SPEAKER_01 0:00

Today's scripture is found in Psalms 94. Let's read, O Lord, God of vengeance, O God of vengeance, shine forth. Rise up, O Judge of the earth. Repay to the proud what they deserve. O Lord, how long shall the wicked, how long shall the wicked exalt? They pour out their arrogant words, all the evildoers boast. They crush your people, O Lord, and afflict your heritage. They kill the widow and the sojourner and murder the fatherless, and they say, The Lord does not see, the God of Jacob does not perceive. Understand, O dullest of the people. Fools, when will you be wise? He who planted the ear, does he not hear? He who formed the eye, does he not see? He who disciplines the nations, does he not rebuke? He who teaches man knowledge, the Lord knows the thoughts of man, that they are but a breath. Blessed is the man whom you discipline, O Lord, and whom you teach out of your law, to give him rest from days of trouble until a pit is dug for the wicked. For the Lord will not forsake his people, he will not abandon his heritage, for justice will return to the righteous, and all the upright in heart will follow it. Who rises up for me against the wicked, who stands up for me against the evildoers? If the Lord had not been my help, my soul would soon have lived in a land of silence. When I thought, my foot slips, your steadfast love, O Lord, held me up. When the cares of my heart are many, your consolations cheer my soul. Can wicked rulers be allied with you? Those who frame injustice by statute? They band together against the life of the righteous and condemn the innocent to death. But the Lord has become my stronghold and my God, the rock of my refuge. He will bring back on them their iniquity and wipe them out for their wickedness. The Lord our God will wipe them out. You may be seated.

SPEAKER_02 2:25

All right, Steve. What's cooking in your own walk with Christ? Oh uh, you know, I've added this new discipline of scripture memorization. Nice. Right? I know that's one of your things. Yeah. So what I like to do is I'll break down a verse into multiple sections and I'll memorize that section, that section, but I do it a month at a time. Oh, okay. What? So it'll be like 11A, 11B. Sometimes it goes all the way up to like F G H. Well, what section are you on right now? Okay, so right now I'm on Rome's 1219, and I'm on the B section. Okay. And that's this one's got my heart. It's captured my heart. Vengeance is mine. I will repay. Okay, that's it's in there. That's right. But what does that mean? What do you mean? Yeah, so what I like to do is once I memorize it, I put it into practice. Yeah. So I have a neighbor, he's always borrowing my tools. So in an effort to teach him a lesson, I just went over and borrowed the tires off of his car. What are you talking about? Vengeance is mine, I will repay. So he needs to understand there's consequences for his action, and I am executing those consequences. So like you're gonna repay? Don't you know the last part of that verse says, um, thus saith the Lord? Okay, did you not listen to me earlier? I told you I'm memorizing sections. I have not got to that section yet. I am focused on 1219 B of Romans. And I'll be right back because somebody bumped into my car this morning.

SPEAKER_00 4:04

Vengeance is mine, says the Lord. I will repay, says the Lord, not Pastor Stephen. In uh in 1956, there was a gentleman by the name of uh William uh Wilson Great Batch, and Greatbatch was an engineer, and he was seeking to uh create a device that would help to measure the heart rhythms of a of a human being. Now, when he turned on the device, he was very frustrated because what Great Batch discovered is that uh the device he created, he put the wrong resistor in it, and instead of passively measuring the person's heart rhythm, the device was actually actively emitting a pulse that mimicked the healthy heart rate of a human being. And at the time in 1956, Great Batch was very frustrated. But after he stepped back for a moment, he recognized that he had stumbled upon an incredible opportunity that later became the pacemaker. Great Batch partnered with uh Dr. William Chanbach, and together the two they created the pacemaker, and in 1958, they put the first pacemaker into a dog and it worked well. And in 1960, they implanted the very first pacemaker into a human. A device that has saved millions of lives, but it all started from what seems like a failure at the time. Now, perhaps you have never created a device that has saved millions of lives. If you have, I'd love to hear about it. But maybe you've never created a device that has saved millions of lives. But I bet every single person in this room has experienced a setback, a season of sorrow, a detour, a delay, moments and seasons of despair. Here's the thing our enemy, he wants us to live in those seasons of despair and relish those seasons of despair and never rise above our despair. But that's not what God wants for his people. God wants his people to take a step back from their setbacks and to think about their despair and how there might just be an opportunity hidden within their despair if they see things the way that God sees them. And so this morning we're going to talk about the opportunities that come from despair. Because as Christians, in the midst of moments and seasons of despair, we may not feel like there are opportunities hidden in those moments and in those seasons, but there are. And the question of the morning is what are the opportunities that come from despair? So if you haven't already, turn with me in your Bibles to Psalm 94. Psalm 94, and I'll meet you there in just a moment to talk about opportunities that come from despair. And if we could uh turn on the house lights so everyone in the room could see their Bibles, that'd be awesome. Psalm 94, Opportunities That Come From Despair. Well, this morning uh we are continuing our series, Songs of the Summer, looking at a different psalm each Sunday during the summer months. And there are 150 psalms in the Bible, so we certainly cannot cover all of them, but we're doing our very best to cover some of the greatest hits from the Hebrew hymn book. Songs of the Summer 2026 is a 13-week series, and today we find ourselves in week eight of the series, looking at Psalm 94. Now, Psalm 94 has something unique about it that we have not encountered up to this point. Psalm 94 has no superscription. And so, unlike the first seven Psalms that we've studied that are a psalm of this person or a prayer of that person, we don't know for certain who the author of Psalm 94 is. The previous seven Psalms we've studied have been of David or of Asaph or of the sons of Korah, but today we are uncertain the human author of Psalm 94. Now we are certain the divine author of Psalm 94. Psalm 94 is undoubtedly Holy Spirit inspired, and so we may not know its human messenger, but we study its heavenly message and hold its heavenly message in high regard as we interpret it and imply it to our lives. Since we don't know for certain who the human author was, we don't know exactly what they were going through at the time. But as you read through Psalm 94, you can tell that this person was experiencing a serious season of despair. But as they experienced this season as a follower of God, they recognized five opportunities that come from despair. And in God's timeless sovereignty, those opportunities were true for this person during the time of Psalm 94. And those same five opportunities are available to you today in 2026 in the midst of your despair. And so what are those opportunities this morning? Let's dig in. Number one on your notes this morning is this. Number one, to watch God handle injustice. Because of our despair, we sometimes have an opportunity to watch God handle injustice. Look with me in verses one through three of Psalm 94, the first three verses in our passage today. Verses one and two are very similar. In verse 1, the psalmist says that God is a God of vengeance. God, would you please shine forth? And then in verse 2, the psalmist says, God will repay. Will you please rise up? Very similar concepts with different words. Ultimately, verses one and two of Psalm 93, we see Paul thinking back on Psalm 94, verses 1 and 2, in Romans chapter 12, verse 19. Romans 12, 19 is that verse that we saw quoted in our pre-sermon video today. Vengeance belongs to the Lord. Vengeance is mine, says the Lord. I will repay, says the Lord. Ultimately, vengeance is God's, not ours. And it's up to God to repay, it's not up to us. Vengeance belongs to God. God will repay. And we have an opportunity to watch God handle injustice in the midst of our despair. You know, uh recently, um, Hannah and I, we welcomed into our family a puppy. We have three young children, and so we felt like uh we didn't have enough going on at the time, and so we thought we'd just throw a puppy into the mix. And to be clear, I've always wanted a dog, uh, and so I'm thrilled that we finally have a dog, but uh he's actually a really good puppy. He's just he's a puppy. Puppies do puppy things, okay? And so uh the puppy, he's pretty smart, and so he's actually figured out who the weak link is in the family. He knows not to mess with my oldest May Lynn, he knows not to mess with me, but he knows that when he wants to, he can steal some things from Piper, our middle child. And so one of his favorite things to do is to steal things from Piper, and so sometimes you'll hear some crying down the hallway, and you'll turn the corner and you'll see the dog and Piper playing tug of war with Piper's favorite blankets. And Piper's very upset. And so, as her dad, I will, I will walk up and I'll take the blanket out of the dog's mouth and give it back to Piper, and I'll calm Piper down, and then I'll I'll discipline the dog and tell him, that is not yours, go play with something that is yours and send him on his way. But ultimately, Piper was helpless until her dad came down the hallway and intervened. And perhaps you're here this morning in a moment or in a season of despair, and you feel helpless. And you're just waiting for your heavenly father to come down the hallway and intervene. I find it interesting how the psalmist says in verse 3, How long, O God, shall the wicked, how long shall the wicked exalt? You'll remember that word exult from our very first psalm that we studied, Psalm 9, verse 2, when we were told to exalt in God. It's not a typo, it's not supposed to say exalt, it is exalt. To exalt in someone or in something is to find your greatest satisfaction in that person or in that thing. We as Christians are supposed to find our greatest satisfaction in the character of God. But the psalmist is saying in verse 3 that there are some evildoers finding their greatest satisfaction in evil, and they're helpless. Someone is trying to steal the psalmist's blanket right now, and he's helpless. He's waiting for his Heavenly Father to walk down the hallway and step in. Perhaps someone is trying to steal your blanket this morning. Perhaps someone is trying to tear down your worldview and steal your hope. Perhaps someone is trying to tear down your reputation and steal your credibility. Perhaps someone is trying to steal your blanket right now, and you just need your Heavenly Father to walk down the hallway and intervene. Now, to be clear, as Christians, we're not saying that verses one through three, we should passively move through life, just kind of shrugging our shoulders at injustice. That's not what we should do. If uh if someone, if a colleague uh misbehaves at work, is behaving inappropriately, you should tell human resources. If a neighbor is behaving unlawfully, you should notify the police. If there's legislation you could advocate for to fight against evil, then you should advocate for that legislation. But the thing is, church, not all crimes are sins, but the real problem is not all sins are crimes. And so sometimes someone will sin against you, ultimately sinning against God, but someone will sin against you, try to steal your blanket, and there's no human authority to whom you can appeal. And when that takes place, it's not time for you to take matters into your own hands. It's time for you to submit those matters into the Lord's hands and watch God handle injustice on your behalf. In the midst of our despair, we have a great opportunity to watch God handle injustice. Number two on your notes this morning is this. Number two, to receive God's loving discipline. In the midst of our despair, we have an opportunity oftentimes to receive God's loving discipline. Skip down with me now to verse 10 of Psalm 94. It's the only skipping that we'll do this morning, but look with me now in verses 10 through 15 of Psalm 94. In verse 10, the Psalmist says, Does he who disciplines the nations also rebuke? Now, discipline is a very broad term that includes the more narrow term of rebuke. And basically what the psalmist is saying that he's saying that there is no empire that is big enough or powerful enough or evil enough that God cannot overcome them. That empire does not exist. But he's also saying there is no act of evil that is too small for God to care about or notice. God not only disciplines, but he also rebukes. And we have an opportunity to receive God's loving discipline. In verse 11, the psalmist says that God knows our thoughts. If God knows our thoughts and knows how we feel, then he knows when you're experiencing and going through a moment or a season of despair. And if he already knows it, then why not cry out to him in the midst of that moment? In the midst of that season. In verse 12, the psalmist says, Blessed is the one who is disciplined by the Lord. Psalm 94.12 sounds a lot to me like the Beatitudes in Matthew chapter 5. In Matthew chapter 5, Jesus says, Blessed are the poor in spirit. Jesus says, Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness. But here in Psalm 94, 12, it says, Blessed are those who are disciplined by the Lord. Discipline in the moment doesn't always feel like a blessing, but it always is a blessing. Moving on in verse 14, the psalmist tells us that God will never forsake us, and God will never abandon us. In the midst of your despair, if you feel like God has forsaken you, and you feel like God has abandoned you, he has not. He never will. Because in the midst of our despair, we have an opportunity to receive God's loving discipline. In verse 15, the psalmist uses both the words righteousness and uprightness. You'll remember these two words from the very first Psalm that we studied, Psalm 9. In verse 8, Psalm 9.8 also uses the words righteousness and uprightness in the same verse. They're similar concepts, but they're very different. Our righteousness refers to what we believe and our right standing before a holy God. Our uprightness refers to our motives and our right behavior before men. Righteousness, what we believe and our standing before God. Uprightness, our motives and our standing and our behavior before others. But ultimately, as Christians, in the midst of despair, we have an opportunity to receive God's loving discipline. You know, when I was a young boy, one of my dad's best friends, his name was Gerald. And uh Gerald and his wife, they had some children who were a little older than myself and my siblings, but uh, my family and Gerald's family, we would often, we would often spend time together. And so one day we were at Gerald's house and the adults were talking and the kids were playing. I was in elementary school at the time, and I made my way uh into Gerald's woodworking room. Now, woodworking was not a casual hobby for Gerald. Uh he did some really fine work uh on some some furniture made from wood and some decorative pieces made from wood. And so what I decided to do as a young boy was to wander into that room and take a Sharpie and write my name on one of his nicest pieces of wood that he'd been working on for weeks. When my dad found out about this, he was not very happy. He sincerely apologized to Gerald for what his son did. And Gerald was very gracious and said, it's fine. He can see the path forward to repairing it. But as we went home, my dad was not done with me yet. We stopped at the store and bought three things: a piece of wood, a piece of sandpaper, and a sharpie. And we went onto our back porch, and my dad drew my name real big on a piece of wood, handed me a piece of wood with my name on it, and a piece of sandpaper, and said, You are not allowed back inside until you've sandpapered your name off that piece of wood. And at the time, as an eight-year-old boy, I was a bit frustrated. But I know now, as a grown man, that my dad was exercising some loving discipline. And he was teaching me to respect others' property and respect others' hard work. I wonder this morning if you have sharpied your name on something. In verses one through three, the reason for the psalmist's despair was other people. But here in verses 10 through 15, the reason for his despair is his own actions. I wonder if you're in the midst of a moment or a season of despair because of something you've done. Well, even in those moments, you can reach out to God and he will respond with his loving discipline. We have an opportunity to experience that. Now we're not talking about karma. We're not talking about what goes around, comes around. If you do something bad, then something bad will happen to you. It's not that chaotic and random. It's controlled by a sovereign God. But when you admit that you've done something wrong and ask God to forgive you, he will exercise some loving discipline. And in the midst of our despair, our self-caused despair, we have an opportunity to receive God's loving discipline. Church number three on your notes is this. Number three, to completely depend on God. In the midst of our despair, we often have an opportunity to completely depend on God. Now it is true that we should completely depend on God at all times. But in the midst of despair, we have an opportunity to depend on God completely in a very uniquely deep way. Look with me now in verses 16 and 17 of Psalm 94. In verse 16, the psalmist asks the question he says, Who will stand up for me? Have you ever said some version of this phrase? Well, he just needs to stand up for himself, or she just needs to stand up for herself. Well, what about when the challenge in front of you is so great that you can't overcome it by simply standing up for yourself? What about when you're helpless and you have to call out the question, who will stand up for me? Well, when the children of God cry out that question, who will stand up for me? the Lord always responds and says, I will. I will stand up for you. We have an opportunity in our despair to completely depend on God. In verse 17, the psalmist says that if God had not been my help, I would soon be in the land of silence. You'll remember from Psalm 27, verse 13, a psalm we studied earlier this summer, when David talked about how he was looking forward to one day seeing the goodness of God in the land of the living. The land of the living is a future place where God's people will dwell with him forever. But for now we are in the land of the dead. We are in the land of silence. Psalm 94 17, the land of silence. Is an idea and a phrase that contrasts with the land of the living. Ultimately, we needed God's help for our salvation. We could not save ourselves, and apart from God's help, we were destined for the land of silence. But even this side of eternity, we need God's help every day, don't we? We completely depend on God every day, and we especially depend on God in the midst of despair. When we are in the midst of despair, we have an opportunity to completely depend on God. I don't uh I don't often talk about my eyesight, other than to tell you that I have bad eyesight. But I don't often talk about the the origins of my bad eyesight. So uh many of you know, but perhaps not all of you know, that um I am legally blind. I have a severe visual impairment, and so all of you look great this morning, okay? I don't drive, uh I struggle to read, it requires a lot of assistive technology. Sometimes I'll I'll I'll recognize, I'll struggle to recognize faces, different things like this. I'm not gonna say it's easier, but I will say it's different to be born blind than it is to have 2020 vision for 15 years and then have it taken away, which was the case for me. So when I was in high school, I was 15 years old, I'd been driving, playing sports, going to school, all these things, and I had a significant portion of my eyesight taken away because of a genetic disorder that we didn't know was in the family. I was a Christian at the time, but you could imagine that was a pretty serious season of despair for me. I was completely dependent upon God. But as I completely depended on God, the Lord spoke to me. And it was in the midst of that season that I felt an irresistible and an undeniable call into the ministry. And I've never looked back, and I never will. I remember someone this past Wednesday night at our community fellowship asking me, Did you always dream of being a pastor? And I think I surprised them when I said no, and not at all. I had other vocational dreams. I don't have, I have some great Christians in my family, but I don't have any pastors in my family. I never thought about that as a path forward until I was in this season of despair, completely depending on God. And that's when the Lord spoke to me. Sometimes well-meaning people will say to me, It's impressive that you serve as a pastor in spite of your disability. And if the relationship allows, I will gently correct them and say, No, no, I serve as a pastor because of my disability. The Lord could have called me into the ministry some other way, but because of the way in which he did call me into the ministry, I can tell you I wouldn't be here if I had 2020 vision. I'd be doing something else. I don't serve in the ministry in spite of my disability. I serve in the ministry because of it. And this is why my life verse is Philippians chapter 1, verse 12, where Paul says, I want you to know that what happened to me actually resulted in the advance of the gospel. What happened to me did not slow down my life or slow down the gospel. What happened to me actually accelerated my life and accelerated the advancement of the gospel, and I wouldn't trade it for the world. Now I bring this up because uh, one, I hope that none of you ever see as poorly as I do, but I know that all of you in the room have a moment or a season of despair in your life that you look back on when you were completely depending on God, and you look back on that moment and that season and you say, I am not who I am today, in spite of that season, I am who I am today because of it. And because in the midst of it, I was completely dependent upon God, and in the midst of that dependence, God spoke to me. That's true of the psalmist here in Psalm 94. That was true for me decades ago, and that was true for you. And maybe you're in the midst of a moment or a season of despair right now, and you're depending on God somewhat. Would you surrender to Him? Would you completely depend on God today? When you do, God will speak to you in a way that He cannot speak to you otherwise. Completely depend on God in the midst of your despair. Number four on your notes is this. Number four, to experience God's love. In the midst of our despair, we have a unique opportunity to experience God's love. Kind of like point number three, point number four as well. Should you experience God's love every day and every season? Of course. But in the midst of despair, you have an opportunity to experience God's love in a uniquely deep way. Look with me now in verses 18 and 19 of Psalm 94. In verse 18, the psalmist says, When I slip and I reach out, your steadfast love is right there to steady me. You know, we think about falling differently depending on how old we are. I kind of want them to fall a little bit. I kind of want them to do difficult things carefully and fall down in a safe environment and learn how to pick themselves back up. But they're five, three, and two. When you get a little older, falling becomes a bit more dangerous. In fact, we just prayed this morning for someone who fell overnight and was unable to join us for church today. You think about falling differently depending on how old you are, but no matter how old you are, when you fall, you always reach out and try to grab hold of something to steady yourself. And the psalmist here is saying that in my life, when I feel like I'm losing my balance, when I feel like I'm slipping, I reach out, and your steadfast love, O God, is always close by, and it's always there to steady my life. That was true for the psalmist here, and that can be true for you as well. If you feel like you're in a season of despair, a moment of despair, when you're slipping and you're falling and you're losing your balance in life. Reach out. And God's steadfast love is close by, and it will be there to steady you. You know, there's a well-known uh youth speaker by the name of Josh Ship. Josh is not himself a teenager, but he spends a lot of time speaking to teenagers. Josh tells a story of when he was a teenager, he was in foster care, and he had bounced from one home to the next. He was not a good kid. He was constantly getting kicked out of foster homes. And when he was 17, he'd been in a foster home for the longest he'd ever been in a home. Not because his behavior was better, but because, as he puts it, the foster parents were a little more resilient. But when he was 17, he found himself in jail one night. He spent the night in jail, and the next morning he was given one phone call. And he knew he should call his foster dad, but he was scared to do it. Because he thought this would finally be the straw that breaks the camel's back. This would finally be the thing that gets him kicked out of yet another foster home. So as he tells the story, he he calls his foster dad. His foster dad drops everything to come pick him up. They drive home in silence. They pull into the driveway, and before they go inside, his dad turns to him and says, Josh, we need to talk. And Josh thinks to himself, Well, here we go. I'm about to experience condemnation, abandonment, humiliation, mockery. But his dad just looks at him and says, Josh, when are you going to understand? Your mom and I do not see you as a problem. We see you as an opportunity. That's what Josh's foster dad said to him that day in the driveway. And Josh said that moment changed his life forever. And not long after he became a Christian and changed the whole trajectory of his life and his eternity. And he spent several decades since speaking to youth and speaking to teenagers about the steadfast love of God that was first shown to him by his foster dad at the age of 17. I wonder how many of you this morning you're in a moment or a season of despair. Maybe you caused it like Josh did. Maybe it was caused by somebody else. Maybe it's simply the result of living in a fallen, broken world. But you're in a moment or a season of despair and you are hesitant to cry out to the God of the universe because you're afraid what his reaction might be. He might react with condemnation or abandonment or humiliation or mockery, but that's never going to be the case. If you are a child of God, when you cry out to him in the midst of your despair, it is an opportunity to experience nothing other than God's love. God will respond to your cry from your despair, he will respond in steadfast love. When you feel like you're slipping and losing your balance in life, reach out to steady yourself, and the steadfast love of God is always close by. Church number five on your notes is this. Number five, to rest in God's protection. When you are in the midst of despair, you have an opportunity to rest in God's protection. Look with me now in verses 20 through 23 of Psalm 94, the last four verses of today's passage. In verse 20, the psalmist, I feel like verse 20 is, I know it's a verse in the Psalms, but it feels a bit prophetic. In verse 20, the psalmist says that wicked people will try to legislate evil. In 2026, are there any wicked people in our nation trying to legislate evil? Oh yeah. Here's the thing, in our Democratic Republic, we have a unique opportunity to influence legislation at the federal, state, and local level. And if you have an opportunity to advocate for legislation that opposes evil or advocate for legislation that supports good, you should do it. That's a privilege in this nation. In verse 21, the psalmist gets more specific, and he says, one of the things that the wicked people like to try and legislate when it comes to legislating evil is the death of the innocent, verse 21. You feel like there's any of that going on in our nation today? Oh yeah. Any legislation that allows for or supports abortion is legislation that is supporting the death of the innocents. Any legislation that allows for or supports euthanasia is legislation that supports the death of the innocents. We should fight against such legislation and support legislation that fights for good. In verse 22, the psalmist says that God is his rock, his refuge, and his stronghold. Did you catch those three descriptions? His rock, his refuge, and his strongholds. All three descriptions are descriptions of protection. I can hide behind God as my rock. I can hide behind God as my refuge. I can hide behind God as my stronghold. I can rest in God's protection. In verse 23, you really have a bookend to all of Psalm 94. In verse 23, the psalmist says that the wicked will get what's coming for them. It's very similar to what is said in verses 1 and 2. Vengeance belongs to the Lord. Repayment belongs to the Lord. And he returns to this idea at the end of the passage in verse 23, when he says the wicked will get what's coming for them. But ultimately, what we see in verses 20 through 23 is despair offers to us a unique opportunity to rest in God's protection. On September 11, 2001, 9-11, there was a gentleman by the name of Michael Lamonico. Lamonaco was on his way to work just like any other day. Lamonaco was the executive chef of the restaurant on the top floor of the North Tower. And he was on his way to work, but it was not quite like any other day because he had a very frustrating morning. His eyeglasses were broken. And in his line of work, he needed his glasses to do his job well. He needed to be able to see ingredients and measurements for recipes and when food was no longer undercooked but not overcooked. And so even though he was going to be late, Lamonaco stopped at the eyeglass store on his way to work that day. And while he was sitting in the eyeglass store at 8 46 a.m. on September 11, 2001, the first plane struck the North Tower, trapping Lomonaco's staff of 79 in the restaurant atop the tower. You can watch interviews with Lomonaco today. He does talk about a lot of survivor's guilt that he carries, but ultimately he talks about how his broken eyeglasses saved his life. I wonder if there is a pair of broken eyeglasses in your life right now. I wonder if there's something that has gone wrong in your life and you're frustrated by it. You wonder if God has removed his hand from your life. But the reality is that God's hand still has a firm grip on your life. He's simply protecting you from something worse. You see, if the Lord had protected Lomonaco from the inconvenience of broken eyeglasses, he would have lost his life. But because of those broken eyeglasses, his life was spared. Rest in God's protection. Trust that God is protecting you. In his sovereignty, we don't know all that he is protecting us from, but we trust that he is, and we rest in his protection. Check this out, church. Christians are not immune to suffering, but God will allow us to go through fire hot enough to refine us, but never hot enough to destroy us. God will allow us to go through fire hot enough to refine us, but he will protect us from fire hot enough to destroy us. We rest in God's protection. And just because you're in a season of despair does not mean that God has stopped protecting you. It likely means He's protecting you from something worse. What are the eyeglasses in your life? And as they're getting repaired, will you rest in God's protection? This morning we looked in Psalm 94 at some unique opportunities that we have in the midst of our despair as Christians. But maybe you're here today and you wouldn't consider yourself to be a Christian. Can I tell you something? We are really, really glad that you're here. But maybe you are walking through a moment of despair and you're walking through a season of despair and you don't have God by your side and you don't have a church that has your back. Can I extend an invitation to you today? Can I extend an invitation for you to join the family today? If you're not a Christian, but you're in the midst of despair right now, perhaps the opportunity for you is to surrender your life to Jesus. To repent of your sins and believe in Jesus. Your despair may not go away, but God will be with you in the middle of it. This church will be with you in the middle of it. Here's what's about to happen. In just a moment, I'm going to pray to close our time of Bible study and ask God's blessing on our sermon today. And when I say amen, everyone in the room will stand to sing one more song of worship. And as we sing, many people will pray and reflect from their pews. You'll see a lot of people come pray and reflect at the altar. Anyone is welcome to do that. But as we sing, myself and some other members of our team will be standing across the front. And if you're here today and you're not a Christian, but you want to become a Christian today, we would encourage you to walk forward as we sing and talk to a member of our team. We'd love nothing more than to pray with you and help you become a Christian today. Let's pray. Father in heaven, God, we love you and we praise you. We're grateful today for the gospel, for the death and the burial and the resurrection of Jesus. When your son Jesus was in the tomb, there was a moment of despair. But when he rose again on the third day, an opportunity arose with him. An opportunity for new life and eternity with you for anyone who will repent of their sins and believe in Jesus. And so, God, I pray for anyone here today who does not yet have a relationship with you, would you make today the day of their salvation? As my brothers and sisters in the room respond to your word by singing and praying and reflecting, if there's a friend or a neighbor here today that does not yet have a relationship with you through Christ, would you give them the courage and the conviction to walk forward and become a Christian today? You've started a good work in their life by bringing them here. Would you complete it by helping them walk forward? We pray all these things in the powerful name of Jesus. Amen, amen. Would you stand with me?