WEBVTT 00:00:00.160 --> 00:00:02.319 Welcome to the Awakening Church podcast. 00:00:02.560 --> 00:00:07.040 We pray this message encourages you and provides the hope and light of Jesus Christ. 00:00:07.200 --> 00:00:08.560 Thanks for tuning in. 00:00:30.320 --> 00:00:38.960 And today we're actually concluding a series with a four-week series we've been in, kicking off the brand new year, uh called Cultivate the Secret to Spiritual Growth. 00:00:39.039 --> 00:00:45.840 And we've been asking and wrestling with this question: how do you experience growth that lasts? 00:00:46.320 --> 00:00:50.560 How do you just not have, you know, like a good start to the new year? 00:00:50.640 --> 00:00:53.840 Uh, but then February comes and oh well, you know. 00:00:54.000 --> 00:00:59.439 Uh how do you, you know, some of us had that new year, new you hopes and dreams. 00:00:59.520 --> 00:01:02.799 Well, how do you really experience growth that lasts? 00:01:02.960 --> 00:01:05.280 Well, we've been looking at this series, uh, this parable. 00:01:05.359 --> 00:01:08.079 A parable is just a story with a point to it. 00:01:08.239 --> 00:01:10.560 Jesus often spoke in parables. 00:01:10.640 --> 00:01:14.079 Uh, the parable of the soils, uh, where Jesus says this. 00:01:14.319 --> 00:01:21.680 He says, There's a farmer uh and he had seed, and he went around and uh he scattered it literally everywhere. 00:01:21.840 --> 00:01:31.920 He scattered the seed, some fell on the path where the birds came and ate it, some fell on rocky soil, and it grew but that couldn't withstand the heat and it withered and died. 00:01:32.079 --> 00:01:48.079 Some grew, uh fell among thorns, and as it grew up, it got choked out, and then others grew on good soil, and it produced a harvest of 30, 60, or even some a hundredfold what was sown. 00:01:48.159 --> 00:01:57.120 And here's the point that Jesus was making that good seed plus good soil equals exponential harvest. 00:01:57.280 --> 00:01:59.200 Would you go ahead and just say that with me? 00:01:59.519 --> 00:02:05.200 Good seed plus good soil equals exponential harvest. 00:02:05.359 --> 00:02:06.959 We've been saying this every single week. 00:02:07.200 --> 00:02:11.360 Good seed, Jesus said the good seed is the word of God. 00:02:11.599 --> 00:02:22.000 We have good seed plus good soil, and soil represents our heart and receptivity or response to God's word. 00:02:22.560 --> 00:02:29.280 Good seed plus good soil always brings about a harvest. 00:02:29.599 --> 00:02:35.039 And week one, we talked about this whole idea of harvest and the law of the harvest, and you know this. 00:02:35.120 --> 00:02:37.759 Uh, that whatever you sow, you grow. 00:02:37.919 --> 00:02:39.919 Literally, you reap what you sow. 00:02:40.000 --> 00:02:43.919 So we have to ask the question so important, what are you sowing right now? 00:02:44.639 --> 00:02:57.280 And then the reason many of us don't experience the growth that we long for is tied to this law of the harvest, is that we never reap in the same season that we sow. 00:02:57.439 --> 00:03:08.000 Remember, I gave you these uh little, you know, planter cups with uh sunflower seeds, and today's the last day, uh so if you want to get your seed, you can do that again. 00:03:08.159 --> 00:03:15.919 I loved watching um you post your pictures or send them to me of your sunflower seed that's growing. 00:03:16.000 --> 00:03:16.879 It's awesome. 00:03:17.039 --> 00:03:19.759 And some of you are asking, well, Ryan, what do we do next? 00:03:19.919 --> 00:03:21.919 How do I continue to care for it? 00:03:22.240 --> 00:03:23.199 Google it. 00:03:23.360 --> 00:03:29.919 Um you might want to repot it and continue to water it. 00:03:30.000 --> 00:03:32.960 Here's one of the things the reason I pick a sunflower seed, this is fun. 00:03:33.039 --> 00:03:37.840 Um, is a sunflower is actually my daughter's favorite flower. 00:03:38.080 --> 00:03:40.400 Oh, I know, isn't that great? 00:03:40.560 --> 00:03:49.199 Um, and then uh here's the beautiful part about a sunflower is a sunflower, the flower always follows the sun. 00:03:49.599 --> 00:03:52.800 And that's such a good reminder, that'll preach right there. 00:03:52.960 --> 00:04:10.560 Um and so uh today, as we continue our series, we've been going through the different soils, the rocky, the path, and today we're on the thorny soil because good soil doesn't happen by accident, it's cultivated. 00:04:10.800 --> 00:04:21.120 If you want to experience growth that lasts, God's dream and longing for you is that you experience growth that lasts, a fruitful life, but good soil. 00:04:21.519 --> 00:04:23.920 It doesn't just happen by accident. 00:04:24.160 --> 00:04:29.360 You don't just wish for it or hope for it, it's cultivated. 00:04:29.600 --> 00:04:32.079 And so today we're looking at the thorny soil. 00:04:32.240 --> 00:04:34.079 Go ahead and say thorny soil. 00:04:35.279 --> 00:04:37.199 This is the crowded heart. 00:04:38.000 --> 00:04:44.000 How do you grow when life in Silicon Valley feels like a race you can't win? 00:04:44.639 --> 00:04:50.560 We live in a world addicted to speed, success, endless distractions. 00:04:50.959 --> 00:04:54.800 Being busy is a badge of honor, isn't it? 00:04:55.040 --> 00:04:56.399 How you doing? 00:04:57.199 --> 00:04:57.759 Busy? 00:04:58.000 --> 00:04:59.600 Busy, yeah, me too. 00:05:00.240 --> 00:05:06.480 How do we clear the clutter that keeps us from experiencing the growth that God intends for us? 00:05:06.720 --> 00:05:11.360 If you got your Bibles, would you open up to Mark chapter 4, uh verse 18? 00:05:11.519 --> 00:05:15.360 If not, you can just open up your notes, it's right there and follow along. 00:05:15.600 --> 00:05:19.519 Jesus explains what the thorny soil is, the crowded heart. 00:05:19.600 --> 00:05:35.680 He says this, still others, like seeds sown among the thords, hear the word of God, the worries of life, and the deceitfulness of wealth, and the desires for other things, come in and choke the word, making it unfruitful. 00:05:37.439 --> 00:05:39.519 Now I want you to notice this. 00:05:39.839 --> 00:05:40.879 This is important. 00:05:42.079 --> 00:05:47.759 A crowded heart cannot produce a fruitful life. 00:05:48.879 --> 00:05:54.319 A crowded heart cannot produce a fruitful life. 00:05:54.480 --> 00:06:00.639 Jesus said, these things choke the word, making it unfruitful. 00:06:01.360 --> 00:06:06.480 We live in one of the most innovative, opportunity-filled places on earth. 00:06:06.639 --> 00:06:18.720 Now listen, yet we are also among the most anxious, overworked, spiritually restless people on the planet. 00:06:19.439 --> 00:06:25.759 Jesus' parable of thorny soil speaks directly to Silicon Valley hearts. 00:06:28.000 --> 00:06:33.600 Life so crowded with more that there's no room for what truly matters. 00:06:34.000 --> 00:06:35.199 So here's what we want to do. 00:06:35.279 --> 00:06:38.079 And if you've been following along, this is what we've done every single week. 00:06:38.240 --> 00:06:43.279 We want to define what is a crowded heart, thorny soil, what are the symptoms of it? 00:06:43.360 --> 00:06:46.720 How do we get to the root issues and then some application? 00:06:46.800 --> 00:06:50.079 How do we cultivate the soil of our souls? 00:06:50.240 --> 00:06:52.480 First, what is a thorn thorny soil? 00:06:52.720 --> 00:06:58.639 Thorny soil, if I can say it, thorny soil, thorny, thorny, thorny. 00:06:58.959 --> 00:07:06.560 Thorny soil represents a heart overwhelmed by competing priorities, distractions, and misplaced desires. 00:07:06.879 --> 00:07:15.920 It's a heart that's trying to fit God in alongside everything else, but the everything else just tends to take over. 00:07:16.240 --> 00:07:18.879 Jesus gave us three things that tend to take over. 00:07:19.040 --> 00:07:23.279 He said, worries of this life, deceitfulness of wealth, desire for other things. 00:07:23.439 --> 00:07:26.560 These things choke up and distract our lives. 00:07:26.720 --> 00:07:34.720 The worries of this life, these are the everyday anxieties about success, relationships, finances, or future. 00:07:34.879 --> 00:07:37.360 These are the things that just bubble up. 00:07:37.439 --> 00:07:40.480 They're on, you know, in the backdrop of your mind. 00:07:40.560 --> 00:07:44.560 In fact, you might even be thinking about them right now as I'm talking about them. 00:07:45.839 --> 00:07:55.600 The deceitfulness of wealth is the false promise that money will solve your problems and will give you security, significance, or happiness. 00:07:55.759 --> 00:08:02.639 And so we run after, we chase after, if only I can get this, if only I can earn more, if only I can own. 00:08:03.519 --> 00:08:11.040 And then the desire for other things, the endless pursuit of more, more comfort, more success, more pleasure, possession. 00:08:11.600 --> 00:08:15.839 That is the American dream, fundamentally, is just more. 00:08:17.040 --> 00:08:19.600 Well, what are the symptoms of a crowded heart? 00:08:19.759 --> 00:08:22.560 What is a life overrun with weeds look like? 00:08:22.639 --> 00:08:23.759 And here's what I want you to do. 00:08:23.839 --> 00:08:26.319 I just wanted you to take an inventory. 00:08:26.639 --> 00:08:37.279 And as you take an inventory, and if you're sitting next to someone you know or related to or married to, keep your arms to yourself. 00:08:37.600 --> 00:08:40.559 Not like that's you, you know, none of that. 00:08:41.440 --> 00:08:46.000 But what I do want you to do is just begin to mark if this is you. 00:08:46.320 --> 00:08:47.759 Oh yeah, that's me. 00:08:48.080 --> 00:08:50.080 Oh, I have a symptom of this. 00:08:50.559 --> 00:08:51.600 Oh, you know what? 00:08:53.200 --> 00:08:58.799 Yeah, there are parts where I'm experiencing the symptoms of a crowded heart. 00:08:58.960 --> 00:09:02.080 First symptoms is constant restlessness, constant restlessness. 00:09:02.240 --> 00:09:05.120 Life feels like a race I can't win. 00:09:05.360 --> 00:09:09.120 There's always something more to do, but it's never enough. 00:09:09.519 --> 00:09:16.480 I'm busy, overwhelmed, and unsure if I'm even doing what matters most. 00:09:16.799 --> 00:09:20.879 Another symptom is emotional and mental exhaustion. 00:09:21.360 --> 00:09:27.759 I feel drained physically, emotionally, and mentally, like I'm running on empty. 00:09:27.919 --> 00:09:39.039 The weight of responsibilities, worries, and expectations leave me unable to rest or recharge or spiritual stagnation. 00:09:39.360 --> 00:09:41.840 I struggle to connect deeply with God. 00:09:42.159 --> 00:09:46.320 My faith feels flat, distracted, or stuck. 00:09:46.559 --> 00:09:50.320 I don't see real transformation in my spiritual life. 00:09:51.120 --> 00:09:54.799 Another symptom or sign is empty fullness. 00:09:55.840 --> 00:09:59.679 I stay busy chasing success, achievements, or possession. 00:10:00.080 --> 00:10:04.320 But no matter how much I accomplish, I feel unfulfilled. 00:10:04.960 --> 00:10:12.080 Contentment always feels out of reach, and I believe the next thing will finally make me happy. 00:10:12.320 --> 00:10:17.600 When I get and you fill in the blank, then I'll be happy. 00:10:18.000 --> 00:10:18.799 Content. 00:10:20.159 --> 00:10:22.080 Or maybe relational strain. 00:10:22.240 --> 00:10:29.840 My relationships feel shallow or strained because I'm too busy, distracted, or emotionally depleted to invest deeply. 00:10:30.159 --> 00:10:35.440 Perhaps resentment or unresolved conflict creates distance in my closest connection. 00:10:35.759 --> 00:10:40.960 And then finally, lack of spiritual fruit, a symptom or sign of a crowded heart. 00:10:41.200 --> 00:10:47.679 Despite my best efforts, there's little evidence of God's peace, joy, or love growing in my life. 00:10:47.840 --> 00:10:53.759 The fruit of the Spirit, love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, gentleness, self-control. 00:10:54.240 --> 00:10:55.519 I always miss one. 00:10:55.600 --> 00:10:56.879 I'm not sure which one. 00:10:58.240 --> 00:11:00.639 Like I don't see the evidence of that. 00:11:00.879 --> 00:11:03.600 I feel like I'm just surviving instead. 00:11:04.080 --> 00:11:10.960 Living a life that uh instead of living a life that blesses others and reflects God's purposes. 00:11:12.960 --> 00:11:16.240 It's the signs, the symptoms of a crowded heart. 00:11:16.399 --> 00:11:18.480 Now, here's the problem with weeds. 00:11:18.639 --> 00:11:19.279 A couple things. 00:11:19.440 --> 00:11:23.360 One, if you just leave weeds on their own, you know what happens? 00:11:24.000 --> 00:11:27.440 They multiply, they just take over. 00:11:28.320 --> 00:11:31.120 My yard, I just did a weeding feed on my yard. 00:11:31.200 --> 00:11:31.440 Why? 00:11:31.600 --> 00:11:38.399 Because I didn't pay attention for a while, and then I look out, it looked green, but actually it wasn't really grass, it was just weeds. 00:11:39.840 --> 00:11:51.440 The other problem with weeds is this is you see a dandelion in your yard and you go and you just pluck the top, it's gone, right? 00:11:52.799 --> 00:11:53.679 Wrong. 00:11:54.000 --> 00:11:54.399 Why? 00:11:54.559 --> 00:11:57.360 Because you didn't get at the root. 00:11:57.759 --> 00:12:10.399 Because we know that if you just take the top and deal with the surface, it looks good for a moment, but the root is still there, and unless you dress the uh address the root, it will grow back right in its place. 00:12:10.879 --> 00:12:15.120 Uh, in fact, we got one of these things, it's called a weed picker. 00:12:16.720 --> 00:12:22.080 And to full transparency, I have no idea how to use this thing. 00:12:22.399 --> 00:12:31.919 I had people come up after service because they're like, I literally got a tutorial on how to use this because it was so embarrassing the first service. 00:12:32.080 --> 00:12:35.759 Uh this is a weed picker, it's got these four prongs. 00:12:35.840 --> 00:12:36.639 You take your foot. 00:12:36.720 --> 00:12:38.799 I'm just telling you what I was told. 00:12:38.879 --> 00:12:54.159 Uh, you take your foot and you push down on it, gets all the way in, and then you move it to the side and it closes it around those roots and you pull out, and it grabs the weed not from the top, but from the roots and pulls it out. 00:12:54.399 --> 00:12:59.039 And unless we deal with root issues, listen, this is so important. 00:13:00.320 --> 00:13:06.080 Weeds will keep cropping up and we'll live choked out, unfruitful lives. 00:13:06.720 --> 00:13:10.960 And what we tend to do is we just address symptoms. 00:13:12.000 --> 00:13:12.559 You know what? 00:13:12.639 --> 00:13:17.600 I need a better app for being more efficient in my life. 00:13:18.000 --> 00:13:21.039 I need to be better about saying no. 00:13:22.720 --> 00:13:23.360 You know what? 00:13:23.440 --> 00:13:26.320 I need to make some adjustments to my calendar. 00:13:26.559 --> 00:13:29.440 I'm just telling you all the symptoms that I've tried to fix. 00:13:29.600 --> 00:13:31.120 I don't know what yours are. 00:13:34.000 --> 00:13:44.159 But until we get to the root issue, you will not see the change and transformation that you long for. 00:13:44.399 --> 00:13:45.360 Uh, Dr. 00:13:47.120 --> 00:13:50.399 Robert McGee, uh, he's a psychologist. 00:13:50.559 --> 00:13:54.000 He wrote a Christian classic called The Search for Significance. 00:13:54.159 --> 00:13:56.559 It's uh a wonderful book. 00:13:56.960 --> 00:13:59.279 I would deeply encourage you to read it. 00:13:59.360 --> 00:14:13.679 Um, in it, he he takes the four major places where we put our identity in outside of Christ, and then he attaches those to the work of Christ on the cross. 00:14:14.000 --> 00:14:15.919 And here's the reason why. 00:14:16.159 --> 00:14:22.320 The reason why is your activity flows from your identity. 00:14:23.519 --> 00:14:38.559 All of our activity, the actions, the busyness, the hurry, actually is speaking deeply and profoundly about your identity, what you believe to be true about you. 00:14:38.720 --> 00:14:52.799 And until you deal and understand with your identity and begin to allow God to work and shape your identity, you're just gonna keep just grabbing the weeds on the top. 00:14:53.279 --> 00:15:03.200 So from his book, The Search of Freak for Search for Significance, let me give you those four key identity root areas. 00:15:03.440 --> 00:15:06.559 The first is uh the performance trap. 00:15:06.720 --> 00:15:08.720 The first is the performance trap. 00:15:08.960 --> 00:15:13.200 I must meet certain standards to feel good about myself. 00:15:13.519 --> 00:15:19.120 If I'm not hitting the targets, whether it's at work in my relationship or in my faith, then I'm not enough. 00:15:19.360 --> 00:15:24.240 My worth is tied to my productivity, my success, and the image I project to the world. 00:15:24.399 --> 00:15:30.720 So I keep striving, hustling, and overcommitting, hoping to finally feel like a measure up. 00:15:30.879 --> 00:15:35.840 But no matter how much I achieve, the bar keeps moving and I'm left exhausted. 00:15:36.159 --> 00:15:41.360 Success, I believe, will bring fulfillment and happiness. 00:15:42.000 --> 00:15:45.360 Maybe for you the root issue is performance. 00:15:45.519 --> 00:15:47.200 You're stuck in the performance trap. 00:15:47.360 --> 00:15:49.440 Or perhaps it's the approval addict. 00:15:49.600 --> 00:15:53.679 I must be approved by certain others to feel good about myself. 00:15:53.919 --> 00:15:56.639 I live for likes, compliments, and recognition. 00:15:56.799 --> 00:16:01.759 I replay conversations, wondering if I said the right thing or came across the right way. 00:16:02.000 --> 00:16:06.799 I feel empty if I'm not noticed, praised, or validated by others. 00:16:07.039 --> 00:16:15.679 So I people please, avoid conflict and work hard to keep everyone happy, even if it means losing myself in the process. 00:16:16.159 --> 00:16:21.039 There's a root issue, the need for others' approval. 00:16:21.279 --> 00:16:23.360 Or perhaps the blame gain. 00:16:23.919 --> 00:16:28.720 Those who fail are unworthy of love and deserve to be punished. 00:16:29.200 --> 00:16:32.320 I hold myself and others to impossible standards. 00:16:32.480 --> 00:16:36.320 When I fall short, I spiral into self-condemnation. 00:16:36.639 --> 00:16:39.840 When others fail me, I can't seem to forgive them. 00:16:40.159 --> 00:16:45.360 Deep down I believe that love is conditional, earned by performance and revoked by failure. 00:16:45.759 --> 00:16:51.200 I carry the weight of judgment both for myself and others, and it's exhausting. 00:16:53.360 --> 00:17:00.399 Operating often behind the scenes in all of us is shame. 00:17:01.360 --> 00:17:04.640 Shame says, I am what I am, I cannot change. 00:17:05.279 --> 00:17:06.720 I'm hopeless. 00:17:07.119 --> 00:17:10.880 There's a voice in my head that says, You're not enough, you'll never be enough. 00:17:11.279 --> 00:17:17.519 It whispers that my past defines me, that my mistakes have locked me into this version of myself forever. 00:17:18.000 --> 00:17:23.119 I feel stuck, defeated, unworthy of love or transformation. 00:17:23.359 --> 00:17:28.559 Hope feels like something for other people, not for me. 00:17:30.240 --> 00:17:37.839 All of your activity, all of my activities flow from our identity. 00:17:39.759 --> 00:17:57.680 And until we get to the root issues, whether it's performance, approval, blame, or shame, and begin to address those things, we'll continue to live crowded, choked out lives. 00:17:58.640 --> 00:18:05.440 Because that is the driver for what you're running after or what keeps you running. 00:18:07.039 --> 00:18:11.599 I don't know if you remember or know about Jesus' baptism. 00:18:12.319 --> 00:18:16.480 Um Jesus, he spent 30 years in obscurity. 00:18:16.640 --> 00:18:18.880 What did he do for those first 30 years? 00:18:19.119 --> 00:18:21.519 Well, he grew up and he was a carpenter. 00:18:21.920 --> 00:18:25.119 We don't have really any information. 00:18:25.279 --> 00:18:27.200 He didn't do any miracles. 00:18:27.519 --> 00:18:37.599 And then he's baptized by John the Baptist, and it says that the Spirit of God descended on him like a dove, and heavens opened up, and this Father said this. 00:18:38.480 --> 00:18:42.559 This is my beloved son in whom I'm well pleased. 00:18:43.440 --> 00:18:57.759 Jesus, who hasn't done anything, who hasn't even started ministry, who hasn't healed anyone, hasn't gone to the cross and paid for the sins of humanity. 00:18:58.000 --> 00:18:59.359 He, what has he done? 00:18:59.519 --> 00:19:01.519 I don't know, some woodworking? 00:19:04.240 --> 00:19:06.240 Some masonry, maybe? 00:19:08.000 --> 00:19:11.359 And it was in that moment, is from that place. 00:19:12.400 --> 00:19:17.519 It was out of his identity of whose he is that he did ministry from. 00:19:18.079 --> 00:19:22.880 This is my beloved son, in whom I'm well pleased. 00:19:24.960 --> 00:19:31.680 See, and Jesus' identity is now our identity in Christ. 00:19:34.960 --> 00:19:46.160 See, um, spiritual maturity is ultimately coming to understand and embrace our true identity in Christ. 00:19:46.720 --> 00:19:51.680 The more we understand our identity in Christ, then everything else flows from that. 00:19:51.839 --> 00:19:55.359 Our activity flows from that, our life flows from that. 00:19:56.880 --> 00:20:01.200 Listen to what is true about Jesus and true of you. 00:20:01.440 --> 00:20:02.400 He's a son. 00:20:02.960 --> 00:20:04.079 He's a beloved son. 00:20:04.319 --> 00:20:07.200 You are a daughter and a son of the King Most High. 00:20:07.359 --> 00:20:10.079 You have been adopted into the family of God. 00:20:10.319 --> 00:20:11.279 He's beloved. 00:20:11.519 --> 00:20:15.519 You are the object of your heavenly father's affection. 00:20:15.680 --> 00:20:17.119 He's well pleased. 00:20:17.359 --> 00:20:22.160 Some of you just need to hear that right now, that God is well pleased with you. 00:20:24.079 --> 00:20:26.640 You already have his approval. 00:20:27.519 --> 00:20:30.640 You already have your heavenly father's approval. 00:20:34.480 --> 00:20:39.359 We live such fast-paced lives. 00:20:41.200 --> 00:20:48.640 And the heart of what's the next innovation that's going to make our lives better? 00:20:49.039 --> 00:20:51.920 In fact, I was just talking with a friend, we're talking about AI. 00:20:52.079 --> 00:21:01.759 He works for Google, and uh, you know, it's like this thought, well, AI is gonna help us to simplify our lives, and we're gonna, you know, have be able to work less. 00:21:02.400 --> 00:21:05.519 You know, that's what the computer originally was for, right? 00:21:06.640 --> 00:21:12.799 The dream of the computer was that we would now work 20 hours instead of 40 hours. 00:21:13.519 --> 00:21:17.119 Innovation has not created margin, by the way. 00:21:19.279 --> 00:21:25.920 What if we need less innovation and more just simply accept the invitation of Jesus? 00:21:26.480 --> 00:21:27.920 Because you know what he said? 00:21:28.160 --> 00:21:29.920 He said, Come to me. 00:21:31.680 --> 00:21:38.720 Come to me, all who are weary and burdened, and I'll give you rest. 00:21:40.240 --> 00:21:41.920 Are you weary this morning? 00:21:43.519 --> 00:21:44.799 Are you burdened? 00:21:47.359 --> 00:21:50.640 Are you overwhelmed by life's demands and pressures? 00:21:51.759 --> 00:21:53.839 Is your heart discouraged? 00:21:54.640 --> 00:21:56.319 Is there a restlessness? 00:21:57.119 --> 00:21:58.720 Is there an emptiness? 00:22:01.759 --> 00:22:05.680 Jesus says that qualifies you to come to me. 00:22:06.799 --> 00:22:11.920 Come to me, and I'll give you rest. 00:22:15.920 --> 00:22:17.359 Well, how do we do that? 00:22:20.559 --> 00:22:26.880 You've had a tape playing in your mind for all of your life. 00:22:29.759 --> 00:22:31.759 It's on repeat. 00:22:33.359 --> 00:22:35.519 We'll say a track for the kids today. 00:22:35.599 --> 00:22:36.799 It's a track. 00:22:39.440 --> 00:22:42.799 I'm only as good as my last performance. 00:22:44.319 --> 00:22:48.240 I'm only worthy if people accept me and love me. 00:22:52.880 --> 00:22:56.480 My past has disqualified me. 00:22:56.640 --> 00:23:13.839 You have a tape, and it's from someone who said that, it's from you saying it, and it's going on in the backdrop of your mind, and it's on repeat, and you've been listening to it for years and years and years, and it's shaped and shaping who you are. 00:23:13.920 --> 00:23:19.440 And the scripture tells us to take captive every single thought unto Christ. 00:23:19.680 --> 00:23:28.559 What that means is I'm going to take that thought and put it into prison because that thought has become a prison for me. 00:23:29.519 --> 00:23:32.720 I'm going to take that thought, I'm worthless. 00:23:32.799 --> 00:23:34.640 No, that is not true. 00:23:34.880 --> 00:23:38.000 The seed, the word of God, what does it say about me? 00:23:38.079 --> 00:23:41.440 That I'm beloved, I'm adopted, I'm redeemed, I'm forgiven. 00:23:41.680 --> 00:23:44.880 This is who I am, and I replace it. 00:23:47.039 --> 00:23:57.039 You know, some of you guys, um, some of you with your your seeds, you you overwatered. 00:23:58.559 --> 00:24:01.519 Shared with me, like drowned it, flooded the thing. 00:24:04.559 --> 00:24:08.079 Others, you forgot to water. 00:24:09.279 --> 00:24:12.640 Like I watered for a little bit and then I totally forgot about it. 00:24:16.400 --> 00:24:20.319 If you don't water it consistently, it won't grow. 00:24:25.279 --> 00:24:33.519 What you put into your mind consistently, what you allow your mind to think about reveals and will determine what your life grows. 00:24:34.960 --> 00:24:37.039 What you water grows. 00:24:38.880 --> 00:24:51.920 And you've spent a lifetime repeating a track about who you are that is an untruth in line with who God says you are, and it will take a process and time. 00:24:52.319 --> 00:24:58.079 Because if you wake up tomorrow and go, I'm a child of God, I'm a daughter of the King Most High, I'm beloved. 00:25:00.319 --> 00:25:05.200 Just like we said with seed, day one, not much is gonna happen. 00:25:06.240 --> 00:25:09.519 Week one, I don't know if the whole lot has changed. 00:25:09.920 --> 00:25:13.359 After a month, I'm starting to sense a difference. 00:25:13.680 --> 00:25:15.839 And you just keep watering. 00:25:17.119 --> 00:25:29.440 One of the deep practices that you need to do for your overcrowded life is begin to replace the track you've been playing in your mind about who you are. 00:25:30.240 --> 00:25:34.480 It might be just grabbing a three by five card and writing down what's true of you. 00:25:34.799 --> 00:25:35.440 I am. 00:25:37.279 --> 00:25:45.119 I am beloved, not based on anything I've done or could do, just because I'm his kid, period. 00:25:46.559 --> 00:25:56.559 I am forgiven forever and finally, not because I've earned it, but because Christ has accomplished it on the cross. 00:25:57.359 --> 00:26:05.839 I am blessed in the heavenly realms with every spiritual blessing in Christ. 00:26:06.559 --> 00:26:08.240 Ephesians chapter one. 00:26:10.079 --> 00:26:10.720 I am. 00:26:11.200 --> 00:26:14.160 And you just begin to renew, renew. 00:26:14.319 --> 00:26:18.079 That's how we water the seed of our minds. 00:26:19.519 --> 00:26:28.079 Because all of our activity fundamentally flows from our identity. 00:26:33.039 --> 00:26:41.920 As we close our time, how do we get to some of the root issues and give you just two more practical? 00:26:43.039 --> 00:26:47.599 This is just really practical in context of what Jesus talked about. 00:26:47.759 --> 00:26:50.720 Remember, he said that cluttered life. 00:26:51.440 --> 00:26:54.319 Remember what he said about that cluttered life, right? 00:26:55.119 --> 00:26:59.759 It's like the deceitfulness of wealth, the desire for more things. 00:27:00.160 --> 00:27:03.440 Like these crowd out our hearts. 00:27:04.240 --> 00:27:05.920 So, how do we clear the clutter? 00:27:06.000 --> 00:27:08.640 I want to give you just two just simple practices. 00:27:08.799 --> 00:27:10.319 They're profound though. 00:27:10.640 --> 00:27:15.200 One, would you practice systematic generosity? 00:27:15.519 --> 00:27:23.119 It feels a little bit out of left field, but it's Jesus spoke more about money than any other subject. 00:27:23.359 --> 00:27:25.279 More than heaven and hell combine. 00:27:25.440 --> 00:27:27.119 And here's the reason why. 00:27:27.440 --> 00:27:36.079 Where your treasure is, what you value, what you treasure, there your heart will be also. 00:27:36.240 --> 00:27:40.880 Anytime we talk about money, we're talking about priorities and we're talking about value. 00:27:41.440 --> 00:27:43.839 That's the reason we get defensive. 00:27:46.480 --> 00:27:50.640 Practice systematic generosity. 00:27:50.880 --> 00:27:54.000 Most of us practice sporadic generosity. 00:27:54.799 --> 00:27:59.440 I, you know, give a little here, I give a little there, so I feel generous. 00:28:00.559 --> 00:28:05.279 Systematic generosity realigns our heart with God's heart. 00:28:05.440 --> 00:28:08.559 This is something I do consistently, habitually. 00:28:08.640 --> 00:28:16.799 I have a specific amount I do, and this is what I'm gonna do regardless of circumstances in my life. 00:28:17.119 --> 00:28:21.119 Systematic generosity trains our heart to trust God. 00:28:23.920 --> 00:28:30.880 See, it's that endless pursuit of more, getting caught up in the rat race, the American dream. 00:28:31.279 --> 00:28:34.400 The American dream is just more than what my neighbor has. 00:28:35.599 --> 00:28:36.880 We constantly compare. 00:28:36.960 --> 00:28:38.240 Am I keeping up with the Joneses? 00:28:38.480 --> 00:28:39.680 Do I wear have the right fit? 00:28:39.839 --> 00:28:40.960 Am I driving the right thing? 00:28:41.039 --> 00:28:42.160 Do I have the right home? 00:28:42.319 --> 00:28:43.920 Oh man, they have this big home. 00:28:44.079 --> 00:28:45.279 And guess what? 00:28:46.240 --> 00:28:48.480 Everybody has a bigger home. 00:28:49.519 --> 00:28:51.759 Somebody has a bigger home than you. 00:28:52.079 --> 00:28:53.759 I was just talking with a friend. 00:28:54.079 --> 00:28:59.759 His kids go to a really nice um private high school. 00:29:01.119 --> 00:29:03.680 And it's north of here. 00:29:08.000 --> 00:29:16.319 His kid got invited to the San Francisco 49ers head coach house to play with their kids' house. 00:29:16.720 --> 00:29:19.119 You know, party or whatever. 00:29:21.119 --> 00:29:22.880 It's a big house. 00:29:26.079 --> 00:29:30.160 And we live in this weird world of Silicon Valley where we're just looking around. 00:29:30.319 --> 00:29:31.759 That's the picture of success. 00:29:31.839 --> 00:29:33.039 And there's nothing wrong with that. 00:29:33.200 --> 00:29:34.240 That's just not success. 00:29:34.400 --> 00:29:40.640 And as we keep chasing it, it will keep us from experiencing the fruitful life that Jesus has for us. 00:29:40.880 --> 00:29:42.640 Don't you want contentment? 00:29:42.880 --> 00:29:44.480 Don't you want peace? 00:29:45.759 --> 00:29:49.599 Systematic generosity trains my heart to trust God. 00:29:51.119 --> 00:29:53.519 When I have nothing or when I have a lot. 00:29:53.680 --> 00:29:55.599 This is how it worked when we were first married. 00:29:55.759 --> 00:29:58.240 We're first married, my wife and I, we lived in Chicago. 00:29:58.319 --> 00:29:59.759 I was going to school at Moody. 00:30:00.240 --> 00:30:01.920 I worked part-time at a church. 00:30:02.079 --> 00:30:04.079 She worked full-time at a coffee shop. 00:30:04.240 --> 00:30:06.319 We had lots of cash as a result. 00:30:06.640 --> 00:30:08.319 Just kidding. 00:30:09.200 --> 00:30:14.960 But we decided at the beginning of our marriage that the first 10% that came in were giving to God. 00:30:16.640 --> 00:30:18.480 We lived in a little apartment. 00:30:18.720 --> 00:30:20.720 We had amazing, like, like, oh, that 10%. 00:30:21.039 --> 00:30:25.039 We could have used those hundred dollars, you know, for that. 00:30:25.599 --> 00:30:26.559 And then we moved. 00:30:26.720 --> 00:30:29.359 I had my first full-time job in ministry. 00:30:29.519 --> 00:30:33.920 Uh Jenny was pregnant and gave birth to our first, Ella. 00:30:34.240 --> 00:30:40.640 We made a whopping$30,000 a year on a single income. 00:30:40.960 --> 00:30:45.519 And we decided we're going to give the first 10% away. 00:30:47.680 --> 00:30:49.359 We've just done that. 00:30:50.559 --> 00:30:58.240 Whether we were dual income, single income, we did that, whether we would ever own a house or not. 00:31:01.680 --> 00:31:02.880 And you know what it does? 00:31:03.119 --> 00:31:04.880 It trains your heart to trust God. 00:31:05.039 --> 00:31:08.640 It reminds you that all that you have is from Him. 00:31:08.799 --> 00:31:12.960 The way I tell my kids this is God gives us a lot so that we can give a lot. 00:31:13.440 --> 00:31:17.839 So that as He gives us more, we're constantly reminded that, oh, we're just stewards. 00:31:17.920 --> 00:31:18.640 This is His. 00:31:18.880 --> 00:31:24.400 And whatever we have, whether it's a car or a house or even finances, God, it's yours. 00:31:24.720 --> 00:31:26.000 However, you want to use it. 00:31:26.079 --> 00:31:29.359 It's an incredible way to live. 00:31:30.960 --> 00:31:34.720 It's like Jesus said it's the blessed life. 00:31:34.880 --> 00:31:39.680 Not that you got more and more things, but you got more of what matters. 00:31:42.799 --> 00:31:47.519 Would you practice systematic generosity? 00:31:47.759 --> 00:31:52.720 I have a deep conviction wherever you're spiritually fed is where you should give to. 00:31:54.079 --> 00:31:55.839 If it's here, give here. 00:31:56.000 --> 00:31:58.640 If it's somewhere else, give somewhere else. 00:32:01.599 --> 00:32:07.119 But we just do this like sporadic stuff and then wonder why we're not experiencing it. 00:32:07.279 --> 00:32:08.720 Yeah, you have to change some things. 00:32:08.799 --> 00:32:10.079 You have to adjust your life. 00:32:10.319 --> 00:32:19.839 You have to make some uh decisions, and you realize, oh, actually, it was already God's end to begin with, and trusted. 00:32:21.200 --> 00:32:39.200 Um, the family in our church, this uh they they practice this with their time, their talent, their treasure, and they serve in our different ministries here, and they have a heart for college students. 00:32:39.839 --> 00:32:41.200 And it's amazing. 00:32:41.279 --> 00:32:55.519 They came to our um our college Christmas party, and they have kids in that stage of life or beyond, and um they just have a heart, they love the heartbeat of awakening to awaken this generation to life. 00:32:55.680 --> 00:33:02.559 Like, we want to get around and be more apart, and how can we help uh more college students experience the love of Jesus? 00:33:02.720 --> 00:33:06.319 So they were on a Zoom with Jenny, and they're like, you know what, God just put it on our heart. 00:33:06.400 --> 00:33:14.640 We want to help fuel that, and and so we want to give an amount to, you know, of money to really help you uh do more with college students. 00:33:14.720 --> 00:33:15.359 What's the need? 00:33:15.440 --> 00:33:19.920 And Jenny said, well, you know what the biggest need is, is um transportation. 00:33:20.640 --> 00:33:22.240 College students need transportation. 00:33:22.319 --> 00:33:23.359 It's hard to get here. 00:33:23.440 --> 00:33:27.119 You know, we're used to be able to bust students and then some of the new regulations. 00:33:27.440 --> 00:33:28.480 We need a van. 00:33:30.079 --> 00:33:37.200 The next day they had prayed about it, they came with a number triple of what they initially thought. 00:33:38.640 --> 00:33:42.559 Not a wealthy family like, hey, I'm Silicon Valley wealth. 00:33:42.720 --> 00:33:50.000 This number meant that they were sacrificing something, maybe a vacation, maybe something that they really wanted for their home, maybe something for their family. 00:33:50.160 --> 00:33:58.720 I don't know what it was, but they said this number, we believe so much, and by the way, that amount of number now got us this fan. 00:34:00.400 --> 00:34:01.039 There we go. 00:34:04.079 --> 00:34:27.599 That investment, that investment is now gonna invest in college students, and hundreds and hundreds of college students are gonna experience the love of Jesus because someone said, My stuff ain't my stuff, and God, however, you want to use it, and we thought a number, and now we prayed about it, and we got back and we doubled and tripled that number, and now God brought us a van as a result. 00:34:28.880 --> 00:34:39.199 But as long as you're holding tightly onto your stuff, your stuff has a tight hold on you, and you will not break free from the crowded heart syndrome here. 00:34:40.559 --> 00:34:42.559 All right, second practice. 00:34:43.280 --> 00:34:45.119 Invite the band to come on up. 00:34:46.800 --> 00:34:49.760 Embrace the discipline of first and last. 00:34:49.920 --> 00:34:51.840 We've talked about this before. 00:34:52.079 --> 00:34:54.480 Embrace the discipline of first and last. 00:34:54.639 --> 00:35:00.719 The first things I put into my mind, and the last things I put into my mind. 00:35:02.000 --> 00:35:09.360 That I would end my day with God on my mind, and I would begin my day in God's word. 00:35:11.280 --> 00:35:14.000 You know how most of us begin our day? 00:35:14.559 --> 00:35:15.519 Like this. 00:35:16.719 --> 00:35:20.079 Checking email, scrolling Instagram. 00:35:22.480 --> 00:35:31.440 You know how most of us end our day Netflix, zoom scrolling. 00:35:39.920 --> 00:35:45.920 Where you just begin to go in the tyranny of the urgent and the chaos and the busyness. 00:35:46.239 --> 00:35:53.840 I am gonna cultivate a life that begins in the word of God and ends with God on my mind. 00:35:54.320 --> 00:35:57.599 I'm gonna allow him to book in my days. 00:35:57.920 --> 00:36:07.920 That's the way the psalmist said it in Psalm 1, the meditate on the law of the Lord day and night, always keeping it in front of us. 00:36:08.239 --> 00:36:11.280 Eugene Peterson said it this way: I can be active and pray. 00:36:11.440 --> 00:36:14.960 I can work and pray, but I cannot be busy and pray. 00:36:15.119 --> 00:36:19.119 I cannot be inwardly rushed, distracted, or dispersed. 00:36:19.360 --> 00:36:24.960 In order to pray, I have to be paying more attention to God than to what people are saying to me. 00:36:25.199 --> 00:36:28.719 More attention to God than to my clamoring ego. 00:36:28.960 --> 00:36:38.480 Usually for that to happen, there must be a deliberate withdrawal from the noise of the day, a disciplined detachment from the insatiable self. 00:36:41.599 --> 00:36:47.280 And so, first thing in the day, would you join us on our awakening Bible reading plan? 00:36:48.159 --> 00:36:51.039 Or do Lectio 365. 00:36:51.119 --> 00:36:51.760 It's an app. 00:36:51.840 --> 00:36:54.800 Yes, you can go on your phone and spend time with God. 00:36:56.239 --> 00:37:08.559 At the end of the day, I want to invite you to do an ancient practice done by Christians down through the centuries, and it's called the prayer of examine. 00:37:10.400 --> 00:37:15.199 The prayer of examine is where we replay the day. 00:37:15.360 --> 00:37:23.519 You get into a quiet space, you replay the day's events as if remembering your day like a movie. 00:37:24.000 --> 00:37:25.840 You begin to rejoice. 00:37:26.559 --> 00:37:32.880 Thank God for where he showed up, how he worked, the obvious and even the mundane. 00:37:33.119 --> 00:37:35.039 Like, thank God for heat today. 00:37:35.280 --> 00:37:35.599 No. 00:37:37.360 --> 00:37:50.800 Then you repent as you notice attitudes, responses, emotions, or actions that weren't according to God's heart. 00:37:52.000 --> 00:37:53.599 And then renew. 00:37:54.400 --> 00:37:59.760 Look towards tomorrow, deciding to live that day for Jesus. 00:38:00.239 --> 00:38:14.079 A prayer of examine, replay, rejoice, repent, renew, replay, rejoice, repent, renew. 00:38:14.960 --> 00:38:16.880 Jesus said, Come to me. 00:38:18.480 --> 00:38:22.000 In this moment, I want to give you space and time. 00:38:23.599 --> 00:38:25.119 We're not going to rush to the next. 00:38:25.280 --> 00:38:27.920 In a moment, we're going to take communion together. 00:38:28.239 --> 00:38:31.840 His body broken for you, his blood poured out. 00:38:32.159 --> 00:38:40.719 Scripture tells us, though he was rich, he became poor for our sake, that we through him might become rich. 00:38:43.599 --> 00:38:45.599 So, would you do the prayer of examine? 00:38:46.159 --> 00:38:48.639 Would you replay the events today? 00:38:48.960 --> 00:38:49.840 Rejoice. 00:38:50.159 --> 00:38:53.280 Begin to thank God for his activity. 00:38:53.920 --> 00:38:57.039 Repent of anything you need to repent of. 00:38:57.760 --> 00:39:07.119 And then would you come forward renewing, looking towards tomorrow, deciding to live that day for Jesus. 00:39:13.760 --> 00:39:16.079 We hope you are blessed by this message. 00:39:16.239 --> 00:39:20.639 Please subscribe to our podcast for access to every episode as they're uploaded. 00:39:20.800 --> 00:39:22.880 And hey, we'd love to connect with you. 00:39:23.119 --> 00:39:29.039 Take a next step by filling out our virtual connection card at awakeningchurch.com slash card.