Episode 32 You Will Come Through the Fire...

We are back on trials in this episode! As a follower of Christ we should not say if we go through a fiery trial, but when we do! Just as this whole podcast is based after, Picking up Your Cross will ultimately take sacrifice and commitment! Sometimes that will lead down a trial for you to endure! 

We have a Savior in whom we Love and we have never seen HIM! How is that possible? We invite you to our services on Sunday to hear more on this topic! 

As always we thank you for joining us

Bro. Lane, Bro. Philip, Bro. Ryan, Bro. David

Transcript

SPEAKER_04 0:10

Welcome to the Pick It Up Podcast, the podcast where we'll discuss what it means to pick up your cross and follow Christ. Living a life for Christ takes commitment, sacrifice, and ultimately being obedient to his word. Not only on Sundays, but every day. God's word says it, that settles it. So pray about it, practice it, and proclaim it. Let's get into it.

SPEAKER_03 0:37

Like turning up real big. When you turned the initial volume up last time. Oh, I got you. It's like, no weird. Good morning. What's up? What's up?

SPEAKER_01 0:46

What's up? Well, fellas. Pumped and ready.

SPEAKER_03 0:50

Morning.

SPEAKER_01 0:54

How's everybody this morning?

SPEAKER_04 0:55

Take a deep breath this morning. Stay calm.

SPEAKER_01 0:58

Little is much when God is in it. That's the first note I got on my paper right there.

SPEAKER_00 1:04

Baby, not for the city. We've been singing that sucker since Sunday.

SPEAKER_04 1:10

Yeah, I can. Don't preach.

SPEAKER_00 1:11

I got Elliot singing it now. Actually, I seen Watson have a page of notes over there, and I asked him, That's your sermon notes from Sunday? Yep. First line that. Good song. I've been singing it since Sunday.

SPEAKER_04 1:28

I've been singing it since you were three, weren't you, preacher? Yep, pretty much.

SPEAKER_01 1:33

Oh man. Song that was stuck in my head was Let Me Tell You About My Jesus. Yep.

SPEAKER_00 1:39

That was a good one too. Great, great stuff, good stuff. We had a good great service Sunday.

SPEAKER_04 1:46

We did. Good service. Baptism service. We kind of talked about that a little bit a while ago. You were had the opportunity to baptize Miss Sue Sunday morning. Yep. So another one bites. Well, not another one bites the dust. Another one gained, I guess, right? I'll have to listen to it on my way to Palm Bluff today. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 2:06

Or my workout. He didn't watch it live. He had security signs.

SPEAKER_01 2:12

He was protecting the stuff. Somebody's got to do it. You gotta have your earbud in listening to it, buddy.

SPEAKER_04 2:17

We gotta get them TVs fixed up.

SPEAKER_01 2:20

Yeah, that's done been.

SPEAKER_04 2:23

Yeah. I mean, you're supposed to be put on the schedule. That's that guy's fault.

SPEAKER_01 2:29

It's always that other guy. That's what I'm talking about. You just gotta guy's fault. It is.

SPEAKER_03 2:35

O'Ron, you had a late night last night.

SPEAKER_01 2:38

I did. Got one more baseball game. And then the season is over. We played Monticella Friday night. Under the lights. Yep. We played Star City last night and we smoked them. But makes for a late night. Then for y'all to get me up here at six in the morning.

SPEAKER_04 3:01

Listen to him. Make him get up here at six in the morning.

SPEAKER_01 3:04

That's the message I got last night. Six in the morning. I was asleep when I said a question mark. I'll tell you to myself, why can't we do it at seven?

SPEAKER_04 3:13

Because I gotta take kids to school.

SPEAKER_01 3:15

That's a personal issue, but that's a personal issue.

SPEAKER_03 3:19

You got only V and Cal and had a game last night. They won both of their games.

SPEAKER_01 3:25

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 3:26

I guess it's that time of the year, huh? Man, look, I I uh uh this time of year with the temperature that it is, I ain't complaining. It's nice.

SPEAKER_03 3:35

It's nice outside. I was away in a truck yesterday and I was like, it feels good out here.

SPEAKER_01 3:40

Yeah. Yeah, Tanner. Tanner texts me uh on the way to the game, he rode with Brother John, you know, and he said, Phillips got another one pulled up.

SPEAKER_03 3:50

Yeah, I saw him when he passed by. Had the wind looked down looking.

SPEAKER_04 3:57

Well, uh preacher, we've been in First Peter for the past, I guess, going on three weeks.

SPEAKER_00 4:05

Yep, something like that. We don't know how long this is gonna go, but we'll see. Trials after trials. I know we are gonna go a little bit further. Um I guess verse 8, 9, 10, 11, right through there. Yeah, we'll read 1 Peter this time next year.

SPEAKER_04 4:23

Probably so. That's okay. Lord willing. Now the Lord leads. That's right.

SPEAKER_03 4:29

That's right. I do have to say Rusty did a good job last week. Oh, yeah. I enjoyed listening.

SPEAKER_04 4:35

And he won't ever listen to that podcast because he won't pull it up.

SPEAKER_01 4:39

It was a good one for sure.

SPEAKER_04 4:41

I think it I started thinking about that.

SPEAKER_01 4:42

For us to tell him 10 minutes before we get on, yeah. Hey, you're on today, they do good.

SPEAKER_03 4:47

Some people you can't prepare. Yeah, some people you can do it too, some people you can't do.

SPEAKER_04 4:53

Well, that's what I was gonna say. I started thinking about that after we got him on, you know, over the different you know, we started with Tyler Jones, very first second podcast we ever did. We had Tyler up here. All the way through Rusty, you know, all the different, you know, guest speakers we've had up here, you know, just hearing everybody's story is just unreal.

SPEAKER_03 5:14

I was thinking about Terry Lee being up here. Yeah, we've had some good guests for sure.

SPEAKER_04 5:19

Have we had Terry Lee up here? We have Terry Lee. I don't think we had Terry Lee up there.

SPEAKER_03 5:25

I'm pretty sure he sat right there because he talked about LG and everything else.

SPEAKER_01 5:30

Man, I don't think so, buddy.

SPEAKER_03 5:32

I'm telling you.

SPEAKER_01 5:34

I might go back, rehear some of these things.

SPEAKER_00 5:36

He can go back and look. We get close to season two, aren't we? Season two.

SPEAKER_04 5:42

Yeah, I gotta think when we started. This is episode 31. We started in September, October, something like that. But anyway. Well, y'all gonna dive deep on today. What's been on y'all's mind?

SPEAKER_01 5:56

What's been share your notes with us, Watson? Man, I don't know if I can read them. No, you said some interesting stuff. Uh, if I write it down, it's interesting. But uh you it's some you talked about maturity, you talked about being obedient. I mean, there was a lot of good points you hit on Sunday morning. Um, and what was as crazy is where I'm kind of going through this too, studying this as well. And I I with it being on my mind so much, I talked about it in Sunday school a little bit, and then you keyed on it that morning. And uh I talked to the kids a little bit more about mercy and grace and what it means. And but one thing I brought up to them is where it says in verse 3, all praise to God the Father, our our Lord Jesus Christ. It is by his great mercy that we have been born again. And I don't know exactly how y'all's other versions of the Bible put it. I think King James says something else, new King James says something else. Abundant mercy. Abundant mercy. Well, the the born again part.

SPEAKER_00 7:08

Oh, okay.

SPEAKER_01 7:09

Yeah. And something I keyed on with them Sunday morning was we we used the word Christian lightly. I told them I wouldn't even use that word anymore. You know. It's so broad. Yeah, yeah, it don't mean nothing. Right. No nothing to it anymore. But to say the words born again, some action took place.

SPEAKER_00 7:29

Yep.

SPEAKER_01 7:30

You know, and their change needs to come about. So that's really what I keyed in on on Sunday morning with them. And then you jumped in right behind me, I guess.

SPEAKER_04 7:44

You brought that inheritance word up at Grand Manor to kind of end the night. And I thought about it kind of maybe flashbacks to the first time I ever spoke at Grand Manor. And I don't know why, but I was talking about inheritance, and I was a nervous cat about it because I was like, I don't even be talking about the inheritance to these people, you know. But then you brought it up Sunday and made me laugh about it. But man, it was so practical, so practical. They needed to hear it, you know. But just that ver that next verse in verse four to speaks volume for sure.

SPEAKER_00 8:14

Yeah, man. An inheritance incorruptible, undefined, it fades not away. Gotta love it. Before we ever got to verse 7 of 1 Peter chapter 1, I think you'd have referenced it, Watson about the gold and the fire and tested, and impurities rising to the top. Yep. And and what that means by us. And I think one of your first notes you made for Sunday was I talked to you said I talked about maturing. Yeah. And that uh the growing process, the maturing process in anybody's life includes trials, includes trouble. And uh I think I made this comment why as parents understand that. And therefore, you have to allow your children to fall. You have to allow them to mess up because that's how you mature. Some of the most valuable lessons you ever learned in life come as a result of going through some stuff.

SPEAKER_01 9:11

Well, you made that comment about your kids. You know even in their maturing process, you still want to be dad and step in and fix it and do it for them.

SPEAKER_00 9:20

You want to shield them.

SPEAKER_01 9:21

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 9:21

But if you shield your child growing up his entire life, what are you gonna get when they're 21 years old?

SPEAKER_01 9:28

Yeah, that's exactly right. You know, spoiled a kid, maybe.

SPEAKER_00 9:31

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 9:32

Experience.

SPEAKER_00 9:34

I thought knows that about us in our spiritual life, maturing spiritually, growing in Christ. God knows. Yeah. You're gonna have to experience some stuff. Therefore, He allows it.

SPEAKER_04 9:43

I thought about that. Excuse me. I thought about that Sunday when you said that word shielding. What are you shielding them from? Are you shielding them from the wiles what you said you may use the phrase? You need to make sure that you're not shielding them from everything. Are you shielding, are you trying not to shield them from the wiles of the devil? Or are you shielding them from being physically, spiritually?

SPEAKER_00 10:15

You got you got here's a here's an example of that. So you're sitting in your chair at the house, and Elliot comes in the living room, he goes to jump in on the trampoline, and you know good and well that dude's fixing the head sideways and fall and bump his heels. I'm about to let him do it. And therefore you say to Elliot, I know what's fixing to happen. Do you stop it? Yep. He looks at you like, ain't nothing gonna happen to me. Well, he needs to learn his lesson. So you're gonna have to let him fall. Yep. That's right. It's that principle.

SPEAKER_04 10:40

I got you. So the next time you don't have to tell me. You're not shielding them from sin. You're not shielding them from what the world has to do.

SPEAKER_00 10:45

You're trying to shield them from pain.

SPEAKER_04 10:46

That's right.

SPEAKER_00 10:47

I got you. You're trying to shield them from suffering. You're trying to shield them from.

SPEAKER_01 10:51

Well, it it's the same way as pastors. We try to shield the flock from not doing something to protect them. But ultimately, the only way they're gonna learn is because they're hard-headed.

SPEAKER_04 11:03

Yeah. Well, you have people that might say, Well, I'm gonna let my kid go do this. In the end, they're gonna hopefully learn not to do it again, as far as go to this party, go take whatever. You know what I'm saying? I'm I'm trying to put it lightly, but you have a lot of parents that say, Well, I'm just gonna let my kid do whatever, so that ultimately they're gonna learn. But in the end, do you need to be shielding them from that sin? Whether it be that would be that party or would be I I feel like I'm beating around the bush, but I'm saying I kind of sort of do.

SPEAKER_01 11:43

You're saying keep them away from yes, like keep them away from that. Well, I think as a parent, that is your goal. Right. Is to keep them away. Yeah, they're gonna sneak around and do stuff behind you.

SPEAKER_04 11:54

Yeah, absolutely.

SPEAKER_01 11:55

But you preach and teach to them, no. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 11:59

That's one thing to uh allow them to learn a lesson that you know that might hurt them a little bit, but if you know that it's gonna hurt them significantly, possibly even cause their life, yeah, you're gonna step in, you're gonna shield them. And I think that that would be the case with sin. Yeah. And I don't think that principle is not necessarily talking about sin in aspects, because you're gonna try to shield them and keep them from that for sure. Yeah. When they're younger. Yeah. But it's talking about just practical, just the everyday thing. That's the way you learn. How do you ride a bicycle? You don't ever learn to ride a bicycle unless you you get on one. Right. And that parent's gonna hold on that bicycle, but eventually you're gonna have to let go. And whatever happens, happens. But that's how they learn to roll on their own.

SPEAKER_01 12:43

This thought comes to my mind as Tanner. You know, he he curfew. You know, just the thought of curfew. Telling your kid to go to bed at a certain time, you know. He's like, Well, I gotta go to bed this early. My kid or my friends get to stay up a little bit later than this. You know, they even through that, they don't understand what we're protecting them from. You know, just don't nothing good happen after a certain time and and you're gonna be wore out the next day. Yeah, you know, something they'll recognize later on in life.

SPEAKER_04 13:17

And I guess that's where I'm coming from. Like most parents, Watson, would say, all right, well, just stay up. Here's your phone, stay up as late as you want to stay up. And you know ain't nothing good. Like you said, nothing good's gonna go on past 10 o'clock on a phone.

SPEAKER_00 13:29

How do you handle as a parent when you have a 25-year-old who's got a family of his own, makes the decision or contemplated making the decision to go out here and enter into the m a mortgage of a $500,000 house, you know, or or buy uh a ranger for $50,000, you know, you're trying to feed your children, they turn into me to help buy shoes and whatnot. But yet, do you let them go? You know good well it's gonna bankrupt them.

SPEAKER_04 13:58

You know good and well it's gonna Mike self would do it in a heartbeat, and he did it. He'd chew me out for it, but he'd let me do it, and he'd let me learn my lesson over it. That's what I'm saying.

SPEAKER_00 14:10

After even even as adults, you know, uh, we're still parents. Yeah. Yeah. There are times you gotta keep your mouth shut. You know what's gonna happen. You've done been there and done that.

SPEAKER_01 14:21

Well, I I think of that. I think of that, and the kids that kids watch how their parents raise them.

SPEAKER_04 14:30

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 14:30

You know. And the ones, you can know the ones that are really trying to I don't know where I'm going with this, but really trying to do right, you know. And they're mature enough to to see what the outcome may be before it happens.

SPEAKER_02 14:46

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 14:46

You know, so then you have your kids that say, hey, I'm just gonna try it anyway.

SPEAKER_03 14:52

Well, I think that, like you said, it comes with experience because you have some kids that mature earlier than others because of what they experienced early on.

SPEAKER_04 14:59

Well, ain't no doubt.

SPEAKER_03 15:01

No, like you have some kids that experience the worst at 10, 12 years old, and some kids won't ever experience that till they're 20, 25. You know, and the kid that experiences early, they probably don't have really a mother or father that they look up to or anything. They just kind of put on their own and do their own thing. I I'm that was me. You know, I ten, twelve years old, I'm running around Hamburg and doing what I want to, you know. Of course I didn't do anything bad, but um and then, you know, I had that experience and maturity to myself that I I've always been told that I'm more mature for my age than most of the other kids. You had to mature early. Yeah. And then so at a twenty years old, twenty-one, twenty-two, you know, I didn't care about drinking or nothing like that. Because that had the experience of what that does to families and things like that. I've already seen it. Yeah, I already seen it. I didn't want nothing to do with it, you know, and so but you have kids the same age that that's they're just now starting, you know. And so seeing the other side of it, you know, can make a difference. Yep.

SPEAKER_01 16:16

Man, there's so many things in my life I wish I could go back in the early twenties and late teens and change and redo, and but that's maturing as well, learning through it.

SPEAKER_00 16:27

Well, you roll all you roll all that back around to the spiritual aspect of things.

SPEAKER_02 16:31

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 16:31

All right. That's a comparison of parents and children and raising and maturing and growing and all that. Same way with God growing us into what he wants us to be. You know, he has to allow things to come along in our lives, that's trials. And uh the reason is is to grow our faith.

SPEAKER_01 16:48

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 16:48

And that's something to think about. Is uh all right, faith is faith, right? And then you we speak of growing it. And and this the process in growing our faith is is that it's uh it's our fathers, our heavenly father, who gives us that measure of faith. He gives us a little leeway.

SPEAKER_01 17:07

I was just missing to bring it up.

SPEAKER_00 17:09

But then uh then he ultimately is trying to get us to where he wants us to be. I use the example because we're in 1 Peter, Sunday morning, of the time in Peter's life as to where uh you know Jesus was arrested and he denied him three times. You think about the lesson he learned. You know, you can imagine Jesus is arrested and uh being uh persecuted, obviously, and uh him and Peter make eye contact. You know what I'm saying? Peter's in a distance, he's watching, he's denying that he knows him, and then Jesus looks at him. Can you imagine those eyes looking at him? And then at the same time, it's filled with love and grace and mercy. He knew he was gonna mess up, but then he he pulled him back in. Yep. Yep. In other words, he was thinking, all right, Peter, you're gonna have to experience this, but here's why. I need you to know this going forward. And as a result of that trial that Peter went through, I mean, we have the books he's written, we have the life.

SPEAKER_01 18:12

I I've thought about that a lot. Where where did that maturing process take place?

SPEAKER_04 18:17

With Peter.

SPEAKER_01 18:18

Was it around that campfire when when he he was standing around sitting around that campfire eating those fish, you know, after all that took place and and sitting with the one he just denied three times? And Jesus looked at it.

SPEAKER_00 18:35

You're talking about after the resurrection. Yeah. I thought you'd been to the campfire where he denied him. Yeah, I see what you're saying.

SPEAKER_01 18:40

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 18:40

And he you know he approached it like a little puppy dog and all coward down.

SPEAKER_01 18:43

Yeah. Oh, he's sitting there with that head down thinking, I hope he don't bring us up. I really hope he. Uh because you've been you've been in that place where you've you've you know done somebody wrong or felt like you have, and then you get around them awkward, just awkward. And you ever did God wrong?

SPEAKER_00 19:03

Oh, yeah. Did y'all have I mean Peter did God wrong? Yeah. Have you ever done that? You ever denied him when you should have spoken up for him? Of course. You did not say something when you should have said something, isn't denying it. Well, you'll have an opportunity to come back to God. And there's conviction, there's guilt, and there's shame, there's regret, there's remorse.

SPEAKER_01 19:23

The campfire experience.

SPEAKER_00 19:25

So how do you how do you address that with God? How do you make things right with God? What do you do? Is it simple prayer?

SPEAKER_01 19:34

I think it's a yeah, I think it's coming real with Him, you know. It's an inner peace that you got to do. Can you just say it? Prayer and time.

SPEAKER_00 19:42

Well, I confess my sin.

SPEAKER_01 19:45

How many times a day do I tell God I'm sorry? I shouldn't have done that. Or you know. Do you mean it? But do you change it? Do you change things?

SPEAKER_00 19:54

Amen.

SPEAKER_01 19:54

Does it result in change?

SPEAKER_00 19:56

Does it result in maturity?

SPEAKER_01 19:58

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 19:58

All right, I'm not gonna let this happen again.

SPEAKER_01 20:01

Yeah. So I I wrote on here one of the comments you made, you know, maturing is a continued process. You continually mature in life. But to every trial, there's an ending.

SPEAKER_00 20:14

Amen. You know, and the reason I say that is because on the authority of scripture for a season. That's what it says in verse 6. That you go through this for a season, for a little while, it's not gonna last forever. And I've lived 60 years, I've been married 40 years, and that's why I was telling church, we've been through some stuff in our 40 years of marriage. Uh, and I'm here to tell you, and everybody else here can too. It does not last forever. You come out on the other side, and that's biblical. You can survive it, you will survive it. And how do I know that? Well, the Bible tells me so. So does life.

SPEAKER_01 20:52

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 20:53

So you're you're riding down the road listening to this podcast, and here we're talking, and you're you're there, you're in the fire, you're in the middle of it. Maybe it's a relational issue, maybe it's a job issue or boss issue, or I don't know, a financial to struggle, a physical. You just recently got a diagnosis, so many various trials that it could be. Then take heart in knowing that it will not last forever. You will come through the fire. All things come to an end.

SPEAKER_01 21:22

Well, the the five things you listed was trials that you may go through, maybe financially, you know, physically, emotionally, spiritually, and morally. You know, just a handful of things right there that you may go through as a trial.

SPEAKER_00 21:38

And as a pastor, I can tell you this you'll you'll you'll encounter somebody who the worst of the worst, will it be losing a spouse, you know, grieving emotional. And then you'll experience that person that has the, I think uh what I use Sunday morning, the ingrown toenail. Yeah. But that's a physical deal. But then the other one is so you. You got both perspectives. Let's say you got a one meeting at nine o'clock, one meeting at 10 o'clock. Well, on the first meeting, you're dealing with grief over death. The second one, you're dealing with an enigromed toenail. But they're they're equally the same because it's real to that person. Oh, yeah. Does that make sense? I'm trying to, you know, whatever it is your struggle, do do not allow somebody to tell you that it's not significant because it is. Yeah. It is. It's very, very real. It's very, it can be agonizing, it can be traumatizing. But then the other side of that is this God knows it. He's allowing it. And so see the opportunity in it. Here's a chance for me to grow. Here's a chance for me to gain a little bit of ground here. You know?

SPEAKER_01 22:41

With with every one of these that you named, financially, physically, emotionally, morally, but you also use the word spiritually. I think uh every trial goes back spiritually. You know, yeah. If it is the ingrown toenail or losing a spouse or maybe facing something at work that you've got to morally conquer.

SPEAKER_04 23:03

Ultimately it ends with spirituality.

SPEAKER_01 23:04

Yeah, it all with where you're at spiritually with God.

SPEAKER_00 23:12

Um I don't understand it yet. I really don't know how to put it into words. But I think I've I've come to understand that it's there. And by this coming Sunday I'll have it down, I hope. But that's the very first part of verse eight. We're talking about verses six and seven of 1 Peter chapter 1. The very first part of eight, right after he speaks of those trials and the reward of the trials, which is praise and honor, glory, and to Jesus Christ, and then he tells these folks writing, whom whom having not seen, you love. Think about that a minute. Peter had seen Jesus up close and personal for three years, walked with him. He seen him prior to the rest, prior to the cross, and then he's seen him after the cross. But he's writing to a group of people here who'd never seen him. Philip, how you love something you never seen? Think about how much harder that is in our current day in our current reality, where everything is visual. Everything is visual. We got it in our pockets. I mean, everything is visual. We are visual people, but yet we can't see Jesus. But yet we still how do you how do you know? How do you believe in something you can't see? That's what he's telling them.

SPEAKER_01 24:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 24:33

And he's he's encouraging this crowd, says, Y'all ain't never seen him. But yet you love him. That's a that's a that's a that's amazing. On the other hand, here I'm giving you a personal testimony. I'm writing you an authority of somebody who walked with him, who's been there, done that. I mean, I saw him after the resurrection by the fire. I've experienced his.

SPEAKER_01 24:59

I love uh you said that uh Sunday morning that Peter seen him as a teacher. Now I added a little bit to this, but he's seen him as a teacher, as a preacher, sweating blood. He's seen him as a loving person, as an angry person. He's seen him transfigured, good man, man and descended. He's seen everything about Jesus, you know. So he was on fire. He didn't have trouble loving it. Yeah. He was on fire and he was trying to get these scattered Christians, I use the word Christian, but scattered believers to the same point he was at.

SPEAKER_00 25:29

That's right. He's trying to get them to see it.

SPEAKER_01 25:31

And that's why I brought up that word born again versus Christian. Because they need to see action needs to take place. When you become a follower of Christ, you got a new life.

SPEAKER_00 25:44

There's love. Yep. You hadn't seen him, but you love him. Yep. You are born. And when you love something or somebody, it's gonna show in your life.

SPEAKER_01 25:53

Yep.

SPEAKER_00 25:54

When you really, really love him.

SPEAKER_01 25:57

So I go back to I've had go ahead. Well, I was just gonna say, I go back to when Jesus met with Nicodemus. You know, he brought up born again. Yeah, he said, you got to be born again.

SPEAKER_00 26:07

Ain't no other way to do it.

SPEAKER_01 26:08

Yeah. It ain't you become, you don't, I wrote on here, you just don't become a Christian without changing born again. You got to be born again.

SPEAKER_00 26:19

Well, how how much of that do you think these who have Finley Sunday really grasp that concept?

SPEAKER_01 26:29

I brought that up Sunday morning, you know. We get saved at a young age.

SPEAKER_00 26:33

At a six-year-old, seven-year-old, eight-year-old, nine-year-old to really grasp the fact that okay, I must be born again.

SPEAKER_01 26:39

No, I it it's they don't comprehend it, I don't think. That's just me talking. But it's maturity as they grow.

SPEAKER_00 26:46

So do we shield them and say you need to wait until you're old enough to comprehend this? Or do we let allow them to follow? I think don't Jesus.

SPEAKER_01 26:56

Jesus says, Come to me as a child, childlike faith.

SPEAKER_00 26:59

That's been a debatable topic for years and years and years, in the age of accountability, what we're talking about. But I I've I've come down on the side of this. Who's gonna stand in the way? That's between the sinner and the savior. It ain't gonna be me. You're not gonna, because Jesus says it'd be better if you have a rock tied around your neck and throw it in the river than to keep somebody standing for me. I'm not standing in the way.

SPEAKER_01 27:20

Well, you can't now, now that I'm what'd you I ain't gonna say that one more again? Might be our new title for the day. What'd you say?

SPEAKER_00 27:26

I have no idea what that's on a rock in the river? No, tie a rope. That's scripture.

SPEAKER_01 27:33

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 27:35

That'd be about what he said. Is it better for you to have a rope tied around your neck than to prohibit one of these little ones from coming into me?

SPEAKER_01 27:45

That's better for you to drown than this show, people. You know, growing up, you could have convinced me, but you can't convince me now that I wasn't saved at nine years old. I struggled with that forever. Growing up, the process, the thinking of the process. Well, I didn't know enough at nine. Or, you know, the devil tried to convince me for a long time. You couldn't be saved at nine. Well, why couldn't I? I did what God's word said I had to do to be saved.

SPEAKER_03 28:17

And you truly in your heart loved him at that time.

SPEAKER_01 28:20

Yeah. Now I yeah, I didn't at that time know what the cross was and what it meant and what it represented. I didn't understand the miraculous miracle of the resurrection, you know. I didn't understand to comprehend.

SPEAKER_03 28:34

Maybe you did, maybe you didn't just don't understand it like now.

SPEAKER_01 28:37

I had enough faith to just say it happened. Right. You know, it ha if the Bible said it happened, it happened.

SPEAKER_04 28:42

Well, here's a good point right here. When you're born, do you remember when you were born when you came out of your mother's womb? I don't remember a minute of it. Exactly. You know, you think you think about that as a new Christian or even a young child, you know, they might not remember that. I hate to use this word feeling, but they might not remember, but they know and they know for a fact that they asked God to save them. Therefore, they know they might not know the term of born again, but they know when that day started.

SPEAKER_01 29:09

You know what the issue was with Nicodemus? Now, I don't know the outcome. I really don't. People got saved that day or not.

SPEAKER_04 29:16

Right.

SPEAKER_01 29:16

But the issue with Nicodemus was he was trying to figure it all out before he got saved.

SPEAKER_04 29:22

He's trying to put too much knowledge into it.

SPEAKER_01 29:24

And and Jesus is like, you got to have faith, man. You know? Yeah. And that's what the world comes to a lot of times, these people wanting to figure it all out. Yeah. And you know, Logan, LG was there. He's like, man, I need to figure this stuff out before I just commit. Right. And then he finally said, no, I'm gonna commit. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 29:43

That's probably the good thing about doing it at a young age. You don't think about it too hard.

SPEAKER_01 29:48

Well, that's why Jesus tells us to come to him in a child-like faith.

SPEAKER_03 29:53

Right. It's it's hard for some people to understand that though.

SPEAKER_01 29:57

You know, you tell a kid, they just trust you. You can tell a kid, hey, this is why you do this. Okay, dad, whatever. I agree with you.

SPEAKER_04 30:05

But man, I have witnessed so many like different instances of kids. I've witnessed ones that come to my office or come to me, and man, they I don't even have to have, I don't even have to talk to them. They're just sitting there telling me exactly what they did. I know for a fact, you know. There's no question. And there too, again, I've had kids of man, they're really shy to talk to me. They don't really want to answer my questions. That's fine. But I still have to come to that mindset of, hey, I'm not stepping in the way. If you're saying you did this, well, that's you, you know, kind of deal. And then also, if I've had kids that come to my office and they ain't got a clue.

SPEAKER_01 30:40

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 30:41

Don't have a clue. And therefore, that's where I'm gonna step in as a pastor and say, listen, I'm not, I'm gonna tell you, do not leave my office until you make this decision. But ultimately, I want you to know what you're doing before you make this decision. Yeah, take some time. And then ultimately they leave the office. I'll tell you one instance for example, and I don't think they'll mind me using it, Stetson Bradley. I remember when Stetson got safe. Stetson walked to my office. We had a good call, good, good conversation, good talk. And Stetson wasn't ready. He said, I'm good. I'm not ready yet. Mariah was down the hall. I said, I'll tell you what, Stetson, I'm gonna pray for you. And if you have any more questions, you come find me. Walked out, well, prayed. Me and Stetson walked out, me and me met us down the hallway, and Stetson looked at me and said, Can I go back in there? Yeah, sure. I'm gonna go back in there by myself. All right. Goes in my office, shuts my door, and I can hear him start praying in there. I looked at me and I said, That's all it took. It wasn't me. I had to get out of the way, kind of deal. And let Stetson do this. Sure enough, but in that instance, he got saved.

SPEAKER_00 31:43

Share, read for us Matthew chapter 18, first six verses. I'm gonna go blow my nose while you read this.

SPEAKER_04 31:49

Matthew 18, the first six. Yeah. Says, at that time the disciples came to Jesus saying, Who then is greatest in the kingdom of heaven? Then Jesus called a little child to him, set him in the midst of them, and said, Assuredly I say to you, unless you are converted and become as little children, you will by no means enter the kingdom of heaven. Therefore, whoever humbles himself as this little child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Whoever receives one little child is like this, and my name receives me. Whoever causes one of these little ones who believe in me to sin, it would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were drowned in the depth of the sea.

SPEAKER_01 32:30

Preacher had to make his point. That's part of who we are. A kid of just trust. And that's where Jesus wants us to be. Hey, he just wants us to trust him.

SPEAKER_04 32:50

You bring a very good point right there, because there's a lot of parents that will stand in the way that will shield them. You talk about shielding, that will shield their kids from making this decision because they don't think they're ready.

SPEAKER_01 33:02

Well, that's that's what you were saying, you know. You know, we're we don't need to be the one to say, no, you ain't quite there. Now, do I worry like my kids were saved at a young age. So I constantly, you know, ask them, why are you saved?

unknown 33:19

You know.

SPEAKER_01 33:19

Nothing else wrong. No, but it it does. It helps me understand where they're at, but it also helps them when they get to my age or in their teens to say, well, I know this is why I'm saved. You know. I don't know. Uh hey, there's another statement you you made. A couple more I'm gonna bring up here. So trials are real and they're heavy, but brief and necessary. That's how you said it. Trials are real and they're heavy. Every trial you've going through, it's they like some weight.

SPEAKER_04 34:00

They like that rock across your neck. Yeah. That rope across your room.

SPEAKER_01 34:02

But they got some weight to them.

SPEAKER_00 34:04

Or it wouldn't be a trial. I think the NLT uses the word endure. Why the King James uses the word heaviness. Heaviness through manifold temptations that reads in my Bible. But that word heaviness is that idea. And then I used also the example, the the Greek word used there is the same one in Matthew 26, where Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. And talked about him sweating great drops of blood. It's that same heaviness. Very real, very trying, very tough. Um but for a season. Yeah. And I think last week was wonderful. And Kim made the comment too. Uh she said hearing Philip and Rusty go back and forth, you know, especially with some of the physical and financial and different difficulty they face in life, that makes it so real. You know, and during that time where you're in it, oh my gosh. Yeah, it's heavy. I don't know. That's just a word of synthesis.

SPEAKER_04 35:06

I'm gonna tell you, I'm gonna tell you something just because we've been talking about it. Uh talk about heaviness kind of deal. Um I think it's pretty heavy. I say it's pretty heavy, but not necessarily ever gone through a huge trial, but yet knowing that what's coming kind of deal. But I think that's pretty that weighs on my life kind of deal.

SPEAKER_01 35:40

Well, I I've sit here through your sermon and through this this morning, thought about, you know, hey, I've been through some stuff, but I ain't been faced with a trial that I'm I ain't been faced with a brain bleed. Yeah, I I'm I've never been upset or mad with God.

SPEAKER_04 35:55

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 35:56

You know, right. And I think about what you said Sunday morning about your grandkid.

SPEAKER_04 36:01

Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 36:01

And I remember the story you telling me you were mad. Like you done. You were, yeah. You were just, yeah, done. And I'm I'm scared of that trial.

SPEAKER_00 36:13

You know, I'm scared that trial's gonna hit me one day and I'm gonna be tested or you know, there wasn't a this there it wasn't a it was not a mistake that during that time when that baby died, and Kim and I were in Romania, and we're we're on our way home. We we had to make our way home. So the missionary carries us four hours, two o'clock in the morning, to I can't remember the name of the city there in Romania. But anyway, uh it was in the dead of night, and it wasn't nobody in that airport, nobody could speak English. And here Kim and I were trying to, and we didn't have a flight. We have to get a flight, we got to get home. And uh it wasn't a mistake that it was at that time in the middle of that airport where nobody around couldn't talk to nobody, just me and Kim. Uh that I got me and God had it out.

SPEAKER_01 37:10

Yeah. And I was done. Well, do you that the this thought came to my mind because you're a fixer. You won't fix things. At that moment, God was saying to you, You can't fix this, Dave. You got to trust in me. You can't fix this.

SPEAKER_00 37:25

Yep. That's my little boy though.

SPEAKER_01 37:28

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 37:28

My little John John. Yep. Let me ask you. He's having old enough to have children, but still my baby boy.

SPEAKER_04 37:34

Let me ask you this. Did you mature in the fact of the trial that your son went to? Did you mature in the fact that God grew you in that aspect and through that trial? Oh, no doubt. Our whole family. Yeah. I guess that's my point, you know. And Watson, I think you even brought up point with Philip last week, you know, when we went in the room right before you had surgery and everything, and you and Marcia just had that peace. So you have Bible verses written all over your hands and everything. But just I kind of matured, I know you said that last week. We kind of matured in your trial, but yet matured in it because we saw the peace that came over y'all. Ultimately, you knew the end result's either I'm gonna come out of the surgery or I'm gonna be in the arms of Jesus, kind of deal. Yep. As crazy as that is, but maturing over someone else's trials.

SPEAKER_01 38:22

Yeah. Well, God allows us to go through trials to teach others.

SPEAKER_00 38:27

Yeah. Well, it was interesting. That that particular one was interesting because as you said a while ago, you you know it's coming. Yeah. And so we knew through an ultrasound that we knew that the that little baby, Jay, was his name, he didn't have any kidneys. That's where he formed in the womb. Yet he was in his mama's womb, he's kicking, doing all that. And was born, but knew that he would not survive. And he didn't he took one breath, maybe.

SPEAKER_02 38:53

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 38:54

Uh and uh we knew that in advance, but it it did not the knowledge of it did not shield you from the grief. Oh, yeah. Yeah. And and and the hurt and the pain. And mine was more angry with the fact that God had me halfway around the world in Romania. And when he knew this baby was gonna be born, he knew I needed to be beside my kids when this happened, but yet I'm halfway around the world. And I had it out with the Lord. I said, I've been beside all these people all these years. And when my own need me the most, here I am over here. I don't like it.

SPEAKER_04 39:28

Were you at the beginning of y'all's mission? Were you all at the beginning of your mission trip like y'all just got over there? Halfway through.

SPEAKER_00 39:34

Yep.

SPEAKER_01 39:34

You made a you made a comment to me a while back and it stuck with me. You know, was some another obstacle, trial, or something that you went through, and the fact that you never knew where God would use this at, but eventually did.

SPEAKER_00 39:49

Yeah, that's right. Yeah, at the time, you don't know. I don't know. Lord, I don't know your intention or your plan. But you finally get to the place where, well, you know, I'm gonna have to hear here where I got to trust you.

SPEAKER_01 40:00

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 40:01

And and lean on you. And I did.

SPEAKER_01 40:03

So trust is easy for kids, but it's difficult for adults. You know. Because the world burns us, you know. We we get worldly things will mess you up, and and God is like, I'm not worldly. Yeah. You know, you got to you got to put a little more faith into me than you do this world.

SPEAKER_00 40:22

When you know things are coming, you know, and you know it, and you can lay awake tonight and think about it, but at some point in time you go ahead and lay down and go sleep. You know, you can only do that when you have that peace from God, knowing that He's gonna handle it, He's gonna take care of it in the end. And the older I get, the harder that gets because you know that the day is approaching. You take me and my wife, we've been married 40 years. I love my life, best friend, all that. Uh, one of us is gonna have to bury the other one. And the older you get, the more you realize that. I've thought about that. And even at y'all's age and 30, you know, you got your whole life ahead of you. One of these days coming. And the thought of that, you know, is tough.

SPEAKER_03 41:06

I thought about that day before yesterday when I was at that funeral.

SPEAKER_01 41:12

Oh, go ahead.

SPEAKER_03 41:12

I wasn't, you know, husband better burying his wife. I mean, that's and my wife right there beside me. I was like, well, one day it's gonna be vice versa, you know, one or the other.

SPEAKER_00 41:23

How do you then how do you know how do you how do you endure that?

SPEAKER_01 41:27

I went to the the funeral last week of Brie, and her parents 27 years old. You could hear her parents back there sniffling and burying her child, and then the very next thing the preacher would make a statement and you could hear her dad say, Amen. Yeah. Because he had the the the peace of where she was.

SPEAKER_03 41:50

And all this we talked about reminds me of, of course, it's gonna remind me, remind me of a song that we've sung several times here through the fire. He never promised that the cross would not get heavy and the hill would not be hard to climb. He never offered our victories without fighting, but he said help would always come in time. Just remember when you're standing in the valley of decision. The adversary says, Give in, just hold on, our Lord will show up and he will take you through the fire again.

SPEAKER_01 42:22

Ha ha. It is in the fire when you gain ground with God.

SPEAKER_00 42:28

There's an old preacher named Lavon Boakner.

SPEAKER_01 42:30

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 42:31

That said that. I'll never forget it.

SPEAKER_01 42:34

It's in the fire when you gain ground with the God.

SPEAKER_00 42:37

And he was preaching on Shadrach, Mesha, and Abendigan. I was just probably the premier verse that I go to, because I know the whole context, I know the whole story, frontwards and backwards. But Psalm 34, verse 4, where David proclaimed. And he said this I sought the Lord and he heard me and delivered me from all of my fears. Hang on to that one. Hide that one in your heart. Get it in your head, make it into a song, whatever you got to do. Because it's the truth. He knows this man has been through it now. And uh you seek God. And that's what he said. You know, seek me. I'll I'll meet all your needs. Seek me. Matter of fact, don't just seek me, seek me first. Seek first the kingdom of God, and I'll take care of everything else. Is that true? Well, we need testimonies. We need somebody to tell us it's true. Well, David did it. I'm sitting here this morning on this podcast telling you it's true. I've been through quite a bit in my life, and it don't last forever. God will bring you through on the other side. That's right. And you will be tried, and you will be better for it.

SPEAKER_03 43:50

We're all gonna experience it.

SPEAKER_00 43:52

That's why he says they're precious. How do you see these trials as precious?

SPEAKER_01 43:56

I I want to add this.

SPEAKER_00 43:58

How do you rejoice?

SPEAKER_01 44:00

And maybe I'm going out in left field here, but you know, you're talking about the the fire, and I can't hardly pronounce their names. Me Shack, Ray Shack, and Billy Good. Shadrack. Billy Good. But my mind goes back to my my mind goes back to Daniel. And the reason is, now I I looked at this because I preached on this a while back. Daniel was kind of their spokesman in my eyes. You know, it talked about early in the the scripture of them that Daniel spoke up when he talked about when when the king was looking for someone, you know, he wanted to build them a certain way and eat certain things and make them look. And Daniel spoke up for him and said, Hey, let me and these fellas eat this. Let me and these fellas do this. Let me and these fellas, and I'll we'll prove to you, you know. So, and then, you know, Daniel wasn't in that fire with them. But to me, they had someone to look up to before they got there. Now later on, Daniel got cast into a to the lion's den. And he had he this trial was that. But I guess my point is, is realize who's around you watching you, you know, through these trials. And because if I'm not mistaken, both kings of this era admitted there is a God.

SPEAKER_00 45:30

Nebuchadnezzar, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 45:32

Yeah. He admitted the God of the God of Daniel, the God of them, you know. For a minute, he called him out and said, Hey, you'll worship this God instead of me. You know. So there's people watching you all the time.

SPEAKER_00 45:46

One of the coolest, one of the coolest stories that goes along with what you're talking about is that example that we all know of, and that's uh David and the giant, David and Goliath. And the fact that David, before he faced the giant, as he was going into the battle, uh Goliath looked at him and says, Who am I, dog? Yeah. You know, that you send this out here to face me. And then David's the one that proclaimed. He said, I will take off your head today. And here's the reason why. So that all these people might know that there is a God in Israel. And there were two armies, the armies of the Philistines and armies of Israel. Thousands. That heard thousands watching. Yep. Watching. And that's what he said. He said, I will, he will deliver you into my hands, and I will cut off your head. And here's the reason, so that all these people might know there is a God in Israel. And we know the rest of the story.

SPEAKER_01 46:43

Well, you take that story of Daniel. If I read it and studied it right, there were three different kings that was around Daniel that proclaimed that God was real.

SPEAKER_00 46:58

After the fact.

SPEAKER_01 46:59

After the fact. Because of what they witnessed in Daniel. So you never know who's watching. You never know who's listening. But you will go through a trial to live for God through it.

SPEAKER_03 47:14

Let me ask you this. Has anybody ever noticed that? Because of you?

SPEAKER_01 47:21

Noticed.

SPEAKER_00 47:23

Oh dear God. All I can say is I hope so.

SPEAKER_01 47:26

Yeah. Amen.

SPEAKER_00 47:28

I think John, I'll use John and Jared here for a minute. We all knew that what was going to happen with Jay, you know? And yet they made a decision to go through the full pregnancy and to turn and delivered a baby that didn't abort, that didn't do any of that thing, trusting in the Lord. And there was a bunch of people watching and waiting to see how they would handle it. And uh I mean just awesome.

SPEAKER_03 47:57

I go back to uh, you know, when I worked at State Farm. You know, get a girl who works there as well. And you know, I don't think she's really ever experienced, you know, God or heard about Jesus very much. I'm sure she's been around it, but you know, when you stand on faith and people see something different about you, there's just something different about you. And they want a part of that. I won't watch you I want what you got. Yeah, and man, and it finally hits them. On a on a Wednesday morning when we're doing our Bible study, and they come to your office and they're just bawling, squalling. You know, that that's awesome.

SPEAKER_04 48:51

Well, they get to that point, and I thought about this too. And you think about Daniel and the three guys. Uh you can't rely on someone else's face and get you to through the trial you're going through. You gotta rely on your own faith. You gotta rely on who God has you as, kind of deal. Who you are in Christ. But now not saying that person's faith can't come alongside yours and grow yours and have a little, maybe a double portion of faith, I guess you could say, you know.

SPEAKER_03 49:20

And if I bring this up, because I had it on my mind earlier this week as well, is you don't have to change just to know Jesus. Jesus changes you. Amen. Yeah. Just like going to church. You don't have to change to go to church. I don't care if you're a stripper, you know, a homeless person, you know, or the richest person there is in the world. You don't have to change to come to church. Jesus will change you.

SPEAKER_00 49:49

Yeah, they got it backward. Yeah. Well, I can't go in that church. The walls will fall in if I go in the church.

SPEAKER_03 49:54

Right. Well, and they're afraid of being judged when they walk in. And that's another sermon.

SPEAKER_04 50:00

Well, you heard Rusty say, first time he ever came to this church, no one shook his hand. One person shook his hand, Greg Lewis.

SPEAKER_03 50:05

You know. But they he wasn't looking he wasn't looking to he was looking to get a few.

SPEAKER_04 50:10

He's looking for fighting.

SPEAKER_03 50:11

It was about him. Yeah, that's right.

SPEAKER_04 50:13

He was looking for people to shake his hand.

SPEAKER_03 50:15

Yeah. And that's our flesh.

SPEAKER_00 50:18

Yeah. I'll go back to the instance. I recall the instance, Philip, to where that I knowingly had that thought in my mind that I want what you got.

SPEAKER_02 50:29

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 50:30

And it was in 1997 with my father-in-law, Bill Woodall. And it was at the funeral of his baby girl. Terry was her name. She died. She was in her 50s, early 50s. But nonetheless, this man was able to stand up and preach Jesus at his own daughter's funeral. And I'm sitting there thinking, how in the world I want what you got. Yeah. That's that's that's a that's an unusual ability.

SPEAKER_03 50:58

I don't want to stand on that rock.

SPEAKER_00 50:59

That can only come from God. Yeah. And uh I was very young, very young in the ministry, been in about a year. And uh thinking about some of those things, knowing that I'm gonna be tried and tested, knowing I got to go through some stuff. I want to be able to do that with this man's uh faith. You know? And uh yeah, definitely. God allows things to transpire to other people's lives to see how we will respond, and then he uses that for his honor and his glory. So, yep. And has anybody have I been that to somebody? Has somebody seen Jesus in me? I don't know. Yeah, I don't worry about that. I just live my life the best I can, and then trust the Lord for the results. And hopefully they do. They see Jesus in me.

SPEAKER_03 51:51

Well, I mean that you can turn that around to this podcast maybe the same way. It may be somebody's aha moment.

SPEAKER_00 51:59

Well, I never thought I could speak in my mother's funeral. I did.

SPEAKER_03 52:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 52:06

I mean, it's amazing. Now, would I be able to do that? I've thought about it. If one of my own children, or God forbid, a grandchild, or my wife, or you know, oh my goodness. You know, I don't know. That's where you're gonna have to seek the Lord. Yeah. And he'll hear you and deliver you.

SPEAKER_04 52:25

He'll answer you. Man, I thought about that. That I told you Sunday night that uh that practical deal story you told about us coming back from Panama. Yeah. Oh my gosh, that hit me like a ton of bricks because ultimately that's what I was looking forward to, was getting home, but I didn't see the the spiritual, the the spiritual aspect of it at that moment.

SPEAKER_00 52:48

I was trying to think of an example to use to make it more practical, and that's the best I could come up with. Because I was miserable. Okay. Oh, that was miserable. But you could do it, you could endure it because you knew where you were going. That's right. Ultimately, I'm going home. And it's the same principle in our life. We can endure this life because ultimately we know what we have waiting on us. And that's the whole thing that Peter's trying to encourage these people with. Time after time after time after time in this scripture here. He reminds them of the inheritance, of the reward, of the crown. It's coming, of the salvation. Yeah, right now you're being persecuted. Yep, you've been scattered, you've been kicked out of your home, all for the cause of Christ. But know this there's coming a day. And what a day that'll be.

SPEAKER_01 53:36

Well, I like how Peter, before he got into talking about the trials, he brought up the fact, and that this is in verse uh four and five. Verse five, he talked about the protection that he's gonna provide.

SPEAKER_00 53:51

He keeps you.

SPEAKER_01 53:52

Yep. He he brought up that protection. Peter brought up that protection before he brought up the trials. He wanted to remind them look, you're safe. You're gonna be protected.

SPEAKER_00 54:04

Well, however, this outcome is safe.

SPEAKER_01 54:07

Yeah. God's gonna whatever this outcome is, whatever you're gonna face, whatever, however it ends, you're good. Protected.

SPEAKER_00 54:17

And the cool part of that is Peter knew what he was talking about. He knew what he was talking about. And therefore he can say it boldly, he can say it confidently, he can say it assuredly, definitely inspired with the Spirit of God. But when he said this, I'm telling you, it's gonna get tough. I've been there and done that. But God will keep his promises, he will do what he says he's gonna do.

SPEAKER_01 54:40

Yep.

SPEAKER_00 54:41

Believe it.

SPEAKER_01 54:42

Because it's the truth. Let not your heart be encouraging.

SPEAKER_00 54:48

Yeah, Jesus told him.

SPEAKER_03 54:51

Is it hard to come up here sometimes to do this podcast?

SPEAKER_01 54:55

It was this morning.

SPEAKER_03 54:58

And then when you and then as you're doing it and you get done, you're like, man, that was awesome. Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 55:03

Why would I ever think unless I really had to, you know?

SPEAKER_03 55:07

Why would I ever not want to come? I mean, you think it's simple things like that. I mean, there's so many examples we could give of hard times or things we don't want to do, just our flesh talking, you know, just like, you know, on a Sunday evening, rather go fishing than go to church, you know. But why in the world would I want to?

SPEAKER_01 55:29

Lindsay asked me that last night before I laid down because I said, Oh, I gotta get up early. She said, Are you about done with that? And she was saying, you know, are you over it? The the podcast. And I said, you know, I don't think so because I'm learning through it too. You know, it's good for me. It's a build-up for me. Yeah. That's exactly what it is for me.

SPEAKER_04 55:49

You know, in the past couple weeks, we've done it on eight o'clock, ten o'clock in the morning, and everything. Man, I like doing it early. I know, I know we all got busy lives and everything else. Um, but man, just starting your day off with it. And it's not it's not this podcast that starts, it's the word of God that builds us up and gets us ready for the day.

SPEAKER_03 56:07

This is this is my Bible study. Yeah. My version.

SPEAKER_00 56:12

Read verse 8, 1 Peter chapter 1. Watch it.

SPEAKER_01 56:15

Verse 8. You love him even though you have never seen him. Though you have not seen him now, or though you do not see him now, you trust him, and you rejoice with a glorious, inexpressible joy.

SPEAKER_00 56:31

Inexpressible.

SPEAKER_01 56:32

Inexpressible joy.

SPEAKER_00 56:36

Joy unspeakable. I got my last verse, but I'm gonna say You never laid eyes on him. Yep. But yet there's a joy there. That you can't even express.

SPEAKER_01 56:47

There's an inner peace. I'm just saying it like that. There is a inner peace within me. I've never seen the man, but I know he's real.

SPEAKER_04 56:55

That's a good point. I think about this on a Wednesday night. If you have never encountered our Wednesday night, it is organized chaos. In the past couple weeks, I've been saying it's not organized chaos, it's chaos. But what I want to say, this is I don't think there's no way anybody can stand face to face with me and argue that this ain't God. Yeah. This ain't this isn't God's doing, you know. Yeah. I don't know. It's just surreal. So many kids love to be here on a Wednesday night. Oh, yeah. From from two-year-olds to senior, high senior in high school.

unknown 57:34

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 57:34

So But you you let me say this, and I don't know why, uh God just wants me to say it, I'm gonna say it. You say that lane, and you can you can you can see God's hand upon it, and you can't deny it, and yet here comes along that person who's going to kick it. Unjustly accuse you and tell you that this is not of God. And the person who endures that is the person who's leading it. And you're going to be able to do that. Joy killers.

SPEAKER_03 58:03

That's them joy killers.

SPEAKER_00 58:05

They try. And you'd be amazed at the caliber of the individuals that will that will do that. It just blows your mind.

SPEAKER_01 58:15

I'll share this a little bit with you because we're talking about ministry and trial, you know, chaos, all that. So the Lord's been, the Lord's been talking to me. You know. What's he sound like? He sounds pretty good. Uh deep voice. But this thought of God, I'm comfortable. You know, everything's going good. Man, we've we've I've had a more, I don't know what the word to use, but it's been good this year. We've run up to a hundred teenagers. Right. Uh, people are growing, maturing. And it's like God's been saying to me, all right, Ryan, what's next? What are you gonna do? Are you comfortable? Are you gonna move on? I mean, what's what's next for you? And so I've been thinking about next year, you know, and what's the next steps for next year. And there's some things that, you know, God's put on my heart that I'm gonna try to talk to the church about, you know, and I'll talk to y'all about that here in a little bit. But uh that that all right, God, I'm gonna I'll maybe this is you trying to grow me a little bit. Are you ready to go to the next level? Yeah. Yeah you can't stay seated where you're at, right, is what it's saying to me.

SPEAKER_00 59:25

It's time to how do you defend yourself though when you present that saying that this is what God told me? Yeah. How do you how do you defend yourself? And that person comes along and says, No, God ain't tell you that. You making this up. This is your own desire. This is your own will.

SPEAKER_04 59:41

Charlie Serge is gonna hear this podcast. He's gonna think we're about to build another building.

SPEAKER_01 59:44

We're gonna be saying, Well, it's in my mind, though. Now, there is some diff there are some things that you know I feel like, man, this would this would help. This would Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 59:56

Well, you go back to preacher's question. Someone comes up to you and asks you, how do you know that's God? All right, well, do you want the man of God, the man that you've hired and to be your youth pastor, to be your pastor, your children's pastor, whatever. Do you not want them to have vision? Do you not want them to have to take this church's youth, children, whatever, to the next level? You'd be surprised a number of people that do not want to see change. Well, then you need to you don't need to have me in that position. That's what I'm gonna say. You don't trust me in that? You've said it before, preacher. You don't have trust, you don't have that's right. Then you might as well go find me somewhere else.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:29

Or if they say, at what point in time do you at what point in time do you get labeled as the the dictator? Yeah. When you think it's well, because they got they're gonna use this. They're gonna say, well, this is your doing, this is your idea, your plans. Well, if God is leading me, you know, in this position, then I have a responsibility to share that and trust that, knowing, you know, that uh they're gonna be fire extinguishers. So God building a fire and things are going good and they burning hot and da-da-da-da-da. Granted, here comes here comes that person who's gonna try to put it out.

SPEAKER_03 1:01:07

I've always said this, you can't please everybody. Everybody's got their own opinion to everything, and it's part of it.

SPEAKER_04 1:01:14

I've always got to be prepared. I've made this comment. God did not call me to please people. Yep. He doesn't call us to please the world, he calls us to please him. And through that, people will see his honor, people will see his glory through the works of you, kind of deal.

SPEAKER_00 1:01:34

I can remember, let me, I'll share this one with you because it was a fight. And uh back in the day, like Bog Springs, for example, y'all would be surprised, maybe you're not surprised, at the number of people who are critical towards church camp.

SPEAKER_02 1:01:51

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:01:52

Because you they're saying they're accusing you of bringing all these kids to camp and they're making a professional faith based upon an emotional experience at camp. Therefore, they're opponents to any anything like that. You know, how do you how do you fight past that? You know, and do you make that fight? Do you take that stand and believing that, yeah, this is worth it? Yeah, this is where God is moving. So, what do you do with those critics? How do you handle them?

SPEAKER_04 1:02:23

Well, it goes back to what we talked about, children at the beginning. Because I've I've struggled with that preacher, as far as even as a teenager, knowing I was saved when I went to church camp, knowing that I was gonna spend eternity with Jesus. But going to church camp and seeing all these teenagers make this decision, and kind of thinking to myself, do I need to remake this decision? Do I need to rededicate my life? Do I need to go do this? Do I need to go do that? But ultimately, no, I remembered that I was a saved child of God, and ultimately it's between the sinner and savior. And now I look at it on the other side as a pastor of, hey, it's just as a child. I'm not gonna stand in the way. This this teenager wants to make this decision, this child wants to make this decision at camp. Hey, by all means, I'm not standing in the way of it, kind of deal. It's I mean, it's a blessing.

SPEAKER_03 1:03:10

Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:03:11

But I mean, I I'm just bringing this up. Just making the point because you guys don't need to be surprised by it because it's gonna happen, and you're gonna be falsely accused of doing things for the wrong motives and wrong reasons, especially if you're trying to follow the Lord in vision. But I mean it goes, it's something as simple as uh I can remember when we paved this parking lot here at Shady Grove, the number of people who were opposed to that. You're gonna spend $70,000, what? We got a perfectly fine gravel parking lot out there. Not taking into consideration, you know, that God deserves it and it make things a whole lot better all the way around. But you could use that money better elsewhere, is what their argument was. But I mean, it's just that kind of that kind of fight that you have to try to accomplish what you know that God wants accomplished. Right. Well, you know, it's a fight worth having.

SPEAKER_01 1:04:05

You brought up camp, and I'm sitting here thinking about what you're talking about. Uh we took a hundred, and this is not bragging, but we took over a hundred people, about 110, 115 to camp last year. And I thought, I how many times have I thought, man, this would be a lot simpler if we just took 40, 45, you know? I ain't got a find of these rides, and I ain't gotta worry about this many kids, and life will be a little simpler. But who am I to get in the way of that, of what God's doing, you know?

SPEAKER_00 1:04:35

Go with you got it. We've been we've been a critic ourselves. We've not we've seen people show up with 100 kids at camp over there and they even know who the kids were. Yeah. Just one up down and picked them up. Yeah. And we're gonna be the one, no, you don't need to be bringing them. You better watch yourself. Yeah. See what you're doing. Yeah. Get smited.

SPEAKER_03 1:04:54

We are uh throwing in the river with a rock.

SPEAKER_04 1:04:59

We are over time, and I've got to go take a kid to school. So uh unless y'all boys want to carry on, watch y'all's final encouragement.

SPEAKER_01 1:05:06

Man, I ain't even thought about it, really. Other than I I'll say this I'll start and y'all wrap it up. Uh what I started off with: being born again. Being have put some action into it. You know, don't just claim to be something, but let there be evidence.

SPEAKER_04 1:05:25

Yep.

SPEAKER_01 1:05:27

That's it.

SPEAKER_03 1:05:28

Phillip. Uh don't be so quick to judge people. Love them. Little is much when God is in it.

SPEAKER_04 1:05:39

That's mine. That's your encouragement. I'm gonna read uh Isaiah 61, 7 and 8. Instead of shame and dishonor, and this is talking about just a hard time suffering. Uh, instead of shame and dishonor, you will enjoy a double share of honor. You will possess a double portion of prosperity in your land, and everlasting joy will be yours. For I, the Lord, love justice, I hate Robbery and wrongdoing. I will faithfully reward my people for their suffering and make an everlasting covenant with them.

SPEAKER_03 1:06:08

The double portion. Amen.

SPEAKER_04 1:06:10

So we appreciate y'all joining in. We are nearing the end of the school year. We got this Wednesday and next Wednesday. Then we'll take a one-week break. We're going to take the sixth graders to Little Rock and then we'll jump back into our summer programs. You excited about it, Watson?

SPEAKER_01 1:06:29

I am. How many kids am I gaining? I'm going to say about a dozen. Amen.

SPEAKER_00 1:06:34

I got jury duty today.

SPEAKER_01 1:06:36

Amen.

SPEAKER_00 1:06:40

Throw that out there.

SPEAKER_04 1:06:40

Is this your orientation? Orientation. Okay.

SPEAKER_01 1:06:43

I got you. I'm going to say this. I ain't got picked yet. I doubt it. Maybe the sheriff or someone is listening to this, but uh I've only been called to jury duty one time that I know of. Well, you've moved six times. I am worried that they have sent me a notice in the mail before. And I ain't seen it. Philip, when you get promised you didn't know it.

SPEAKER_04 1:07:06

Philip, when you get on Grun Ryan's name, make it a bit more.

SPEAKER_01 1:07:08

Run my name and tell me I'm going to run up there and fix this.

SPEAKER_03 1:07:14

But anyway, you need to go see the circuit clerk. I don't even know who that is.

SPEAKER_00 1:07:18

It's going to be funny to be a face of muscle alive, man.

SPEAKER_01 1:07:23

I'm going to go ahead and apologize now. Uncle Youth Pastor gets arrested.

SPEAKER_02 1:07:27

Apologize bug shop.

SPEAKER_01 1:07:28

I am a little nervous about it, y'all. You're scared I'm going to get pulled over one day and they'll be like, dude, I got to take you in. For what?

SPEAKER_04 1:07:35

I'll call my buddy on Sam. You have a warnout for your arrest. What are you talking about? Oh man. Well, uh, appreciate it, everybody. Need anything? God's door is always open. Amen. Amen. Philip, you want to close us up? Sure.

SPEAKER_03 1:07:54

Dear Heart Father, we thank you for your love, your blessings, your grace, and your mercy that you give us each and every day, Lord. We just we hope we um do your word justice, Lord, by presenting it. Lord, just uh maybe there's somebody that needs to hear your word and that it clicks to them today that they know that they need to straighten up and just follow you, Lord, and pick up their cross. And Lord, just uh follow your footsteps, Lord, or make that decision to be um make you their savior, Lord. Lord, we ask you to go with us for the rest of the week and uh forgive us where we fail you each and every day. We thank you for your son, Jesus. It's his precious name we pray. Amen.