

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<v Speaker 1>That's why we've been looking at these statements.

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<v Speaker 1>Blessed is the one.

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<v Speaker 1>They are, in a sense God's invitation to enjoy his presence, his blessing in life as we follow the directions we see in them.

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<v Speaker 1>Last week, one of those blessings we saw in Psalm 84, which I want to return to today.

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<v Speaker 1>So if you want to follow along in your Bible.

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<v Speaker 1>You can turn to Psalm 84 and we'll read it, and then I'll talk about the second part of this important passage today, psalm 84, beginning in verse 1.

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<v Speaker 1>These are written by the sons of Korah, living God.

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<v Speaker 1>The bird also has found a house and the swallow a nest for herself where she may lay her young.

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<v Speaker 1>Even your altars, o Lord of hosts, my King and my God.

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<v Speaker 1>How blessed are those who dwell in your house.

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<v Speaker 1>They are ever praising you, selah.

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<v Speaker 1>How blessed is the man whose strength is in you, in whose heart are the highways to Zion Passing through the valley of Baca.

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<v Speaker 1>They make it a spring.

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<v Speaker 1>The early rain also covers it with blessings.

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<v Speaker 1>They go from strength to strength, every one of them who appears before God in Zion.

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<v Speaker 1>O Lord of hosts, hear my prayer, give ear, o God of Jacob Selah, behold our shield, o God, and look upon the face of your anointed, for a day in your courts is better than a thousand outside.

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<v Speaker 1>I would rather stand at the threshold of the house of my God than dwell in the tents of wickedness.

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<v Speaker 1>For the Lord, god is a sun and a shield.

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<v Speaker 1>The Lord gives grace and glory.

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<v Speaker 1>No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly.

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<v Speaker 1>O Lord of hosts, how blessed is the man who trusts in you.

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<v Speaker 1>So last week we looked at the blessing of finding our strength in the Lord, verse 5.

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<v Speaker 1>We learned that the Lord is the source of the strength that we experience when we stop relying on ourselves and humbly rely on the Lord.

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<v Speaker 1>We also learned that the secret of experiencing the Lord's strength is found when our hearts are connected to God in worship, worshiping him, as the Psalm says.

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<v Speaker 1>That's where a highway in our heart to Zion is heart of worship.

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<v Speaker 1>We saw last time how David learned the secret of finding strength in the Lord 1 Samuel 30, verse 6,.

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<v Speaker 1>Moreover, david was greatly distressed because the people spoke of stoning him, for all the people were embittered, each one because of his sons and his daughters.

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<v Speaker 1>Talk about a terrible situation, but then listen.

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<v Speaker 1>But David strengthened himself in the Lord, his God.

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<v Speaker 1>We also saw how the apostle Paul learned this secret as well, in Philippians, chapter 4, 12 and 13,.

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<v Speaker 1>Paul says I know how to get along with humble means.

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<v Speaker 1>I know how to live in prosperity.

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<v Speaker 1>Didn't matter the circumstance, didn't matter the circumstance.

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<v Speaker 1>In any and every circumstance I have learned the secret of being filled and going hungry of having abundance, and suffering need, and that secret is I can do all things through him who strengthens me.

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<v Speaker 1>Now, today, in this same passage, we're going to look at the results of what happens to us when we do find our strength in the Lord.

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<v Speaker 1>Just as the Psalm encourages us, we're going to find three things We'll gain God's perspective of our circumstance.

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<v Speaker 1>We'll gain a resolved perseverance in our circumstances and we'll gain a higher priority in our circumstances.

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<v Speaker 1>So let's look at those three things today.

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<v Speaker 1>First, when our strength, when we find it, our strength, the Lord is strengthening us.

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<v Speaker 1>He gives us his perspective of our circumstances, which results in this joy, this inner peace, the blessedness that we've been talking about.

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<v Speaker 1>And I know, looking around the room, many of you may know, may have discovered that sometimes life can be difficult Surprise, didn't want to shock anybody and when we face times in our life that are difficult, painful, distressing, that's when we need God's perspective.

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<v Speaker 1>You see, I believe that's why this psalm is here, because we're asking what is God doing?

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<v Speaker 1>Why is this happening?

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<v Speaker 1>Because we believe he sees and knows things we don't he does.

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<v Speaker 1>His thoughts and ways, we're told in the Scripture, are way higher above ours.

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<v Speaker 1>His agenda is not always in line with ours, and His strength, though, is available, no matter what the circumstances, to those who need it.

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<v Speaker 1>When we experience the blessing of finding our—this is really the main point today—when we find ourselves experiencing the blessing of finding our strength in the Lord the main point today when we find ourselves experiencing the blessing of finding our strength in the Lord one thing God will do is change our perspective of what is happening by giving us a peek at what he is doing, and when you see that it changes your whole perspective, it gives you joy.

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<v Speaker 1>When he does that, we're getting a little taste of heaven.

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<v Speaker 1>Now look at Psalm 84.

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<v Speaker 1>It mentions what God can do when we're right in the middle of low places and hard places in our life.

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<v Speaker 1>Psalm 84, 5 and 6.

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<v Speaker 1>Oh, how blessed is the man whose strength is in you and whose heart of the highways is Zion.

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<v Speaker 1>You know what happens to them Passing through the valley of Baca they make it a spring.

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<v Speaker 1>The early rain also covers it with blessings.

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<v Speaker 1>Now, first he mentions the low places that we're passing through, the Valley of Baca.

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<v Speaker 1>A valley is an analogy to a very low place in our life, discouraging or just down the word passing, when they pass through, is a present participle, which means not if we pass, but when we pass.

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<v Speaker 1>It's going to happen.

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<v Speaker 1>We're going to be in low places, but those who find their strength in the Lord when that happens, when that happens, when we pass through the Valley of Baca Baca, by the way, that's the Hebrew word for tears, weeping sadness, when we pass through that valley, if you have a highway to worship in your heart, his strength helps you make that place, that place, a place of springs, amazing.

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<v Speaker 1>Our strength in the Lord transforms our weeping waters of sadness into joy, waters of gladness.

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<v Speaker 1>You may say that sounds incredible.

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<v Speaker 1>How does that happen?

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<v Speaker 1>Passing through the valley of Baca, they make it a spring.

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<v Speaker 1>The valley that once brought me low is now a source of spiritual refreshment.

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<v Speaker 1>Note the place didn't change.

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<v Speaker 1>Having God's perspective changed it.

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<v Speaker 1>Now, I know that's difficult to grasp, but let me give you an illustration of what I'm talking about, because when God, I'm telling you the taste of heaven happens, when God enters the picture, and we know it, there's something that happens to us.

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<v Speaker 1>We just are moved inside.

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<v Speaker 1>One summer, when I was in college, I worked at a used office furniture company in downtown Pittsburgh and I worked for a very mean boss.

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<v Speaker 1>You can see it in there in the back.

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<v Speaker 1>His name was Mr Sack.

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<v Speaker 1>It was an awful, dreadful place to work because Mr Sack was a mean bully, bullied everybody.

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<v Speaker 1>He never smiled, he criticized everything you did.

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<v Speaker 1>You couldn't please him, no matter what you did.

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<v Speaker 1>So all summer long it was just a depressing place to work.

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<v Speaker 1>I mean toxic low time in my life until one day during lunch God allowed me to lead a co-worker to faith in Jesus Christ and his whole life just sprang into joy.

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<v Speaker 1>That transformed my valley of Baca into a refreshing place.

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<v Speaker 1>Why?

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<v Speaker 1>I saw what God was trying to do.

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<v Speaker 1>That did it.

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<v Speaker 1>I changed my whole attitude, my whole perspective changed about working there and I kept sharing Christ.

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<v Speaker 1>The place didn't change, the boss didn't change.

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<v Speaker 1>But I'll tell you a little funny part of that is when I left for the summer I gathered the office group there.

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<v Speaker 1>I said let me get a picture, and I took that picture.

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<v Speaker 1>But then I asked give me another picture.

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<v Speaker 1>This time, mr Sack, I want you to smile.

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<v Speaker 1>And he went, you know, forced himself.

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<v Speaker 1>Anyway, the place didn't change, the boss didn't change, the boss didn't change.

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<v Speaker 1>Just only thing that changed was that God showed me what he was doing.

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<v Speaker 1>I tasted a little bit of heaven, in addition to those valleys and hard, sad times.

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<v Speaker 1>Psalm 84 next refers to the early rains.

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<v Speaker 1>When passing through the Valley of Baca, they make it a spring.

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<v Speaker 1>The early rain also covers it with blessings.

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<v Speaker 1>The early rains this analogy refers to light rains that occur in the fall of the year.

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<v Speaker 1>They were cold rains and that made life hard, especially for farmers.

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<v Speaker 1>The early rains were unpredictable.

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<v Speaker 1>They were a nuisance.

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<v Speaker 1>Really, they had no value for the harvest.

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<v Speaker 1>They actually interfered with the harvest in the fall.

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<v Speaker 1>Really, they had no value for the harvest.

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<v Speaker 1>They actually interfered with the harvest in the fall.

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<v Speaker 1>This picture here he's painting for us, the picture of inclement, unpredictable rains that made life hard, point to the unpredictable, difficult, hard times in our life that make us feel stuck or discouraged.

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<v Speaker 1>We have those times too.

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<v Speaker 1>However, when the Lord gives you his strength, those annoying, insignificant, cold little raindrops can be transformed into pools of usable drinking water to refresh you.

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<v Speaker 1>Listen Psalm 84, 6,.

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<v Speaker 1>Passing through the valley of Baca, they make it a spring.

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<v Speaker 1>The early rain also covers it with blessings.

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<v Speaker 1>Now, to get the point of that verse verse 6, you need to know that the psalmist is using a play on words here.

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<v Speaker 1>Here's how verse 6 is translated Passing through the valley of Baca, they make it a spring.

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<v Speaker 1>The early rain also covers it with blessings.

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<v Speaker 1>That's how the NASB translates it.

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<v Speaker 1>Then the NIV and ESV translate it passing through the valley of Baca, they make it a spring.

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<v Speaker 1>The early rain also covers it with pools.

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<v Speaker 1>Huh, there's a play on the word blessing here.

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<v Speaker 1>The Hebrew word for blessing is barakah.

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<v Speaker 1>The Hebrew word for pools, fresh water, is barakah.

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<v Speaker 1>Oh, it's the same word.

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<v Speaker 1>Oh, it's the same word.

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<v Speaker 1>The Lord's blessing transforms what would be annoying, insignificant, cold little raindrops into pools of refreshing, usable drinking water Blessing.

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<v Speaker 1>You know there's a Peanuts cartoon where Charlie Brown is at the beach.

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<v Speaker 1>He's carefully building a castle in the sand and after he finished he stood back to admire his work and just then the castle was engulfed by a huge wave and destroyed at all.

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<v Speaker 1>Looking at the place where his castle stood, he said.

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<v Speaker 1>Looking at the place where his castle stood, he said there must be a lesson here, but I don't know what it is.

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<v Speaker 1>Don't we sometimes feel like that, don't we?

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<v Speaker 1>Can I get an amen out there?

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<v Speaker 1>Thank you, are you here?

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<v Speaker 1>Yes, now let me say something For God's people.

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<v Speaker 1>There's always a lesson.

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<v Speaker 1>Always when disappointments come, and as we wait on God for strength, we discover that God can take the disasters of life, the inconveniences, the irritations, the difficulties and the difficult people and wrap them into pools of blessing.

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<v Speaker 1>My sister who passed away last year had a saying, and I've remembered this as she looked at our family.

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<v Speaker 1>We were not a well, you know our family.

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<v Speaker 1>There was a lot of brokenness, a lot of heartache, a lot of family that takes all of the disappointments and troubles and somehow we make something beautiful out of it, and I'm like that's what God wants to do.

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<v Speaker 1>He wants to do that, and so the secret is having a highway of worship in our heart, as we talked about last time.

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<v Speaker 1>It just keeps coming back to that.

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<v Speaker 1>As the prophet Habakkuk discovered, god can take any circumstance and make it a place of blessing, without ever changing the circumstances.

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<v Speaker 1>Listen to Habakkuk 3, verses 17-19.

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<v Speaker 1>Habakkuk says and, by the way, the context of this is Assyria is ready to invade the land of Israel.

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<v Speaker 1>They can see it coming.

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<v Speaker 1>They're going to get demolished.

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<v Speaker 1>And Habakkuk says you know what, though the fig tree should not blossom, there be no fruit on the vines, though the yield of the olives shall fail and the fields produce no food.

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<v Speaker 1>Though the flock should be cut off from the fold and there be no cattle in the stalls.

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<v Speaker 1>Yet I will exalt in the Lord.

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<v Speaker 1>I don't care what the circumstances are.

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<v Speaker 1>I will rejoice, not in my circumstances, in the God of my salvation.

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<v Speaker 1>The Lord God is my strength and he has made my feet like hinds feet, made me walk on my high places for the choir director and stringed instruments.

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<v Speaker 1>That brings us to the second result of finding our strength in the Lord in verse 7.

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<v Speaker 1>They go on from strength to strength.

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<v Speaker 1>They go on from strength to strength.

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<v Speaker 1>What does that mean?

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<v Speaker 1>First, it means they go on.

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<v Speaker 1>Okay, all right, got difficult circumstances.

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<v Speaker 1>You pass through the Valley of Baca, the light rains are messing everything up, yet as they find their strength in the Lord, they go on, they keep going, they don't give up, they don't retreat.

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<v Speaker 1>They not only go on, but the way the verse is put here, they grow in their strength.

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<v Speaker 1>What's interesting to me is the word strength here in verse 7 is different from the word strength in verse 5.

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<v Speaker 1>The word strength in verse 5, this doesn't mean anything to you, but I'm just going to tell you, the Hebrew word for strength in verse 5 is this doesn't mean anything to you, but I'm just going to tell you the Hebrew word for strength in verse 5 is az.

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<v Speaker 1>Isn't that a great word, az?

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<v Speaker 1>And then the word strength in verse 7 is hayil.

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<v Speaker 1>Hayil, but it's translated strength both times, because it means strength, just a different kind of strength.

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<v Speaker 1>Az refers to physical strength and stamina and Chayil refers to an inner strength of character, courage under fire, resolve to do the right thing, even if it costs me.

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<v Speaker 1>They go on from Chayil to Chayil and that brings us to the last result of finding our strength in the Lord from high to high.

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<v Speaker 1>And that brings us to the last result of finding our strength in the Lord through our heart of worship to the Lord.

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<v Speaker 1>The second part of verse 7,.

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<v Speaker 1>God gives us a higher priority to live for in these times.

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<v Speaker 1>Every one of them, they go on from strength to strength.

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<v Speaker 1>Every one of them appears before God in Zion.

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<v Speaker 1>What does that mean?

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<v Speaker 1>Well, as we go through, appearing before God in Zion, really a description of being in worship, being a time of worship of the Lord.

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<v Speaker 1>I believe what's happening here.

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<v Speaker 1>The psalmist is saying that, the blessed ones he has been talking about, those who find their strength in the Lord and are able to make the valley of Baca a place of springs, who can make the early rains into refreshing pools, they are the ones who will be found before God in worship there, there, before God, in worship there, there.

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<v Speaker 1>For them, worshiping God is a priority, it's not an option, because they know this is where God meets me and he gives me chayil, he gives me az to go on.

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<v Speaker 1>Finding the strength we need is linked here to making a priority in life to find ourselves before God and Zion with a heart of worship.

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<v Speaker 1>Perhaps that's why David said in Psalm 34, 1,.

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<v Speaker 1>I will bless the Lord at all times.

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<v Speaker 1>His praise shall continually be in my mouth.

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<v Speaker 1>That's David's secret.

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<v Speaker 1>You want to find strength in him?

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<v Speaker 1>Just don't stop praising him, no matter what the circumstance.

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<v Speaker 1>The truth is, to find the strength we need, we all need a highway in our heart to the Lord, which is what the psalm talked about last time.

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<v Speaker 1>And the good news of the gospel is that God has made a way right to our hearts, cleared the path of sin, opened the road to him through faith in Jesus Christ.

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<v Speaker 1>Peter kind of describes it this way in 1 Peter 3.18,.

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<v Speaker 1>For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, in other words, he who was righteous for us who are not righteous, so that he might bring us to God.

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<v Speaker 1>He made a highway, having been put to death in flesh but made alive in the spirit.

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<v Speaker 1>He died for your sins and rose from the dead in order to bring you and me right to God, right in our heart.

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<v Speaker 1>He opened the road, and to take that road, all we have to do, the Scripture tells us, is believe in Jesus as our Savior and Lord, and he will come into us and connect us with the living.

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<v Speaker 1>At the height of his acting career, when he had accomplished all kinds of wealth, fame, success, respect, paul Newman once said I'm just not happy.

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<v Speaker 1>I don't have inner serenity and I don't have the guts to do anything else about it.

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<v Speaker 1>I'm just not happy, had everything I ever wanted.

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<v Speaker 1>How do you explain that?

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<v Speaker 1>Because there's something in us that will never be satisfied without the living God connected to us.

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<v Speaker 1>See, you don't need guts to be happy, you need Jesus.

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<v Speaker 1>Acts, chapter 4, verse 13,.

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<v Speaker 1>Peter in his great sermon says there's salvation in no one else.

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<v Speaker 1>There's no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.

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<v Speaker 1>There's no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.

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<v Speaker 1>And so I leave you with Psalm 84 to think about, ponder, meditate on and begin to see these descriptions take place in your life.

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<v Speaker 1>I hope they do.

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<v Speaker 1>How blessed is the man whose trust is in you and whose heart are the highways to Zion Passing through the valley of Baca.

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<v Speaker 1>They make it a spring.

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<v Speaker 1>Early rain also covers it with blessings or pools.

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<v Speaker 1>They go on from strength to strength, every one of them who appears before God in Zion.

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<v Speaker 1>Let's pray together.

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<v Speaker 1>Thank you, father, that Jesus provided the way to you when he died for our sins and rose from the dead.

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<v Speaker 1>Thank you that you don't grow weary ever, but we do, and you desire to bless us with your divine strength when our heart is connected to you in worship.

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<v Speaker 1>I pray that we'd all experience that sense, especially when we're here on Sunday mornings, especially when we sing praises to you in worship.

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<v Speaker 1>I pray that we'd all experience that sense, especially when we're here on Sunday mornings, especially when we sing praises to you, when we fellowship together.

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<v Speaker 1>Pray that your spirit would just fill us with your presence.

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<v Speaker 1>Help us, lord, to open our hearts to you first, to receive Jesus and the promise of eternal life, and then to worship you with all our heart.

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<v Speaker 1>I pray in Jesus' name, amen.