For the Millennials Listening

Getting spiritually “full” sounds like a win until you realize it can make you picky. When we lose our hunger for God, we start choosing preference over sustenance. That can show up as selective worship, tuning out sermons we think we already know, or only praying when life feels urgent.

We talk through why hunger is actually a gift. We get practical about what to do when your hunger feels dim: pray for it, fast, and stay active. Serving, showing up, and sharing your faith can reignite desire because activity creates hunger. 

Then dive back into Proverbs for more wisdom. 

If this challenges you, share it with a friend, subscribe for next week, and leave a review so more people can find the show. 

Transcript

Cold Open And Banned Words

SPEAKER_06 0:13

What's up everyone? Welcome back to Kids in a Culling Podcast. Where none of us are kids, but we all have a calling. And that's the point people to Jesus. I'm your host, Audrey O'Neill. With me is Hudson Walton.

SPEAKER_02 0:22

Hey guys.

SPEAKER_06 0:22

Andrea Cranair. Hi. Ramsay Pavlou, Hank, and LinkedIn Societ.

SPEAKER_02 0:25

Hey guys.

SPEAKER_06 0:26

So guys, what word would you ban from existence? Like if you could ban any word. Dude, tough.

SPEAKER_03 0:33

I like it.

SPEAKER_07 0:34

Get that word out of here. Tough.

SPEAKER_02 0:35

There's nothing wrong with that word.

SPEAKER_07 0:36

Everything around it is wrong, actually.

SPEAKER_03 0:38

Sometimes you just look at a really cool animal, like a bear or a crab, and you say, that's tough.

SPEAKER_07 0:42

No, I'd be like, oh my gosh, that's a really cool animal.

SPEAKER_03 0:45

I just say that's tough, bro, because I feel the aura and I relate to it.

SPEAKER_07 0:47

Oh, aura also.

SPEAKER_06 0:48

Get that out of here. Oh, that's a good one, aura.

SPEAKER_03 0:52

Some people just don't have it, and that's okay. I don't I don't judge you guys.

SPEAKER_06 0:56

I think everyone has aura. It's just some people have bad aura. I mean that sounds like um that sounds like vibes. Like, what is that peak that those people call? The big like crystals. That's that's giving off that. Talking about like not good things.

SPEAKER_03 1:09

Like geologists?

SPEAKER_06 1:10

Like yes. Like you have a bad aura about you. Like that could have done like not geologic. That's a rock person. That's like that's like new age. Talk about the people doing crystals and like weird new age religion.

SPEAKER_03 1:21

Like the star sign people, that type of genre. Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 1:24

That's what that word gives off. I would eliminate busin'.

SPEAKER_03 1:28

That's a good one. I don't like that.

SPEAKER_04 1:30

I mean, I agree.

SPEAKER_03 1:31

I think that's just stupid. Along with Kizzy. I don't like that one either. We already have like no cap. Like, why do we need to get it?

SPEAKER_07 1:37

No cap, no kizzy, bro.

SPEAKER_02 1:38

I'd say we get rid of the word period to. Whatever going on.

SPEAKER_07 1:43

Dude, that's literally for grammar.

SPEAKER_03 1:44

We literally need those at the end of our day.

SPEAKER_02 1:45

Oh no, no, no, no. Like when somebody says something like that. Period.

SPEAKER_07 1:48

Yeah, that like that.

SPEAKER_02 1:49

That got it.

SPEAKER_03 1:49

I hate run-on sentences, bro. I'm sorry, I gotta disagree.

SPEAKER_07 1:52

Like, okay, I'm talking right now, and how will you know I'm done talking unless I said period.

SPEAKER_02 1:56

What? That's not what I'm talking about.

SPEAKER_06 1:58

Do you talk like that? So I'm gonna be like, hey guys, it's Audrey, comma. And today we're going to be having a good time. Period. Yes. It's perfect. Let's all talk like that now. I like that.

SPEAKER_03 2:07

Cutson semicolon in parentheses. Let's continue. In parentheses.

SPEAKER_07 2:11

The funny thing is, Audrey actually talks like that probably half the time because she's talking, she's telling Siri to text for her question. She literally says that. No, I love it. It's my favorite.

SPEAKER_06 2:21

Okay, well. That's my favorite. Mine is like two words because I'm special like that. And I would say it's giving. Like, I say it sometimes, but like, only it's only cool when I say it. It's one of those types of things.

SPEAKER_03 2:32

So true. Basically any brain.

SPEAKER_06 2:34

Giving. You know, y'all get it?

Feed Me I’m Full Sermon Setup

SPEAKER_06 2:36

Yeah. No, yeah. Well, I don't like that one.

SPEAKER_03 2:39

That's a good one.

SPEAKER_06 2:41

Oh. Debatable? What? Slightly. Okay. So getting to the real stuff now. Um, this was Pastor Jared's first sermon back, correct? After his series. Um I'm the seven promo questions. Was it seven? Yeah. Yes. So this one was called Feed Me, I'm Fool. Unique name, of course. What did you guys think about that one?

SPEAKER_03 3:07

Um, I thought it was really good. Um, he had a lot in the message because he said he like he normally talks in series, but this time he tried to give it to us all in one message. Oh lord. So there was a lot. Um yeah, the core theme was talking about hunger, and I thought it was really good. He opened up by talking about uh how hunger can change your perspective on things. Like, think about if you hate McDonald's, you're like, that food is greasy, oily, and disgusting. It's giving disgusting. But say that after fasting for a week, you're like, this is the most beautiful meal I've ever seen in my life. Yeah, and that's kind of the uh what he opened up with to show that that can happen. Just that same mindset can apply to our spiritual lives.

SPEAKER_04 3:45

Yeah, that's a good one. I really, really, really, really, really like this message.

SPEAKER_03 3:49

Like that was good.

SPEAKER_04 3:50

Most of the time I was like, Y'all, or like my face was just like my jaw was on the ground. I was like, golly.

SPEAKER_03 4:00

What Pastor Jay was like, so the title I message is Feed Me, I'm full. And Jay was on the ground, bro.

SPEAKER_04 4:06

Jaw flew up.

SPEAKER_02 4:09

And her hands flew up into the air, too. She said that's bussin'.

SPEAKER_04 4:16

Anyways, oh, I thought it was really good. I really liked how he said that if we aren't hungry for God, then we'll start choosing like preference over sustenance. And he had like two plates up there. He had a plate of tacos, and if you know Topo Chico, Pastor Jared et al. He loves tacos, and so he puts like everything on it and his Topo Chico, which is like his sparkling water that I don't like, but like he likes it, so whatever. And then on the other plate, he had spam and milk, and he was like, spam can support life because you know it's milk for babies and like soldiers can eat the spam and all the other stuff.

SPEAKER_03 4:55

But um if we don't Yeah, because he was basically saying, like, like talking about how when you start getting full, like you just said, you start getting selective. Like if you're hungry, the analogy he's getting to is that if you're hungry for God, um one example he used is say you're going through a tough season, say you're desperate for God, you're hungry for a word, for anything, um, just the just one single word from God, just anything will be enough to satisfy you. But say you get out of that hard season, say you're in a spot where you're full spiritually, you're in a good season, you may start to get selective uh on God. You may go to church and you may not participate in worship because your favorite song isn't playing. Yeah. Things like that. Instead of taking anything that God gives you because it's from God, you start picking at your food, if you will. You start picking at what God's given to you to try to grow you. Yeah. Um because you're full. You you you're at the point where you're being selective.

SPEAKER_02 5:49

Yes, that's pretty dangerous. He kind of told a story about that too. Um, he said that he had got a last minute plane upgrade, so they upgraded his seat. Well, it came with a free meal, but he said it before he got onto the plane, he had just finished eating Chick-fil-A, so he's like, I'm not even hungry. Yeah. But uh he told his wife, sister Jen, that because it was available, he was just gonna pick through it. And it's like what Hudson said, when we when we were not um starving spiritually, or we're not starving for God because he's filled us to what we think is our full capacity, he's saying, 'I have so much more to give you.

SPEAKER_03 6:22

Yeah, and then he's on another hand, also using that story to show that uh to kind of keep you in perspective and realize that the things that you have um and you're kind of picking apart and being picky about and selective about, other people they need that. Yeah, like they would give anything for it.' Like for people like us in this podcast, most of us has grown up in church, church has become very normal to us. But think about in countries where religion isn't like they don't have freedom of religion. People over there, they don't get the option to just skip church. They risk their lives to go to church when they can have it. Yeah, and so something you may be kind of spiritually full in, and you're kind of picking apart, like, I don't really need that. I have that all the time. Yeah. Other people literally risk their lives for. And so you gotta keep that, you gotta uh keep that perspective. Yeah that you can't just start picking and choosing because you get full on things.

SPEAKER_06 7:12

And I like like at the beginning, to like kind of make the base of it, he was explaining how hunger is an intentional thing. And it's like crucial for your survival because he was talking about the hormones that make you like hungry, it's it's literally saving your life because if you didn't feel the need to eat, then you would starve. Yeah, you know, and he was saying it's not a problem that it's a gift. We need hunger to tell us when to fuel our bodies and when to, you know, re eat, you know, and keep living. And so then he was saying if hunger is so important in a physical aspect, then wouldn't it also be important in a spiritual aspect? Hunger literally is wired to make us continuously want more. And it keeps us going, you know? Yeah. And we should be viewing our spiritual lives the same way. Because if we lived in a constant state of wanting more of God and more of what he had and his will and his goodness, then our lives would change because hunger is necessary in our physical and our spiritual because it's what keeps us consistent. Like what happens when you skip a meal or you go without food for a day? You're hungry. You yes, you're hungry and you feel bad, and you like your body feels, oh, I'm gonna pass out, I need food. It should be the same way in your spiritual. Whenever you're sinning or whenever you're straying far from God, you feel that. Like as Christians, we can feel like, oh, I need to repent, I need to draw closer to God, I feel distant. It's that's how it is. It's the hunger that you have to keep. Yeah. And even whenever, sorry, even when you don't feel that, it's important to keep drawing closer to him because there's still more, like Link was saying, we think we're fully filled up, but we're not. There's so much more, always more.

SPEAKER_07 8:36

Yeah, and like on that same note, it's he made a point. Like, I don't know if he made the point or if I just wrote this down, but it was like if you don't eat, your body will stop growing. Like it eating fuels your growth, eating fuels your whole entire body. And so if you stop growing, if you stop eating, you stop growing, and it's the same thing spiritually. If you ever stop just like trying to learn more, you won't grow anywhere past what your spirituality level is there. And if anything, you might you may start decreasing because not eating is also harmful for the body. And so, in the same words, like for spiritual wise, it's in the same words for spiritual wise, it's gonna, you're not gonna be able to grow at the level that God wants you to. And he used another example about Michael and Debbie Wright, our um our friends up in Winsboro. Is it up or down? It's up in Windsor, real they they um they uh are okay, not Michael and Debbie, Taylor and Landon, they just had twins, and so but the grandparents help out sometimes. And so when Michael's holding one of the twins and feeding them, when she's when she's hungry, he can feed her just fine. But once she stops getting to that like on that desperate hunger, she stops, she has a preference of not drinking the milk from him. So then when the other baby's done eating, he has to give that baby to Debbie and she feeds him the rest of the bottle. And so the importance of the importance of that is that if he would have just let that baby choose what it wanted to do and when it wanted to stop eating, he would not grow as fast as his sister, or it's a girl, she would not grow as fast as her sister, yeah, and it would it would affect her life, and she'd be she won't be at the level she's supposed to be at because she didn't want to eat, yeah. She took that preference

When Fullness Makes You Picky

SPEAKER_07 10:20

and she took too much preference when she needed something.

SPEAKER_03 10:23

Yeah, yeah, and I love that example because that seems like it's a cute little example. Like um little baby doesn't want to eat with the with the guy, but when the mom comes alone, she'll drink it all. But that can happen, that same mindset can happen to us if we're not careful. Um if you only pray when your life is hard and you start building that habit, um, and then once you know God meets that need or you get to a better spot in your life and your praying kind of fizzles out, prayer just becomes you only go to God when I need something from you. Yeah, and it it's things like that where if we're not careful, um our dependence can turn to preference, just like the baby. The baby needs to eat, but once the the initial hunger wears off, um, you know, it's a baby, there's no discipline, there's nothing keeping it there. So once the hunger falls off, it just kind of fizzles out. And it's like, I don't need this anymore. I got what I wanted.

SPEAKER_07 11:14

Yeah. So then, like, in the spiritual wise, we'll start picking who we want to hear our sermons from. Did that too? We'll start listening to only certain preachers when in reality, if you're if you're desperate for it, just a simple YouTube video of a person's testimony can do it for you. Yeah, you know, like you and we'll start picking what singers we like to listen to more instead of just listening and worshiping God. It could be anybody.

SPEAKER_05 11:36

No, that's a good point.

SPEAKER_03 11:37

Yeah, like it isn't exactly those things, but it's that mindset. If you're really hungry for God, like you're just saying, um, anything will do. Yeah, it could be a 12-year-old boy get up on that stage and preach, and you'll be locked in. Yeah, you'll be taking notes if you're hungry for God. But like you were just saying, if you start getting picky, you'll go to church, which God literally designed to speak into your life, and you'll not pay attention because you have heard this before. Like, yeah, I've been in church five years, I've I've heard this verse preached before. I don't need to listen to this. Yeah, or I don't really like that song. I'm not gonna engage on this one, but just wait till the next one's like. I like the soloist for the next song, so I'll I like her voice, so I'll I'll lock in for that one. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 12:16

I really like the story about the the bottle and the baby. Um I he didn't say this, but this is what I kind of took away from it. Um, when the grandpa held the baby, so when babies are drinking from um bottles, they need to be held the right way. Their posture has to be a certain way, so that way uh they can fully consume the right way without gas building up, causing them to bur and stuff like that. Well, he said that the grandpa didn't have the touch that the grandma had. And so without the touch, the baby was able to still get full. But with the touch, when her posture changed, she was able to get more than just being full, she was able to get the entire bottle like the other sister did. And so what I kind of took away from again, he didn't say this, but so he might not have meant this by it, but I just felt the need to share it. Yeah, just make sure our posture is right. Because if our posture is, I'm just gonna come to church and get what I need, you're gonna miss even more that you could have gotten. That's good.

SPEAKER_04 13:10

Yeah, that's good. That's good.

SPEAKER_07 13:11

That's a good point.

SPEAKER_04 13:12

I think we need to be desperate for God all the time, if that makes sense. Like we need to be at we should get to a point in our walk with God where we're not satisfied no matter where we are. Um, we should always be like continually walking. I know a girl from school who goes to like a bunch of different denominations, campus groups, every single day. She's going to church every single day because she's desperate for God. She's desperate for truth. She's desperate to hear from God and to like be able to understand who who God is. And I think that we should, as you know, as a people and as the children of God, that we should never be satisfied. Yeah. You know, never, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 13:58

Never become complacent because there's there's so much. Like there's different levels to it. Like um, I was talking to a few of my friends, they were talking about and they were talking about a prayer meeting that they had, um, and they said it lasted like five hours. Well, in the five hours, they had breaks in between. Like the first time they prayed for like an hour and then took a 40-minute break, and they said, and then when the second wave came, it was more powerful than the first wave. So there's there's different levels to this, and the more that you sit and linger in the presence of God, the more that you sit and just really soak and and want to learn about him, he's gonna continue to just brush over you with thicker and thicker presence every single time.

SPEAKER_06 14:36

Literally. I love when he was talking about how God wants you to be full of his word and spirit and anointing, but don't forget the wilderness moments. That was like my favorite part. Because when you were starving and low and it took a miracle to sustain you, like God was there. I like it because to me the meaning is like deeper than just the hunger part of it. To me, it was like reminding you to be thankful and grateful because there was a time when you were at your lowest and God picked you up and he turned your nothing into something. And he just saved you physically or mentally or both. And remembering where you came from keeps you grateful and like it just lets you see how far you've come and how much God's done for you. And if God gave you his all when you were at your lowest, then shouldn't you give God your all when you're at your highest? Oh whoa, whoa, hold up, repeat. That's good. I like that.

SPEAKER_08 15:24

Oh, it's repeat.

SPEAKER_06 15:26

Rewind 10 seconds to repeat it.

SPEAKER_04 15:27

Rewind. Now I really like that. That's cool. Yeah, that's good. That's good. That reminds me of like the children of Israel whenever they were in the wilderness, because God literally kept them from dying. He sent stuff from heaven to and like water out of rocks to keep them from dying, and then like the most they could do is give him their best whenever they were at like hold up. They would give him their best because he gave them the best at their worst, but then they didn't do that. So we shouldn't be like that and give God our best.

SPEAKER_07 16:02

That story always bugged me because I'm like, what do you mean he kept you through the wilderness for 40 years? Wait, it was 40 years, right? Yes. I know, like, I and then like 40 days and 49. I can kind of brain is not locked in.

SPEAKER_03 16:13

I can kind of understand, like, you know, not the generation that received the mana, but say, like, three to four generations down the line, yeah. They're kind of not in such dire situations. Like, obviously, they shouldn't have strayed away from God, but that's a bit more understandable than the people literally receiving heaven bread. Right, literally, and then being like, I miss the food we had in slavery.

SPEAKER_07 16:33

Never mind.

SPEAKER_03 16:36

It's literally what Pastor Jarrett's talking about.

SPEAKER_04 16:38

Literally, like we can go from just like Hudson was saying, like, we we can miss stuff that was in our sin, but then if we think about it, like we can have this very spiritual high moment, and then the next thing we know, we're we're stooping down back to our sin cycles where we just promised God we would never go back to that again.

SPEAKER_08 16:57

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 16:57

And so it's just like, you know, things change from the Bible to do.

SPEAKER_03 17:03

And I mean that that shows again like the danger of letting your preferences override your hunger because when they were hungry for manna, or not for mana, but for food in general, they were not complaining when they were only eating manna. Yeah. But once they ate for a bit and they got full, then their preferences, they were like, Oh, I actually miss that other food I used to eat. Yeah. Or I actually missed when we used to do this. Or and if we're not careful, we could do that in our own lives. Yeah. Like again, like we've just been talking about. We can start picking apart the the blessings that God has given us and comparing it to things in the past based on our preference. And that's kind of stinky, guys. I don't I don't think you should do that.

SPEAKER_06 17:39

You think there was like a bakery in heaven making mana? And then like all of a sudden God was like, Okay, baker, drop down the mana, and then everybody got mana.

SPEAKER_03 17:47

That's exactly how it happened.

SPEAKER_06 17:48

Maybe that would be

Hunger Fuels Growth And Repentance

SPEAKER_06 17:50

so cool. A whole open up in the sky.

SPEAKER_03 17:53

It's probably it was like Fortnite supply drops.

SPEAKER_04 17:58

That's funny.

SPEAKER_06 17:59

Not if like the mana just like parachuted out of heaven. I know. Or did it just like cloudy and the chancy meatballs like just fall out of the sky? Like, is that what happened?

SPEAKER_04 18:06

I feel like it'd be more like like a cloudy and chance meatballs, just fall off the sky. That's what I'm thinking. Or it would just appear on the ground.

SPEAKER_02 18:10

They would have had some sandy bread.

SPEAKER_04 18:12

Oh.

SPEAKER_06 18:13

If it fell on the ground? Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 18:15

Well, it was on the ground.

SPEAKER_02 18:16

Yeah, so they had to be.

SPEAKER_06 18:17

They were so hungry, y'all. Back to it. They were so hungry. It was delicious.

SPEAKER_02 18:21

They had sandy bread and sandy bird meat. Oh. They still ate.

SPEAKER_04 18:25

Well, the whole quail would fall, I think. So they would just skin the quail.

SPEAKER_03 18:29

Yeah, you might be right. I might just know they they got perfectly prepared quail on paper.

SPEAKER_04 18:34

They got it skinned and cooked and everything.

SPEAKER_06 18:55

Um, but back to the message. Yeah. We got a little off topic. It's fine. Um, I was I really enjoyed when he said that hunger will create movement in your life. Um because we don't do it because we have to, we do it because we want to, because we want to serve God. We want to, we want to move, you know?

SPEAKER_00 19:10

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 19:11

Um, and we might not feel empty and broken. We've kind of been talking about that, like when you get full, you don't feel necessarily empty and broken, but that doesn't mean that you're overflowing and complete. That doesn't mean that you are full. Just like Lincoln was saying, you feel like you are, but you aren't. And basically, even though life might seem like quote unquote good at the time, we need to constantly rely on Jesus to feed us and guide us every single day. Because each day that we get comfortable choosing our preference, like I were talking about, you get one step closer to where you started. Think about that. Like, if you're like it's like that saying, if you're not growing, you're dying. Is that what it is? Yes. Like you get more distant from God, and eventually you're going to get back to your point A and you're gonna be like, How did I get here?

SPEAKER_04 19:47

Yeah, hold on, I've never thought about it like that. I know. It's like a cycle, and you're gonna keep doing the cycle closer to where you started. Wow, there's y'all should write that down. Repeat.

SPEAKER_03 19:58

Because your relationship with God, you can never just like press pause and stay where you're at and chill. Like Audrey was just saying. You're either going to either grow or you do. Or you're going backwards. Yeah. So if we're not careful and we don't have that hunger intrinsically within us, and it's not just based on our circumstance, we'll be just like the Israelites. We'll uh get to the point where we want to be at and we feel satisfied, and then we'll kind of chill for a bit and we'll put God to the side and then we'll start moving backwards. We put them on the shelf. And then we'll need God again because we'll be in a bad situation, and then we'll start going forward again.

SPEAKER_06 20:29

Exactly. So it makes you move. Like the hunger makes you move back or it makes you active, like what he was saying, it creates movement in your life when you're hungry. But whenever you're quote unquote sustained, you're not moving. You we tend to stay still because we don't feel the need to draw closer because we don't feel empty. Yeah. But then we're like I was saying, we're just we're going to we're slowly emptying out. We don't feel empty, but we're slowly emptying out if we're not feeding ourselves daily.

SPEAKER_07 20:52

So like with the feeding yourself daily is that takes discipline. So when you're going through it and you're and you're feeding yourself daily and you're you're hungry for the Lord and you have discipline, when he the blessings start coming, this is a quote he said it says, discipline doesn't disappear with blessing. If anything, it needs to get more important. Because, like what Audrey said, if you stop, if you are just like, oh, this is the easy, smooth ride. Now I can kind of take a seat back, relax, maybe do what I wanted to do sometimes. It's just like the blessings won't keep flowing because you're not honoring him even in the high points. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 21:24

Yeah, because that's it's a lot easier if we're honest to pray when we need God, like we're in a bad situation than it is when you know we're on the mountaintop. We're we're we have a good. It's a lot harder to pray as opposed to when we actually really need him. I mean, we always need him, but you know what I'm saying?

SPEAKER_07 21:41

Like when you're in a bad situation, we have like all the good coming to us, it's it's a lot harder to remember that God is there almost. Like you have to intentionally be like, God, thank you for this. Like, this is so great and so praise him in those moments.

SPEAKER_04 21:52

Yeah. And it's crazy, like, this is it's just crazy that no matter where we are on this hunger space. Spectrum. The Lord is wanting us all the same. Like it's just crazy to fathom that even if I'm trying, or even if I'm not trying, he's still knocking and be like, hey, I want to spend time with you. Like, hey, I'm here for you. I'm here for you. Like, let's be best friends. Because I made you and like I love you and stuff. But like that's just it's so cool.

SPEAKER_02 22:21

He's just very cool.

SPEAKER_04 22:23

Well, that was kind of a top topic, but you know, that was that's science.

SPEAKER_03 22:28

What are you talking about?

SPEAKER_06 22:29

For real. I like that. Um, and then real quick, kind of tying back to what I was saying, but in like a different way about how it creates activity. I mean, it creates movement. Um, he said activity creates hunger. Yeah. And when we are active, we become hungry. Like, think if you're doing a big workout afterwards, you're gonna be hungry because you just worked off like all kinds of stuff. So, like, going out and serving creates a hunger in you. Like, I've been helping out a couple of us have been helping out with like the CMI X backyard worship things, and that has given me a hunger that I didn't have before to go out and help people and to serve and to spread the gospel. And like it's kind of just goes to show that it's not necessarily something that you're even gonna expect. Like, I didn't even know I'd be here like last year. I didn't even know this existed until last year or until this year, and now it's like you you can find a new hunger for something like every day. You have to just go out and find it.

SPEAKER_03 23:16

And so that kind of like he used that to kind of answer the uh the question you may have of well, how am I supposed to remain hungry if I'm full? Because he was saying there's nothing God wants you to be full but also hungry at the same time. Yeah, so how do I do that? You stay active, like Audrey was just saying. Yeah, um, he used the example when he was preaching, I think, of Britain. Yeah, that's what it was. His son Britton playing. Yeah, it was Britton, that's what it was. It was Britton's birthday, and they were planning to eat at some steakhouse. And so uh Pastor Jared and his and Jen, uh, they prepared all day. They were like, We're eating steak tonight, so we're not eating anything up to that. We wanna we wanna go all out.

SPEAKER_06 23:51

Save the appetite.

SPEAKER_03 23:52

Yeah, well, Britton was eating like crazy all day, like you know, an average teenager, and then he was late to go eat with them because he was playing basketball, and then he gets there, and they're like, We're not gonna order any appetizers, we're gonna wait for the main course, and then Britain's like, How many appetizers are we getting? I want to eat it all.

SPEAKER_07 24:08

Dude, I'm telling you, right when he sat down, you don't understand how much food he asked that waiter to put on the like he was just like, Can we get this, the mac and cheese? Could I get this steak? And I'm like, bro, chill.

SPEAKER_03 24:19

Pastor Dre was like, dude, what are you doing? How are you hungry?

SPEAKER_07 24:22

And he literally ate it all.

SPEAKER_03 24:23

Yeah, then he it finally hit him the principle that it's because Britain's been active in the same vein in the spirit of you're constantly active, you're always gonna be hungry for more. Yeah, you're burning spiritual calories. I was about to say it's like it's like your digestion.

SPEAKER_02 24:36

With the heaven bread, bro.

SPEAKER_04 24:39

Soul winning is literally addictive. Yeah. Cause like I'm involved with our campus ministry at UL, so at the college right down the road. And whenever you witness people getting the Holy Ghost and are being baptized in Jesus' name, or just seeing the understanding of the biblical truth, it is it's it's addictive. You're like, okay, hold up. I want to do this again. Like, yes, I'm sharing my faith with you, and like it's working, not as working, but like you, you, you're seeing it too. And now I want to show this to the next person. No, yeah. You just want everyone around you to be able to experience that.

SPEAKER_07 25:15

Yeah. And y'all are talking CMI and um what's it called, backyard worship. And those are all great things. It's great to get out of like your local area, but you you don't have to start doing that either. You could just start in the church. Like you could start by serving at the church because when you see the people, maybe the guests come in when you're greeting at the door, and you see while you're in church that they got the Holy Ghost, like it's like that type of thing just keeps drawing you back and bringing you back for more.

SPEAKER_04 25:40

Exactly. Because out out of out of church things are important, but also in church

Staying Hungry Through Serving

SPEAKER_04 25:45

things are important. Yeah, and serving your people too in general. Both of them, both all aspects of serving are very important and can be addictive in many ways because you see like you are doing the will of God and you're working for God, and then you you are seeing how serving impacts other people, and once you see how you and like your obedience can impact others, yeah, it's just so cool. Yes.

SPEAKER_07 26:15

Yes, yes. Would you like to follow up? Yes, kind of. So I was I was reading, okay, I was about to go into something, but it low-key doesn't make any sense, but I'm still gonna go into it, and y'all are gonna all have to follow me there. So back to when the point of the um when he was when my dad was eating on the plane and he was thinking about how some other people could use this food too. He meant he said a statement, he said, we need to start thinking about how can I help get this to the people that need it. And I was tying that in my brain towards serving. It's like, you know, how do you help get this word, the the physical, like the the food for the spirit, how do I help get that out to the people that need it instead of hogging it all to myself and picking through it? Are you asking us?

SPEAKER_04 27:04

No, she's saying ask yourself that. No, that's it. Oh, ask yourself that. I was like constantly staying in a state of how can I help you?

SPEAKER_07 27:10

No, that was just a statement he said. And my brain just connected it to the wrong thing. So that's why we're over here.

SPEAKER_06 27:15

No, I got you. Like how are you saying I got this message for?

SPEAKER_03 27:17

But yeah, no, that's a good mindset. That is a great response. To always keep in mind that um, if you were blessed enough, like those of us in this room to grow up in church, not everyone was like that. Not everyone knows this stuff. Some people out there they go through a hard season, they go through a really bad time, and they don't they don't have a God to rely on because they don't know him.

SPEAKER_08 27:36

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 27:37

And so you got to keep that in mind. Um, there's people out there that need him, they need to know what you know.

SPEAKER_07 27:43

Yeah, and like back to the seven primal questions, is that's our purpose. Like, if you're looking for a purpose, that's it. Is God created us to create more followers and disciples of him?

SPEAKER_06 27:52

What does that have to do with the seven primal questions? The last question was do I have purpose? Oh, oh.

SPEAKER_07 27:57

So I was just saying, like, if you're looking for your purpose, like God has given you a purpose and it's to serve people, and you need to go do that.

SPEAKER_03 28:03

Yes, the purpose is to be obedient, and that's part of being obedient. Yes, it does command you to do that.

SPEAKER_04 28:09

Because once we find the Lord, we gotta tell other people about the Lord because He's so cool that why wouldn't we want to be awesome? Oh, praise.

SPEAKER_07 28:18

Do not get back on that platform.

SPEAKER_08 28:21

My God.

SPEAKER_07 28:22

Wait, never mind. I don't understand. It's a joke. Inside joke? No, it's very public.

SPEAKER_03 28:28

No inside jokes on the podcast. Secrets don't make friends, guys. Real. And we love our our listeners.

SPEAKER_07 28:34

Yes. Yeah. Amen.

Proverbs Reading Starts

SPEAKER_06 28:54

Well, last week we had covered um Proverbs, what was it? Remind me. 13 through 15.

SPEAKER_02 29:00

12 through 15.

SPEAKER_06 29:01

PB in the back. I don't know if you heard that.

SPEAKER_02 29:03

Yeah, it was 13.

SPEAKER_06 29:04

Because we did that. 13 through 15. So this week, let's try to do 16 through 19. All right.

SPEAKER_03 29:14

Bro agrees. Very agreeable, Andrea, over here.

SPEAKER_06 29:18

This quarter over here.

SPEAKER_03 29:19

Okay. I agree with that, Audrey.

SPEAKER_06 29:22

Uh Andrea says you agree, you can start us off.

SPEAKER_04 29:24

Oh, okay. Um, I really liked Proverbs 16. I listened to it about like three times on the way over here just because it was so good. Yeah, that was a good chapter. Yeah, it really focused on the themes of divine sovereignty and how God will make everything to happen in his own timing. Like, yes, we could it use the example of rolling the dice. Like, we could roll the dice.

SPEAKER_03 29:48

I like that version.

SPEAKER_04 29:48

But God is the one who decides where it lands. Yeah. And so it's like you could try to do all that you could do in your humanness, but in reality, God's the one who makes it all happen. Which is so cool. Yeah, I agree.

SPEAKER_02 30:03

Yeah, Proverbs 16, 9, it says we can make our plans, but the Lord determines our steps. And it's like what Andrew is saying, what I took away from it is we can have an idea of what something's gonna be or what it should be, but unless it's God's will, it might not happen that way. Yeah, like you can have a setup in your mind, I'm gonna do this for college, or I'm gonna choose this major, I'm gonna go and get this job, but then God speaks to you and say, Alright, now change your major. Are you are you gonna listen?

SPEAKER_03 30:29

Or he just throws you a curveball and he's like, Go be a missionary in Africa. And you're like, Well, some crazy stuff. Guess I'm not gonna work at a hair salon in Louisiana.

SPEAKER_02 30:38

So just be very sensitive to what God is saying and be obedient to it. Even if even if it doesn't align with what you want it to do, he has a reason for it.

SPEAKER_07 30:47

Amen. Yeah. And I also I also like that part of the scripture where it says the Lord determines our steps, is those steps are crucial. So like we could follow our own steps and still probably end up where we might think we want it to be. Yeah, but it will never reach what God had in store for us if we would have followed his steps. Because those steps could have prepared us for something so much greater than what we had in mind ourselves.

SPEAKER_06 31:10

Yeah. I think the biggest thing with that for me is like when you take matters into your own hands, you're taking it out of his deliberately. Like, we can't satisfy two things at once. We can't satisfy our desires and God's desires at the same time. You have to choose whether you're gonna control it or you're gonna surrender it to God because you can't have control of things and also let God control things.

SPEAKER_03 31:29

Yeah, because you can kind of like box your plans in and be like, this is how it's gonna be, God. It's my way or the highway. You can fit your plans around what I want to do for my life. Um, I'll still kind of keep it there though. You're still my God. Yeah, I'm still going to church and stuff. I'll still I'll still pray, I'll still reach out to people, but you kind of gotta fit your way. Like, I wanna get I wanna go for this degree, yeah, I want this major, I want this job, yeah, I want to be this successful. Um, fill in the blank and you can kind of box God out.

SPEAKER_07 31:58

Yeah, but lost him around.

God Directs Plans And Steps

SPEAKER_07 32:00

Yeah, but but you have to it literally says in verse three of chapter 16 says, Commit your actions to the Lord and your plans will succeed. So if you surrender what your desires are or what your plans are, God will help you succeed in those.

SPEAKER_04 32:15

And if you like, if you literally submit your plans to him, you're like, hey God, this is what I'm thinking, but like what are you thinking? Yeah, he will tell you what you're thinking. No, hold up. But he's thinking. He will tell you you're thinking this is what you're thinking, he will tell you what he's thinking about what you're thinking, but it might not be in the time that you're thinking it'll happen. No real I I'm hearing it out. Yeah, good. Because you just like the text bubble thing from last sermon that Pastor Jared preached, yeah. Um we can ask God and then we're expecting like an immediate response. But in reality, God doesn't work like that. Yeah, and so you could so submit, submit your plans to him and then wait on him. It might take a hot minute to align yourself with God enough to hear from him clearly, but once you align yourself with him and like your motive, not your motives, but like your wants is his wants, then he's gonna be like, Hey, actually, yeah, I want you to do XYZ.

SPEAKER_06 33:11

Imagine asking God like what major should I do? And he just doesn't answer for the next three years, and you're just like holding off on college. Like that would be crazy. Guess I'll take general courses.

SPEAKER_03 33:20

General studies. Yeah, God's like your advisor in college, but he's actually like really good at it. Yeah, he's really good at his job. Yeah, if uh if you're in college or you've been there, you know what it's like to have a bad advisor. I've heard some stories.

SPEAKER_04 33:32

Oh, my advisor from last semester still emails me because I switched from last semester to this semester, and she's still emailing me for like advisors. And it's like, lady, oh, like that. You're no longer my advisor.

SPEAKER_06 33:43

And I thought you meant like, how are you doing?

SPEAKER_04 33:45

Oh no. She's like, Okay, guys, come sign the advising form. And it's like, why am I on your email list? That's funny.

SPEAKER_07 33:51

You should send take me off your email list.

SPEAKER_06 33:54

Oh no. I should take the emails. Um, but anyway, back to Proverbs. Um I really liked verse 20. It says, Those who listen to instruction will prosper, those who trust the Lord will be joyful. Listening to what he says can only lead you in the right direction. Like it kind of goes back to the one we were just talking about, like taking things into your own hands. Listening to yourself can go either good or bad, but listening to God, on the other hand, has a hundred percent positive results guaranteed. So, like, why would we not just take that one? Because trusting God gives you peace and it really does take a load off of you. Because I used to have this problem of trying to control like every aspect of life. And then, like, recently or the last like year or so, I've been like, nah, you know what? God's got that. Like, I like I'm gonna be in a pickle and I'll be like, I genuinely don't know what to do in this situation or what to choose. And like big choices is my that's my downfall. No, like legit. And I'm like, God's got it, God just you figure it out, and it always works out fine. And I don't get stressed anymore. So trust.

SPEAKER_04 34:50

I agree because I struggle a lot with knowing. Like, I want to know what's gonna happen. I want to know all the possible outcomes and like pick the best one, and that's just not how life works at all. But whenever you trust God and you're like, okay, well, God's got it, I guess. Well, not I guess, because you know God's got it, then it just it makes your life so much easier. I agree. It just does. And in Proverbs 16, 25, it says there is a path before each person that seems right, but in the end, but it ends in death. And so just like Audrey was saying, with like our own plans and everyone has a plan or a thought process of how their life should go, right? But so in in your mind that seems right, but in the end it leads to death, like either physically, spiritually, emotionally, yeah. Any of the of those of those because if we're not if we're not putting God into the situation and like asking him first about things, then it probably won't turn out for the best. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 35:58

Yeah, and like that doesn't even have to be like uh more worldly stuff, like a job you want to do, a career path or something like that. It could be your ministry. You could be dead set on being like the best singer ever. Like you want to go and sing at all the churches in America, you wanna you wanna tour around and you want to be uh no yeah, understandable. But the whole time you were meant to be a drummer. And so you pour all this time into being a musician, and that was never the path God had for you.

SPEAKER_07 36:25

Yeah. It was like if you just followed my steps, you would have already been here.

SPEAKER_03 36:28

That's the exact desperation God has on his voice.

SPEAKER_04 36:31

Yes, exactly. Or like even when your ministry changes, because like your ministry can change from different seasons, and so like I was in children's ministry for a long time and now I'm in youth ministry, which is something I never would have thought I would have seen myself in. But it's just so it's so much fun to just trust God because like I would have thought I would have never done youth ministry, and like I would have done kids' ministry for like the rest of my life, which I still have kids' ministry, like don't get that wrong. But in my mind, I was gonna do that for like the rest of my life, and God's like, actually, no, we're gonna step here, and then we're gonna go zigzag in this way, and then like his math is just like legit, and so it's just fun to trust God, guys.

SPEAKER_03 37:12

It really is.

SPEAKER_06 37:12

Ramsey, something you just said or made me think of this. You were saying, like, wait, what were you saying? God's saying something, like you said something desperately. Well, what did you say? You remember? Uh uh. This is like if you would have followed my steps, whatever you said, that made me wonder like, y'all think God watches our lives like it's like a dad watching football. Like, does he just look at it and like we do something absolutely ridiculous? And he's like, Oh, and he's like cringing at the TV. Oh no.

SPEAKER_07 37:40

It's like if you would have just did this, this, indulged all the people, you would have gotten here.

SPEAKER_06 37:44

Except the fact that he actually knows better, and dads just think that they could play better than the football players when they're actually sitting on their couch.

SPEAKER_07 37:50

Whoa.

SPEAKER_03 37:51

That's that's a can of worms. Yeah, that's what I'm saying. Yeah, I think he does. I think like he puts the thought in your mind, like, go go witness to that person. And then you act and like you do it, you go witness. He's like, Yes!

SPEAKER_00 38:01

Yes, we did it! That's actually something.

SPEAKER_02 38:03

I mean, it does say all of heaven rejoices and one sinner repents. So they are they are watching. Or they're hearing for sure.

SPEAKER_03 38:10

Biblically accurate statement.

SPEAKER_07 38:11

I thought this scripture was really fitting for last week's message. It says it is good for a worker to have an appetite, and empty stomach drives them on. So when you're hungry, you keep going. No, yeah. And that just it just, I was like, Because it's a driving factor.

SPEAKER_03 38:27

It's almost like we just heard a whole message on that.

SPEAKER_07 38:29

Yes, it just I just thought it was cool. I'm like, like, dude, they went to the same podcast.

SPEAKER_03 38:33

Like, dude, I wonder if like I wonder if like Pastor Jared's hearing from God or something, because that's in the Bible.

SPEAKER_05 38:38

No, for real.

SPEAKER_03 38:39

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 38:40

I love that.

SPEAKER_02 38:41

I liked Proverbs 16, 6. It says, Unfailing love and faithfulness make atonement for sin. By fearing the Lord, people avoid evil. And so I wonder if Solomon knew what he was writing would perfectly depict Jesus' sacrifice towards us. Like Jesus had unfailing love for us, and he was faithful to the will, or his flesh was faithful to the will of his spiritual side, being God, and he died for us, and so perfect atonement was made for us, and we should want to please him. We don't want we don't we shouldn't want to upset him. He's a jealous God. Like we should glorify him and honor him in everything that we do.

SPEAKER_07 39:14

Yeah, yeah. I like on that note, I loved 1611. It says the Lord determines, the Lord demands accurate skills and balances, and he sets the standards for fairness. And it's like I was just like, I was like, I had to think on that one for a hot minute because I'm like, not only does he demand accurate scales and balance, he sets the standards for fairness. That goes back to him dying on the cross when he deserved nothing. He deserved none of what those people gave him. But he's gonna, he's gonna, he's the set for fairness and he is gonna come back and he is gonna make it balanced again. When he and oh and I just it was like I was just like, whoa. Like, what do we who do we think we are for bickering and like just like going on about this stuff, how it's all unfair and stuff, and he's done that when he really is just the set standard for it and he demands the accurate scales and balance it too.

SPEAKER_02 40:20

Proverbs 1618 says, Pride goes before destruction and haughtiness before a fall. And so when pride sneaks in, we begin glorifying ourselves and all that we've accomplished. And it's like I said earlier, God is a jealous God, and if he isn't being glorified, he is not happy, not happy at all. And when destruction happens, it might not always look like you lose all of your money or you lose your house or your job or your car. Like it doesn't always mean you lose your materialistic things. But you might lose your peace and your rest. You might lose your relationship with God, like you might be starving spiritually, but financially blooming.

SPEAKER_03 40:57

It could be your soul. Like imagine you go witness to someone and they come to God and God moves into life and you're like, I did that. Yeah, that was me. I saved them. Or you go and pray for someone that's sick and they get healed. You're like, I can't believe I did that.

SPEAKER_02 41:10

Yeah, it's like Saul. Saul in the um in the Bible, he didn't lose his throne immediately when yeah, pride kicked in. But it says a distressing spirit came upon Saul and he could no longer, he was being tormented all the time and all the time. Yeah, it's like he still had his throne in his crown at this time, but he has lost everything besides that

Pride Destroys Peace And Clarity

SPEAKER_02 41:30

pretty much.

SPEAKER_07 41:30

Yeah, that's what happens when you put too much um value on the earthly things.

SPEAKER_02 41:35

I mean, that's just pride. That's pride, sister.

SPEAKER_07 41:37

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 41:38

And it's so dangerous because sometimes you don't even know that you're being prideful.

SPEAKER_05 41:42

Mm-hmm.

SPEAKER_03 41:43

That's why one of the why pride is one of the most dangerous. Because if you're so caught up in cut caught up in that, you won't know. You just don't know. Because you won't ever think anything's wrong. Pride doesn't let you think that anything's wrong.

SPEAKER_07 41:52

But I mean it'll make you blind to the truth of what's actually happening with yourself.

SPEAKER_06 41:57

I think that's the whole point that like pride is you thinking you're right. Like you have it all figured out, you know it. So it's like you don't know when you have pride sometimes because you think that you know it. Does that make sense? No, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 42:08

Only Proverbs talked extensively about not being prideful and to listening when people correct you and listening when God corrects you and not being prideful. If only.

SPEAKER_04 42:16

If only it did.

SPEAKER_03 42:17

I know I wish. Surely it wouldn't be that simple.

SPEAKER_04 42:20

It's only like 31 chapters of how to not be prideful and how to be wise. But it's okay.

SPEAKER_02 42:26

Ooh, I like this one. I know it just went, but I like this one too. It's Proverbs 16, 24. Kind words are like honey, sweet to the soul and healthy for the body. And so I looked, I looked up. This made me very curious. If kind words are healthy, honey. Well, if if kind words are healthy, then what are negative words? And I looked up negative words actually affect your body. Yeah, yeah. They mess up um your levels in your brain, it causes increase in anxiety and stress, it can cause high blood pressure and low immune system support, and it can also cause long-lasting damage uh to emotional regulation and your memory. Yeah, literally, and so kind words are literally healthy because these negative words are actually affect they don't just all that hurt my feelings. Like you're taking damage to your body.

SPEAKER_07 43:12

That one also made my mouth like drop on a song. Like, kind words literally affect your body. And like that just shows how powerful words are. Like words can change your brain chemistry.

SPEAKER_04 43:23

Literally, there's a study that somebody did the where they found out that it takes seven positive things, or like seven or eight positive sayings to equal or like to cancel out one negative thing that someone has said to you. So the one negative thing that you might say to someone, it will take seven or eight positive things for that person to like get not get over it, but if for it to cancel each other out.

SPEAKER_05 43:51

That's crazy.

SPEAKER_06 43:52

And imagine like if they come from a home where like they have they don't have relationships that uplift them. Like that's so sad, y'all. That makes you want to cry, Andrew.

SPEAKER_04 44:00

So just speak life, guys. Be be nice. Let your words be like honey. Especially if you like honey, because then you know like how great it is, and then you can be sweet to other people. So true, but I really like Proverbs 16, 13, where it says the king is pleased with words from righteous lips, and he loves those who speak honestly. And so this just goes back to our the importance of us and our words. Like I whenever I was listening and reading this, I took the king as like Jesus. I don't know if that's actually what it means. But the king agreed. That was so confusing.

SPEAKER_06 44:35

Yeah.

SPEAKER_04 44:35

Because it wasn't capital. I know. So I couldn't tell. So it might just be like the king of a country or something. Thank you, God. But anyway, I'm gonna say it's Jesus. So I think that God is pleas whenever we speak things that are righteous and things that are uplifting. Yeah. And he loves those who speak honestly, who aren't lying about their neighbors and who aren't tearing other people down. And this just goes back to our words are powerful, guys.

SPEAKER_07 44:58

They are absolutely so going into chapter 17 with the words, okay. But it's like kind of okay, with the words and how much they mean. Chapter 17, verse 9 says, Love prospers when a fault is forgiven, but dwelling on it separates close friends. One dwelling on the past will always make you bitter and like sad like every day, and it will not, it'll it'll just build up. Yeah, yeah, but when you forgive and you like you speak the words that you are forgiving them and you truly believe it, it it literally can just change lives. Yeah, it can change or can not change lives. It could change your life. And your it moves mountains when you forgive. It'll change your relationships with people because it literally says dwelling on it will separate the closest of friends.

SPEAKER_06 45:44

Yeah. I I I love that one because it was like true love is willing, like a true love, like unconditional, not like fake love when you say you love someone, but you really wouldn't do everything for them. You know what I mean? Like true love is willing to forgive and forget those things because they love that person and they're they're willing to forget about little arguments and not ruin beautiful friendships and all these good memories over like stupid things, you know? And like you were saying, Ramsay, if we never forgive others, we won't be forgiven. Like the Bible says that. Yeah, like you have to forgive others, and you also have to give love to receive it. It's the same thing with forgiveness. You have to give forgiveness to receive it. And treating those you love with kindness and respect will get you further in life than winning any argument ever will. Learn that the hard way. But I've learned it. That's what counts, right? That's what matters. And the longer you let things build up, like you were saying, Ramsay, like it it does change you. It makes your life worse, really. Because why would you want to live in constant anger and unforgiveness? Like, just forgive people. It like it can be hard, I know, but not as hard as like living life every day with like hatred in your heart. Yes, and bitterness being miserable.

SPEAKER_07 46:50

When you're struggling, like if you're like, but I really don't want to forgive this, just think of how many times Jesus has forgiven you in that hour, bro. And just and like just strive to be anywhere like near that.

SPEAKER_02 47:01

Proverbs 174 says, wrongdoers eagerly listen to gossip and liars pay close attention to slander. Yep. So every one of us in this world has heard gossip before. But the difference between the wise people and wrongdoers is the wise hear it and the wrongdoers listen to it. There's a difference between hearing and listening. You can hear something because you're walking by, but a wrongdoer is gonna say, ooh, this I'm gonna listen to that.

SPEAKER_07 47:26

They're like craving it. They're craving for all that drama.

SPEAKER_02 47:29

Yeah, make sure when we

Words Heal Or Harm

SPEAKER_02 47:30

when we hear gossip, we're just hearing it without rather than listening to it with intent to repeat.

SPEAKER_07 47:35

We're shutting it down.

SPEAKER_03 47:36

Yeah, we turn it down because I mean we've seen time and time again throughout Proverbs if you open up your eyes to it at all, or you even consider it, it'll sneak in. And now you're going to the folly party.

SPEAKER_02 47:46

Yeah. Don't go to the folly party.

SPEAKER_07 47:48

Yeah. It just like just a very, very short, quick back to chapter 16. It says verse 28, it says a troublemaker plant seeds of strife. Gossip separates the best of best of friends. Yeah. It's like gossip literally can destroy like some of the strongest bonds there is.

SPEAKER_03 48:02

Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 48:03

And it's just because you wanted to spread something that you heard. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 48:07

Yeah, like we're all cool in this room. But if I start gossiping about you guys, you guys are not gonna like me anymore. I don't even know if you do right now.

SPEAKER_05 48:14

I always got to say, how do you know that we still do?

SPEAKER_03 48:16

You definitely won't like me after that.

SPEAKER_06 48:18

Oh, going back to chapter 17, I really liked verse 15. It stuck out to me. It says, acquitting the guilty and condemning the innocent both are dep detestable to the Lord. So I take this as like validating sin and wrongdoing is something that God detests, and so is blaming and accusing innocent people. And a lot of times I've seen that these two are paired, they go together. Because people who are doing wrong, they love to validate themselves for doing wrong.

SPEAKER_07 48:42

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 48:42

You know, they like to think, ooh, I'm doing this right. And so they'll go find people who are gonna do it with them. They're gonna go find people to talk bad about innocent people and bring them down with them.

SPEAKER_07 48:51

And then wait what? No, sorry. I was gonna say, and they pose themselves as the victim. They're like, like this did this happen to me.

SPEAKER_06 48:58

Yes, I should do that. And it just makes them feel better about themselves. Yeah. Because they want to feel validated doing what's wrong and they know it.

SPEAKER_04 49:04

Yeah. Yeah. I agree. And building off of that verse in verse 5, it says, Those who mock the poor insult their maker, those who rejoice at the misfortune of others will be punished. This literally like jumped off of the recording, the page, because I read it and listened to it. And so, like, whenever they said it will insult their maker, I was like, hold on, because the maker is God. So whenever people, so whenever people who God made mock other people who God made, it insults the maker itself. Himself, which is just crazy. Like, I I couldn't imagine insulting God because on purpose. Does this make sense? Yeah, oh yeah. Like it's just mind-boggling that we can literally that we can insult God because we purpose, like intentionally or not, mock other people and rejoice at other people falling down. Yeah. Well, that's his children. Literally, he made everybody. That's his baby.

SPEAKER_03 50:02

So young people keep that in mind when you're like, oh, that person's so chopped. You're literally insulting God. You are creation.

SPEAKER_04 50:10

Wow, good point. Yes.

SPEAKER_03 50:11

It is that serious, guys.

SPEAKER_04 50:13

And so that's what that's what God tests.

SPEAKER_07 50:15

A quick side note when Hudson when he said that is no, yeah, when he said it is that serious. I think something just like a little side note, a reminder that just Matt just thought of is oh, this world tries to make like these jokes seem so so like simple and kind of just brush over it, like hi, you're chopped, meaning you're ugly for the millennials listening. And sorry, but like it is that's not literally chopped. We love the translation. Because what was it Lincoln that pointed out um that verse that said that it good words um strengthen the body or something? What it goes like, and the he did this thing that's he saw the thing, the study that said that bad words harmed like literally like the brain. It's like that stuff is actually that serious. And I just thought I should say that. No, like legit. Like it's good. Things are that serious. It is and never let anybody sell tell you that it isn't that serious. Like when they make a joke and you're like, Well, that's mean because you're trying to be like you're trying to be like the godly person you are and say, That's not nice, and they're like, It's not that serious. You gotta tell them it is that serious.

SPEAKER_03 51:19

Bro, that's where you don't let those people rage bait you and you turn the other cheek and just never turn it back to them. You know, just just just kind of walk the other way. Remove yourself from the situation.

SPEAKER_04 51:32

That's funny. Um, I really liked verse 24 where it says, Sensible people keep their eyes glued on wisdom, but a fool's eyes wander to the end of the earth. I just think it's so it's cool how the author wrote keep their eyes glued on wisdom. So that's just denoting that people who are sensible, who have common sense, who are pursuing God, they are they are not looking to the right or left. They have a focus, they have a goal, they are disciplined to where, hey, my eyes are gonna stay in this direction and this direction only. Like this is my goal, this is what God has told me. But then fools, they they wander to the ends of the earth.

SPEAKER_06 52:12

They're just little horsey blinders. No horses have those little blinders, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 52:17

And then like how the fool's eyes wander to the end of the earth, that kind of reminded me of Cain in Genesis, whenever he killed Abel and he was sent to be a vagabond to wander the entire earth. Like, we can just get to a point where we're just wandering through life and we don't really have a goal anymore, we're just there. And I think that's very dangerous because if we're just there and we don't have a goal, then we're not disciplined, we're not focused. Like, what are you walking towards? Yeah. Like we just need goals, and the Lord provides those. Good point. That's good.

SPEAKER_02 52:51

Amen.

SPEAKER_04 52:51

So keep your eyes glue.

SPEAKER_06 52:53

Yeah, going into chapter 18. Um, I liked verse two. It says, Fools have no interest in understanding, they only want to air their own opinions. Have you guys ever been in an argument or discussion with anyone, but they only want to say their opinion? Yep. Like I'll see these videos sometimes of like like debaters or something, or like there's just like one video, or actually, there's probably like a thousand of them, of like Charlie Kirk or something at like a college having one of his debates, and then somebody comes up to the mic and says like some some random quote and just walks away. Like they don't want to talk about it, they just wanted to voice their opinion, let everyone know, and leave. They don't want to hear what anyone has to say. Literally. I'm like, what in the world? They just they just wanted to say what they wanted to say.

SPEAKER_07 53:30

I think those type of people also they just want to be heard, like they just want to be told, like, you're right. They want to be validated. They're gonna be like, oh my gosh, that was like they're so right on that point to where they don't even have to like that's all they want to hear is the validation that their thought process is right. They don't even, they're not even willing to hear another side. Yeah, they're not even willing to learn or grow with any understanding of there could be actually a different process. Yeah, it's like they're closed-minded.

SPEAKER_06 53:54

Yeah, and that's so dangerous because then, like, once you decide that your way is right and everyone else is wrong, you will 1000% get yourself into trouble that you refuse to get out of. That's just what happens because you get stuck there. Can whenever you push everyone away who does love you and they do want the best for you, and they're trying to tell you, then who are you gonna have left to get you back on the right path? You're gonna be stuck in a sticky situation. And if you're like that with people, then how are you with God? If God came to you and he said that to you, he said, This is wrong, are you gonna listen to him? Are you gonna do the same thing and say, No, this is what I think and walk away?

SPEAKER_03 54:23

Actually, I know better. That's really good. That's really good. And like that's that's cool. Sorry. We're never gonna say that out loud to God, right? No, he's not. It rarely will come to that. Like, God's not gonna call you up and be like, hey, like Audrey just said, stop doing that. You're like, no, I know better. Like you're not gonna say that, but your actions may say that. Yeah. So you kind of keep it all into check. Like, yeah, you kind of gotta live according to what God says.

SPEAKER_06 54:50

It could be like sky, too. Like you could read a scripture and it might be talking exactly about something that you're doing in your life right now that is wrong. And you could have read that, and that was God

Hearing Both Sides With Wisdom

SPEAKER_06 55:00

telling you, hey, this is a warning, like this is wrong. But you're like, no, I think this is what they meant. Yeah, this is the thing. And you don't take it literal, you take it how you want to take it, and you just twist words.

SPEAKER_07 55:10

You're picking the word of God because you think that you know that you're full and stuff, but the Lord's like, no, there's this is more you need to learn from this, and you're like, no, actually, I'm gonna just skip this verse because I don't like it.

SPEAKER_03 55:21

Like, God didn't mean I actually have to go to physical church every Sunday or Sunday and Wednesday. Just having that relationship with Him is enough. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 55:28

Like you can't just pick and choose. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 55:30

Yeah, I really liked Proverbs 18, 6 through 8. It says, Fools' words get them into constant quarrels. They are asking for a beating. The mouths of fools are their ruin, they trap themselves with their lips. Rumors are daintly morsels that sink deep into one's heart. So, um, what I got from this is fools don't just come across beatings, they're constantly asking for them. Um, and I like how it says they trap themselves with their lips. Which means like the fool foolish people they'll lie, manipulate, cover up, but they're eventually revealed. Um, consistent truth beats anything fools will say. Uh they hate the truth, fools do. They hate the truth. That's why they make rumors. Rumors are fake most of the time. Um and I can't tell you how many times in the past, like just based on hearing a rumor of someone that I've heard, not that I've said, but it has um changed the way that I've viewed that person, and I might not have even known them. Yeah. And I think before before we choose to believe the rumor, now if if somebody's saying they've killed somebody and they have found guilty, like, okay, that's that's not a rumor. That's not a rumor.

SPEAKER_08 56:34

That's not a rumor anymore.

SPEAKER_02 56:35

But if somebody's saying a rumor like this person is doing that, before you believe it, I would try to at least get to know the person a little bit. Yeah. But um just be careful, be very careful to not let rumors um change the way you view somebody. You don't even know yet.

SPEAKER_07 56:53

Yeah, I really loved when it said the lips, what is it, the lips trap them? They do.

SPEAKER_02 56:58

They're trapped with their own lips, yeah.

SPEAKER_07 57:00

They can they just be talking themselves into their own entire like jail cell. Like, yeah, they they do it to themselves and they don't want to weigh out either. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 57:08

Literally, I thought it was just crazy how it says they are asking for a beating. Like, it's not gonna happen by there's something that said they're they're asking for it. And it's like, golly, because how do you know where one lie ends and then another lie begins? Yeah. Because if you're so if you if you are acting in a foolish way, then and you're spreading these rumors, how do you know which truth anymore? Because if you're just lying all the time, you you might even lose track of you convinced yourself truth.

SPEAKER_03 57:40

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 57:41

Yeah. Which is just crazy. Like when I was a kid, I used to tell some crazy like lies. Oh my god. I would legit believe them. Like to this day, I still don't know what was true and what's not. Like sometimes I think about things I told my parents, and I'm like, did I make that part up? Or was that part real? Like, I I genuinely don't remember.

SPEAKER_07 57:56

Audrey was, I'm dead serious, the original gaslighter. No, like legit. It took me actually so long to trust what she said again. Like, because like when we were younger, she would say the most outrageous lies. And I'm like, no, that's true.

SPEAKER_06 58:10

Like I'd be like, oh, my middle name's like Clarice. Yeah, but like I just let you think that. Yes. She would never correct it. And then now I don't know what my middle name is. Does anyone know?

SPEAKER_07 58:19

I think it's Clarice. I think it's Clarice.

SPEAKER_06 58:22

That's what I remember. No.

SPEAKER_03 58:24

Guys, she's changed now. I promise God's.

SPEAKER_06 58:27

Oh yeah. Oh, yeah. She's not a little liar anymore. I'm not a kid anymore. When I was a kid, I thought it was like funny. But then I realized it was bad. It was no no to God.

SPEAKER_03 58:34

And I was like, oh, this God stuff is serious.

SPEAKER_06 58:37

Yeah. Um, going back to what chapter are we on? It was chapter 18. I loved verse 17. Um, it says, the first to speak in court sounds right until the cross-examination begins. Uh-oh. That one? I like that one. Good, good because the first thing you might hear or sound sounds right. Wait, not the first thing you might sound. That makes sense. The first thing you might hear can sound right until you hear the other side. Like bad things might sound good to you, bad ideas might sound interesting until you find out God's like, oh, that's a no-no. And you're like, oh, and you cross-examine it, then you start to realize. So it's like, the point of this one to me is just don't take what you hear first and just roll with it. Yeah. Like find out, like you were saying, um, Lincoln, don't just hear a rumor and believe that about the person.

SPEAKER_02 59:21

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 59:22

Get to the bottom of it. Figure out if that person really did or said that thing. Don't just be like, oh, I heard so-and-so did this. Be like, okay, did so and so do this?

SPEAKER_03 59:31

Yeah, like always try and get a full story of everything. Like you should never just be going with the first thing, like like you guys are both saying, the first thing you hear, the first thing someone says. Like, always try to get a full understanding of a situation. Yeah.

SPEAKER_07 59:43

Cause I think it's so like it's a pretty consistent pattern of like the person who speaks first is normally the person that wants everybody to think they're right. Like they're like, they gotta get their story out first so people and like not give all the details, not give all the backstory so people will start like victim, not victimizing them, but like caring, yeah, validating that's the word. Yes. They're like, oh no, this poor baby. Like they did this because it there had to be a reason they did that. But then you hear the other side and they're like, Oh my, oh, the they deserved every that that wasn't good. And so like you have to hear you have to hear both sides. Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:00:17

Yeah, I I took away from it pretty much exactly what Audrey got, but I also um I also was thinking, I was like, will you run away from what you said or will you stand grounded knowing that what you've said is the truth? When cross-examination comes and people start asking you questions, are you gonna are you uh uh uh I don't I don't know, are you gonna say, no, this is what happened, this is the truth. I know for a fact. So make sure you make sure before you speak, you know for sure that if somebody comes up to you and asks you, you're gonna say, I know this is true. I'm not gonna run away to 17 states to the left because it's not right.

SPEAKER_05 1:00:50

17 states to the left. Some random.

SPEAKER_06 1:00:53

Both got experience, but up or down.

SPEAKER_07 1:00:55

It's left. No, it's good. I'm weak. I liked it.

SPEAKER_03 1:00:59

I don't know which way the left is.

SPEAKER_04 1:01:00

Oh, you're making like a picture frame. Well, like which left? Like my left right now, or like the left on the map. Lincoln, we need answers. That was really good. All right. California. Are there even 17 states between us and California?

SPEAKER_02 1:01:14

Probably not.

SPEAKER_04 1:01:15

I was in anything else. There's not.

SPEAKER_03 1:01:16

This really shows the moral of the story because if you talk first, you don't know what you're saying, bro. You're just saying stuff. There's not 17 states wide.

SPEAKER_02 1:01:23

Hey, it depends on where you're looking.

SPEAKER_06 1:01:24

Because if you're looking towards Washington State, if you're looking for Washington State, there's definitely 17 states. Gotta be, right? I still don't think so. If you make a straight line, sorry, y'all. Somebody do this, put it in the comments that don't exist and let us know. Keep going. Okay. There's only four states between us in California.

Safety In God Not Wealth

SPEAKER_07 1:01:40

She looked it up.

SPEAKER_02 1:01:41

We're cooked. I'm cook.

SPEAKER_07 1:01:42

So back to Proverbs. I really thought this verse was like like these two verses were so good. It says, um, 10 through 11, chapter 18, 10 through 11. It says the name of the Lord is a strong fortress, the godly run to him and are safe. The rich, this is verse 11. The rich think of their wealth as strong defense. They imagine it to be the high wall of safety. So people who do not trust in the Lord find their value and their safety in their worldly things when that could all be stripped away within the blink of an eye. But when you when you trust in the Lord, he's your strong fortress, and you run to him and you are safe. It doesn't say in and you may be safe, it says and you are safe when you run to him. So it's just like Run to Him. Run to Him. No, I'm sorry. Yeah, literally, like you you gotta know, like you cannot take your worldly value, your worldly treasures to anywhere with you, actually. Yeah. So the only value you can really find is in your relationship with Jesus.

SPEAKER_03 1:02:40

Yeah, and then right after talking about the danger of putting your trust in your earthly possessions, it goes on in verse 12. Haughtiness goes before destruction, humility precedes honor. Literally going right on from verse 11. That if you place your your safety in your earthly possessions in your own pride, and you get haughty, like I'm so rich, I have so much money, or just anything like that. You put all your your safety in the things you have and you get haughty with that, you're cooked, bro.

SPEAKER_08 1:03:08

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:03:09

Literally it's like Ramsey was saying, for people who aren't or who for people who God is not their safe place, they run to worldly things. Yeah. And so that could be she uh listed like uh your possessions, but it could also be alcohol, drugs, addiction. But the golly, they're gonna run to fall on their knees and begin to pray. They're gonna run to their Bible to crack the book open and begin searching for themselves.

SPEAKER_07 1:03:33

Instead of cracking open a beer, they crack and open the Bible. Oh Amen.

SPEAKER_02 1:03:38

Fall on your knees and run to God in prayer.

SPEAKER_06 1:03:40

Just try it once and you won't go back. Like I promise. Wait, not beer. No, Bible.

SPEAKER_03 1:03:46

We do not endorse that message.

SPEAKER_06 1:03:47

No, no, no, no, no.

SPEAKER_03 1:03:48

Cancel.

SPEAKER_06 1:03:49

I'm talking about falling on your knees. We're talking about that part. Try that and you won't turn back. Like you're going to see an actual difference, not just a temporary one. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:03:57

That message was not endorsed by PB.

SPEAKER_04 1:04:00

I love how in verse 10 it emphasizes the name of the Lord is a strong fortress. It's not saying like God Himself is a strong fortress. The name of the Lord is a strong fortress. Imagine having, well, we we don't have to imagine because it's like real. But the name of our God is so strong that it is a strong fortress. And it's so powerful that it is an indestructible thing. Like that's just so cool. Because the world, like, just things that aren't of God in a sense, they can fall away. Like they don't even have to be bad things, but they can fall away. But just the name of our God is so strong that it's just indestructible. And that's just so cool. Because I just thought it was so cool because Jesus is the most powerful name to ever exist.

SPEAKER_07 1:04:46

And like I love that it says that you are safe. Like it's not gonna be a question.

SPEAKER_04 1:04:49

No, like legit. It's like, oh, well, you come to me and then boom, baby, like boom, baby. You're you're you're safe. Like there's no there's no in between. There's no questioning. Um are we okay down here? Like, no, we got this, guys. The God saying that, not me. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:05:05

Trust bro, I know.

SPEAKER_02 1:05:07

I like uh I like Proverbs 18, 22. It says, the man who finds a wife finds a treasure and he receives from the Lord.

SPEAKER_03 1:05:16

Listen, listen to us. I want a wife, man.

SPEAKER_02 1:05:18

Shameless plug. This is for it's for absolutely everybody. It's for absolutely everybody. So God intends for us to have a partner. In the very beginning, he made Adam and said he needs somebody. So he made God made Eve. But make sure that whenever you are going to find your spouse, that you're praying for them and that you're praying about them. Yeah. And choose somebody who's gonna strengthen you and strengthen you and push you towards God. Like have someone who's gonna strengthen your relationship with God rather than compromise it. Yeah, you need somebody who's gonna pray for you when you might be sleeping, or pray for you when you're down. Like who's gonna can constantly fight and cover you? That's what you need.

SPEAKER_04 1:05:54

And who's gonna walk side by side with you even if life gets tough? Like, cause life's gonna get tough. But then the person that you choose, you only get to choose one person that's in your family, and that's whoever you marry. And you just have to choose wisely because Wow. Yeah. You just have to choose wisely. I never heard that before. Biblically, you you only get one. And it's just like, wow. Because that person will be with you through thick and thin.

unknown 1:06:22

Yeah.

SPEAKER_06 1:06:22

And wait, y'all, she's actually so right. Like, I'm with Ramsay on this one.

SPEAKER_04 1:06:26

I've never heard like you can only choose one person to be a part of your family. You're like, you're born into your family. You don't pick your parents. You don't pick your grandparents. You don't pick your children. You don't pick your siblings. You don't pick your aunts and uncles. But the only person in your life that you will be able to choose your family, like who your family is, is who you marry, whether that's your husband or your wife. But yeah, I just think it's very important for whenever you are looking for a spouse to look through the biblical lens of just like Lincoln was saying, will this person build me up? Will this person lead me spiritually? Like if you're a woman, like will this man of God lead me spiritually? Or if you're a man of God, like will this woman be able to walk side by side with me and we can be teachable? Yeah. Because it's very important to be teachable. Yeah. And so yeah, that's my spill. Love that.

SPEAKER_07 1:07:10

I um I really like verse 19. It says an offended friend is harder to win back than a fortified city. Arguments separating friends like a gate locked with bars. It like that one also just like got like such such a little thing can separate. Okay, wait. It teaches you about the value of the people around you. So you've chosen this friend, and say you're not valuing them and you're treating them like horrible,

Choosing Friends And A Spouse

SPEAKER_07 1:07:40

and it's just like that one last thing sets them off, and you'll you'll never have them in your life again. Yeah, like they it'll be the hardest thing to win back, is that friendship, and because you didn't value it as much as they valued you. And I think that just like value the people around you, value the people that love you, and don't get offended at them trying to help you.

SPEAKER_02 1:07:58

Yeah, yeah. That's good. That is good.

SPEAKER_04 1:08:01

I agree. I think that like people in your life are so valuable, and once they're gone, they're gone. Like some people, once you break their trust, they're like, oh well, it's harder to win back than a fortified city.

SPEAKER_03 1:08:12

That's what I was just getting at. Like you break that trust, and that's not something you can just like you can have a tiny little argument, you guys can move past it. Once you do that, you really offend them and break their trust. Like Ramsey's been saying, straight from the Bible, harder than sieging a fortified city. Like, you can't just take that back. And it it's tying it all the way back to your words have power. Like, yeah, just don't offend people. Yeah, you can't take that back.

SPEAKER_04 1:08:34

It's out there because words are so powerful. Yeah, because just like verse four says, wise words are like deep waters. Wisdom flows from the wise like a bubbling brook. Because deep waters and bubbling brooks are filled with life, like they're moving, they're constantly moving, they're probably pretty to look at. They probably have like fish in them and plants and stuff, and bubbles and bubbles, and so they bring life, but whenever you speak not bubbling brook words, then not brook words. Then you won't have a bubbling brook life.

SPEAKER_06 1:09:07

You have like an algae-infested brook, and it won't be like Audrey's poor fish tank. Stop! Dude, I just cleaned it, it looks so much better, guys. Make them a couple of things.

SPEAKER_07 1:09:15

Everybody having a gleam pray for Mako.

unknown 1:09:18

For Mako.

SPEAKER_03 1:09:19

Going back to Proverbs 16. There's one verse that I've been thinking about as we've been talking about this. Proverbs 16, 31. It stuck out to me when I read it originally, um, because I kind of took it literally and I was pretty confused. It says, gray hair is a crown of glory. It is gained by living a godly life. And I was like, what? Like gray hair itself, like yeah, but I think the emphasis is not about the gray hair itself, it's it is gained by living a godly life. Think about it. It's not saying that it is gained by your achievements, it's not gained by what you do, it's not gained by having these accolades. We've been talking all this about how to live. Proverbs has been telling us how to live, how to have wisdom, how to make the good godly decisions. And then this verse is literally saying at the end of 16 that living that godly life over a long period of time, that is a crown of glory upon your head. Yeah, you're rewarded. It kind of finalizes all you've been learning about. If you live the life that Proverbs is talking about, it's a crown of glory upon your head. Yeah, it's not about doing this and that, it's just about living these principles out throughout your life. It's really good. And that stuck out to me.

SPEAKER_07 1:10:24

Yeah. That's good. Love that. That's great. Wow, wow, yeah.

SPEAKER_02 1:10:29

We

Final Wrap And Instagram Plug

SPEAKER_02 1:10:30

shall all strive to get gray hair.

SPEAKER_03 1:10:31

But yeah, guys, we've um we've talked about a lot today. Um, this might be our longest one yet. Where we've talked a lot. We like to talk if you haven't picked up on that by now.

SPEAKER_06 1:10:40

But it's almost like we're on a podcast.

SPEAKER_03 1:10:42

Almost like, dude. I think you might be onto something there. Maybe. But we started off by talking about Pastor Jared's message. He talked about uh food eating. I don't remember the message.

SPEAKER_08 1:10:55

Feed me, I'm full.

SPEAKER_03 1:10:58

But long story short, I'll just say check your hunger. Make sure that you're constantly hungry after God. That's more of moral of the story. Um, if you can analyze yourself and find that you don't have hunger, maybe you want to know that hunger for God's alike, or maybe you used to have it and you find you're it's kind of dimmed off now. Pray about it. Pray to God. Ask for Him to give you that hunger. Fast. I promise you, you'll start getting hungry physically and spiritually. Amen.

SPEAKER_06 1:11:22

Hallelujah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:11:24

But yeah, just do some self-examination. Check to make sure that even if things are going good, even if you get spiritually full, that you're still longing after God. That's the moral of the message. And then for Proverbs, just keep following along with us. Read these things and listen to the verses that we find, the way that it affects our lives. Read that and apply it to your own lives. Read along with us. This is some good stuff, you know. Don't be prideful. That's not good. Don't gossip, that's not good either. Like, just listen and apply these principles to your life, and I'll promise your life will improve.

SPEAKER_06 1:11:55

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 1:11:56

Absolutely.

SPEAKER_06 1:11:56

Well, guys, once again, I'm gonna say it. Pastor Jared brought a word and God's instructions were heard. Can we all agree? Amen. Thank you, thank you. So make sure that you follow us on Instagram. I still don't think we have a post. Oh, we have one. Wait, we do? Yeah, well. Well, we will make something. Go like it up and subscribe. Go like it up. Okay, we'll see y'all next week. Bye.