Let God Interrupt Your Plans

This week on the HOTLCast, Matt, Cody, Ryan, and Mark gather to unpack Sunday's message about choosing God's plan — and what that actually looks like in everyday life. They start by celebrating Next Gen Level Up Sunday and the heart behind investing in kids and students at every phase. Then the conversation shifts to David's unashamed worship, the connection between joy and fun, and a memorable reminder from Cyle: "If you don't think church should be fun, you're going to hate heaven."

The guys get real about the daily practice of choosing joy over stress, separating emotions from decisions, and what it means to be a "recovering pessimist." Ryan shares his approach to choosing peace when life gets hard, Matt talks about shifting from "the glass is half empty" to "the glass just isn't full," and Cody reflects on looking back at everything God has already done as the best antidote to worry. Along the way they discuss grace, learning from failure, and the question that ties it all together: How can you let God interrupt your plans today?

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:02

Hello, and welcome to this week's Hodlecast. We are so glad that you have tuned in today to listen to this. I'm Matt.

SPEAKER_04 0:09

I'm Cody. I'm Ryan. And Mark's here.

unknown 0:12

Yes.

SPEAKER_03 0:13

Did you just refer to yourself as a third person? Yeah. You did. I did. Oh goodness. It's okay. We love you anyway. I think I'm getting comfortable with the polder is feeling conflicted.

SPEAKER_04 0:27

I didn't know that uh we were allowed to speak in the third person. I didn't know that we weren't. Mr. T. So yeah. So this week we had our next gen level up Sunday. Yes. It was really cool. And we got a chance to kind of honor the kids as they go to the next phase. And um I I love it. Every year that we do the next gen level up, I think it's a it's a cool event that we I think we started doing it what four or five years ago. Carver, how many years ago was it that we started doing it? Probably four or five.

SPEAKER_01 0:55

I'm here too.

SPEAKER_04 0:55

Yeah, Carver's here too. Carver's mind the camera. Sorry. But like it was like I think maybe five years ago we started officially doing it, and it's been really good. Like it's just a great way for us to have an official this is when you move up to the next grade, this is school starting. Like we get to be excited about what happened in the summer, but also we're ready for the fall.

SPEAKER_02 1:15

So just just like celebrate the kids moving forward and like growing and where they're at.

SPEAKER_00 1:19

Yeah, yeah, absolutely. So and it gives them something at church that they're able to kind of be looking forward to. It's not just the idea of, okay, well, I'm moving into the next grade. It's more the idea of my church thinks that I'm interesting and the things that are happening in my life are important, and that is a foundational block that whenever they know that their church is interested in them and that they care about them and that they are investing in them, that allows them to recognize, hey, I don't just attend here, I'm an important part of what's happening at my church.

SPEAKER_04 1:48

Yeah, absolutely. And like when our families cheer, like I love that. Like when they cheer for the kids on stage, I think that's that, you know, even if the kids are shy, they love that. Yeah, nobody, nobody I was I was thinking about this. I don't think anybody doesn't like getting cheered for. Like, even if we act like, oh man, I know, you know, everybody loves getting cheered for, especially just for being you. I mean it's such a great thing. So and like part of the strategy of why we spend so much time at our church doing things for students and for kids is because our church really has invested in the idea that our our kids, our families, like our students, like that that is that is a core the heart of our church, you know, to really invest in the generation that is taking the baton, you know, when so every every phase of their life matters. And so we celebrate those phases in a way that lets parents have a chance to to enjoy it and celebrate. But also, you know, so we're we're kind of making sure that we're we're paying attention to as they age up and grow and and the church gets to grow with them, which I think is really cool.

SPEAKER_00 3:00

And how cool was it to see In-Gen up there kind of doing their thing too? That is that is one of my favorite parts of you know, popping in from time to time at the lodge to catch worship is being able to just kind of see them up there just doing it. Like they're they're there.

SPEAKER_04 3:15

And it's cool because there's been different groups for a like over the last six years, we've had completely different groups over and over again. So like it it's this like ever-changing, you know, amalgamation of students and you know, so it's yeah, it's just cool. It's cool when they start to get it. Yeah. So yeah.

SPEAKER_00 3:31

So Kyle said that uh we're not gonna be talking exactly about David dancing today for a number of reasons, but he got uh he got a flag thrown on him in the middle of the sermon, which was awesome. Well, two of the three.

SPEAKER_04 3:44

I was envisioning, like I was envisioning what if we just had a yellow flag anytime that we're in service and we're just like, no.

SPEAKER_00 3:53

I like the idea of a challenge flag better because oh yeah, I like that better.

SPEAKER_04 3:56

Wait, time out.

SPEAKER_00 3:57

Hang on, what did you just say? Let's go to the replay, you know, that'd be awesome.

SPEAKER_04 4:03

Yeah, that'd that would be great. But no, but I mean, I think the point is that David really is not about David dancing, it's really more about how David worshipped. Yeah. And how David worshipped and was not ashamed of how he worshipped and was unabashed about how he proclaimed his love for the Lord publicly. And like when we talk about that, I do think I do think that's I think that people want to be so nonchalant and chill about everything and act like they're not affected by things. Like I was talking to somebody just yesterday, I was having this conversation. How crappy it is to be a tough laugh. Like, why? What's the point of that? Oh, so you don't enjoy like why just laugh? Like have fun, enjoy life. And you just see people are like, nah, it's not that funny. Like, I I just don't get that. Like, yeah, life is here for us to joyfully enjoy the things that God has created, and as a byproduct, some of the things that we've created that are honoring to him, that are that are good, and like just go and enjoy it. Like, yeah, why would you sit on your hands and not have fun? Like, just go go be part of life. And when you're having fun, like give glory to God and watch it transform the people around you. Because I I think that's that's a great thing too for us. Like, when I think that we make more of a difference in the people's lives in our community when they watch us having fun doing things that everybody else scoffs at, than when we go and stand on a soapbox and proclaim the gospel with a bullhorn. Like, I think it's more effective.

SPEAKER_00 5:34

Well, this Sunday at Jackson, uh, we had preached on worship, like that was the entire theme of the message, and I got to use what is probably one of my favorite Kyleisms of all of them. I said, you know, we're gonna be doing something a little bit different this morning, and I want to just remind you that Kyle has said multiple times that if you don't think church should be fun, you're going to hate heaven. And so the idea that I was talking about about how music is important is we just got out of our Hotelwood series. So I had played some songs up on the screen that were, you know, different themes to different movies and scores and stuff like that. It wasn't in all John Williams, but it was, you know, mostly. And I had people kind of, you know, guessing, you know, what movie that it came from and stuff like that. I said, you know, if you don't think that music evokes emotion, you don't understand music because that's exactly what it's designed to do. I said, you know, with the the movie E.T., if you take the score out of it, it's just a kid riding a bike with a rubber alien in front of a green screen. Like there's no emotion to it. And then I pivoted from that to say, you know, there's stuff that you've learned from music that you don't even realize that you've learned. And then I played different clips of songs and I had them finish the lyrics. And I said, Did you ever sit down and were you taught those lyrics? Were you ever, you know, have somebody show you, you know, well, this is what it says, and this is what it says. Nobody did. Like nobody had that as a thing. But it was fun to be able to bring those elements in and the people were singing along and it was engaged and people were connected with it. And that's what church should be. That's what following Jesus should be. Is it always going to be fun in games? No. So when it can be, accept it and enjoy it, right?

SPEAKER_04 7:17

Yeah, I agree. I mean, I really do agree. And I I think too, like the way that we process through life and the lens of fun that we like uh joyfulness and fun, the way that we process through that, it does make us different. The rest of the world is pretty bleak. I mean, look at the headlines of any news outlet, it's always about how what's going wrong or how bad things are. And like you talk to a regular everyday person, that that's not how they feel. Like, that's not but they're being influenced by that all the time, and we should be counter-cultural in that regard so much. Like, we should be like, hey, it might be raining, but do you know what? God brought us the rain and it's awesome. Like, you know what it's doing? Like, it's making our grass green and it's making our flowers, you know, bloom, and like like that should be the way that we respond when people are sharing those things. Like, our responses should always be positive, I feel like.

SPEAKER_02 8:10

Yeah, I mean we're called to sorry, we're called to choose joy. Like that's an active thing. Like, because I've I've been thinking about it a bunch. Like, you have emotions, you feel things that happen, but you choose what to do with it. And I think what happens is like when you have stuff like all the when you worry about all the things that are going on, it's easy to let that dictate what you choose to do, where you have to like learn how to separate the two. I think we as people have a hard time separating that out, and instead of like, well, well, I did it because of that, I did that because of this. Like, well, if the aide wouldn't have done that, then I would say, no, you you made a decision, but it was based on an emotion you felt. Like you're gonna feel crummy, things are gonna be terrible, you're gonna feel that, but then what you do next is what you have control over. You get to choose to stay in it, you get to choose to wallow in it, or you get to choose to move past it and see that God's still good, see that God has a plan, see that there's always gonna be a way, see that there's always gonna be something moving forward that it's always working for God's good, God's glory, God's plan. And so, like, I know I have I'm trying to do really good at practicing that, where like when the emotion hits you, you go like, wait, what's the wise thing to do with this emotion? What is the emotion doing for me? Because emotions are just responses. So that's a that that's the thing I've been thinking about in processing and choosing joy, like choosing to enjoy stuff. Like, you can be like the mopey person at the party that's like, no, I'm not, I'm not hanging out, I'm gonna I'm gonna be grumpy here. Or you can be like, well, there's people here that love me and care about me. So yeah, I'm gonna get past what I'm dealing with and be spend time with these people.

unknown 9:38

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 9:39

So, Ryan, you are maybe the both most joyous and optimistic person that I might know on the entire planet. So I would love to hear your take on how you look at all of this and what your connection is with it.

SPEAKER_01 9:54

Yeah, I mean, I'm I'm I'm with I'm I mean, ditto, you know, me too, Mark. Like what Mark said, you know, I mean, that's that's how life is to me. I mean, one things I do, I don't get hung up on yesterday. Um, I can look back at yesterday and go, yep, this is where I could have done better, but I don't have time to sit around and hate myself for it. I can I can look towards a future and go, yep, I'm not the smartest guy in the room, but I can discern that tomorrow is not my problem. Um, that is a God problem, and tomorrow will, tomorrow's worries will be enough for tomorrow. Today, today's good enough. And so um not getting too hung up on the past, not to get too hung up on the future, and and really like Mark's saying, hey, choose, I choose peace. Um, I choose, I choose love, I choose life, and I every opportunity God God throws things at me all the time, and I get the opportunity to either go, okay, what happened? And then I go, do I get to do I have to make up a story about this? And now if I'm in a position where I can't just be with what's happening and I can't go, yeah, like case in point, I've been up since three in the morning. I got a sick kid at home. And and so, yeah, so I I've been up, I got a pretty good headache, but guess what? I feel pretty good. Um, I'm pretty peaceful inside. Why? Because I choose to. Um, could I be right, valid, and justified and be grumpy and make up a big long story about I'm sure I've done that. Um, and that always leaves me feeling unhappy and lonely and and less than, and I don't show up as the best version of myself, and therefore I'm not showing up like Jesus and I'm not getting closer to God. So I say all that to say I choose to deal with what's happening. And when I can't be with what's happening and I gotta have a story, then I decide if I'm gonna give it a story, I might as well give it a good one. And and then I make up a great old long story, which is still an illusion, it's still not real. Um, it's still not the truth, right? But it helps me find those emotions that help me lead me back to reality and and which is really just peace, right? Because the closer I am to God, the more peaceful I am, and the more peaceful I am, the clo the more I can see what God has for me.

SPEAKER_02 12:08

And well, that sets you up to make the wiser choices too. And instead of making a problem worse because now you're sulking in it and then you're just wallowing in it, you're moving beyond it. And I say it not because I'm good at it, like you're you've worked hard to practice it.

SPEAKER_01 12:21

I I'm I'm I'm yeah, I'm maybe batting 300. Like I'm still like if I'm baseball baseball worthy, I'm still like a Hall of Famer at this, but I'm failing a lot more than I'm succeeding.

SPEAKER_02 12:31

Yeah. So like that just to say it's not necessarily an easy thing to do, but it's an important thing to do. It's a thing to practice doing. Most of the best stuff you do are things that don't come naturally. It's things that you have to work on and work towards.

SPEAKER_01 12:44

I I'm constantly asking myself, do you want to be right or do you want to be happy? Do you want to win or do you want to be do you want to dominate this this this thing or or do you want to be happy? Like where how how ruthless are you willing to be with the to protect your peace? Um, and and for me, I I have to because, well, you know, hey, part parts of me have struggled in life, parts of me are are recovering addicts, parts of me have stuff. So I I have to constantly manage my heart, that vigilance we talk about, right? I have to constantly think about where my heart's at, and I have to constantly think about what um what I'm bringing into what I'm bringing into my into my heart.

SPEAKER_02 13:29

So yeah, because like you could have sat all day in the meeting today, just being miserable and be like, oh I don't want to be here. I just I want to be in instead you're like, I'm here.

SPEAKER_01 13:37

Yeah, so I'm like, oh wow, I gotta look, I'm gonna ask Cody if he's got any Motrin. I bet he's got some Motrin in his room. That's what that's actually what I thought. And I looked and he already already was in the podcast room. So I'm like, oh, I'll ask him afterwards. I guess I'm kind of asking him now.

SPEAKER_00 13:49

There you go.

SPEAKER_01 13:51

I got some for you.

SPEAKER_00 13:53

For me, I will be fully honest, I'm kind of a recovering pessimist. I just kind of the way I have to look at it is like that. Is I kind of look at it and I go through life and it's so easy for me to look at everything and be, oh yeah, that's half empty. That's half empty, that's half empty. Or the way I, you know, make up a story for it is, you know, I look at it and say, well, the best indicator of future behavior is past behavior. You know, that's not assuming the best. That's not kind of going through and giving people the benefit of the doubt. That's not doing any of those things that we should. I can still say, yes, I have joy in God and I have joy for the things of my life and the things that He's blessed me with. I have all of those things. But then when I look at like the nuts and bolts of it, I kind of go, everything is black and white. So whenever somebody like Kyle, who is super optimistic, especially as things are getting really bad, just gets more and more optimistic, or you, or even you, Mark, you know, whenever you guys are going through stuff, Cody, you I kind of classify as a realist because you are optimistic, but you also look at it and you're like, it could go the other way too, you know. So whenever I look at it, like I try really hard to land in that realism side, to that be realist about everything. But it's hard for me because that's just the way that my brain has been wired for so very long that you really have to put that effort in. You have to put in that time, you have to put in that ability to look at things and say, okay, yes, I could view the glass as half empty, or I could just look at it and say, it's not full. That's all I need to do. That is the mind shift that I have to personally take to go from this is a bad thing because it's half empty to let's be real, it's just not full. That can be a neutral situation. Doesn't have to be bad, doesn't have to be good, it's just the fact of it. And that I believe for me is the first step toward being able to have that correct mindset regularly to look at things and be like, okay, this isn't a perfect scenario, but I know for a fact, because of what Paul says, that God's gonna make a situation, even in its imperfections, be something that he can use for his glory. And I can be looking for that and say, yeah, it's half empty, or yeah, it's not full, or yeah, it's whatever. But if I'm looking at that and saying, but God's gonna use that for something, and that's where my mind is and that's where my heart is set toward, that then gives me the ability to kind of make that into something that is greater. Basically, like we've all probably gone through Habakkuk multiple times where we look at, you know, him saying, you know, everything around me is terrible, everything around me is awful. God, how long are you gonna let this happen? And God's like, just wait. You're about to see me do something. And that is the place where I can find my joy. I don't have to be looking for it in the situations and the circumstances because those are gonna always be ebbing and flowing one way or the other. But if I'm looking at the scenario and I'm like, okay, if God's gonna do something, I'm just gonna sit here and kind of watch for it. It doesn't matter whether the glass is full, empty, or otherwise. I can just look at it and say, God, you're gonna do something incredible. That's what I'm here for. And I think that's a really cool way to go. If you if there are any other recovering pessimists that are or or current pessimists that are listening to this, try and make that your focus. That even if something looks bad, stop focusing on the bad and start focusing on what God's gonna do with it.

SPEAKER_04 17:19

I think too, like the thing that for me is I always go back to is what has God already done? Like that has always helped me with my mindset. And I I think the the older I'm getting, not that I'm old, but the older I'm getting, the more I'm going, look at all the things that God has already come through on. And why would I be stressed about this one? Like, I was stressed about those. Like, why why did I need to stress? God took care of it. And like really at its core level, this la when we talk about how do you choose joy? Like, well, I think some of the the antithesis is right, stress and worry, right? If we don't, if we don't have peace, what do we have? We have stress, like or chaos, right? If there's not peace, there's chaos. So there's something in battling in us. And when I when I when I do like a meditation, so like in the mornings, like Ryan actually encouraged me to start meditating, you know, and and I spend that time to kind of go over okay, this is where who am I, who has God designed me to be, what has God already done, and like how can my life today give him glory? I typically find my my and I think it's the Holy Spirit directing my thoughts back to all of the things that God has come through on. Right? If we think about our human relationships, I mean the truth is if we go back normally, we can think of all the ways that somebody's failed us, but with God, that's just not how it works. Like you go back to all the things that God has already done, and then what that for me, what that does for perspective when it comes to people and allows me to choose joy and choose peace, and is that like I realize that people aren't the enemy and their shortcomings aren't even the enemy, that sin is the enemy, and sin affects us all in different ways. And then that that in that realm, like I just I don't really I don't have a lot of grace because I don't care. People people mess up all the time, like they do things all the time in my life that affect me, that hurt me, like, but so don't I. And so that perspective kind of levels a playing field for where I go, okay, we're all figuring this out. Like if I can be quick to apologize, if I can be quick to forgive, those are the two things. Like if I can seek forgiveness quickly and give forgiveness quickly, then I I keep myself at a place where I'm lighter. I feel like you're lighter from an emotional, spiritual, you know, mental perspective. And then you're also at a place where you go, okay, like I I'm gonna keep this is gonna happen again. So like I can't every time it happens, I can't spiral out of control. Like I have to choose joy, I have to choose peace. And even when things are wrong, even when somebody has wronged me or I've wronged somebody else, being in that place where I go, okay, God has already sorted these things, like God is going to sort them again. And I it it it gives me this this change of perspective that lets me be at that place. Because I like what you're saying of like the glass is just not full. It's like but the perspective of well, a year ago I didn't even have a glass is really helpful, right? Like because you go, yeah, it's not full, but this is what I got now. And gosh, look what God's done. You know, because we don't always think of it in terms of that, because those scenarios or those like limericks are very easy and quick for us to throw out there, sure. But like I think of all those stories from a three-dimensional perspective of like, oh, okay, like, but what yeah, the glass is half empty, but it used to be completely empty. You know, how do you how do you how do you navigate that? So, because everybody's in progress and everybody is in a process of trying to figure out how their life for us as Father of Christ, at least we should be, at a place where we're constantly evaluating and trying to figure out who God is trying to design us to be and who God is directing us to be, and and adjusting, amending, and and changing who we are to fit that, not to fit what we were, right? Throw off the old self. That's what scripture says throw off the old self, right? And cling to what is new, like our new selves. So I I think that's really important in my perspective. So we talk about David, we talk about why does this all you know the the Kyle's what does this mean for for us? Like, what does this mean for you? What does it mean for me? I think it really comes down to our perspective, right, of God's bigness and consistency in our life is always should always lead us back to a place of peace. And peace is a great launch pad for joy.

SPEAKER_00 21:47

I agree. That makes sense. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 21:50

Yeah. No, I'm I'm with you, man. I mean, I mean, really what we're talking about is discernment. I mean, just like what Kyle talked about on Sunday, talking about you know, choosing God's plan. But I I think I think we all want to choose God's plan. I just think don't think we're smart enough to see it. And and we often think we do. And kind of like what I hear we're talking about is this illusion of following God's pan God's plan. But really we often find out when we have these these times where it feels like setbacks, it's really just us finding out that it was our plan. And and we go, oh, oh that was no no no I have an idle wish like God it's this is your plan and and I know it and I've been following God goes nope that's not it. And then we go oh I was wrong you know I wanted to be in and and for whatever reason we don't we don't just hurry up and go oh sorry God but let's course correct we go nope I'm gonna double down on being wrong and and I'm gonna I'm gonna try to push this boulder uphill only to eventually God you know the the the the current sweeps us back to where we need to be you know I think about that sometimes like what if winning the lotto is the worst thing that could ever happen to you right like right yeah what if that thing that you really man God I want this so bad right or this is how I want the scenario to play out what if that's the absolute worst thing for you and because you're this far away from the Mona Lisa you can't see the you can't see the full picture right like that's that's the whole like that perspective thing. I think that's one of those things my wife simultaneously loves about me and hates about me that that I'm always that I'm always looking at like wow what you know like being open to the possibility right and like what if this was it and but also this could all stop tomorrow and and we could do this or or maybe this could all end tomorrow and we could do this. And I think she loves it but she's also like you know yeah I do the same thing I do the same thing with Bethany.

SPEAKER_04 23:42

I like playing through scenarios of like what if and she hates it. She's like why are we talking about this is crazy. I'm like well I'm just thinking like could we choose joy in this scenario? Like we have a big beer in our yard how can we find joy in this yeah like how do we how do we navigate this and it's like I love it. I love these like and I like the students I'll play through random I we're at Cedar Point I'm I'm I'm asking all these random scenarios all day and they're all just they're they're like oh man why do you think about that I'm like it's how my brain works like I think about how how how crazy would it get before I would go man I I can't choose joy and I it's like there shouldn't be a scenario that I shouldn't be able to choose joy in. So I try to think about it before it happens because then I'm not shocked by it. I'm not like oh man that's crazy.

SPEAKER_01 24:24

Yeah well it's those short course corrections right like it because you're always looking I don't know about you but me I don't always catch it before it's you know often it's after the fact but I can these days I can catch myself long before I hit the weeds you know and and I think that's the that's where that but I I think that's we're just I mean I think that's from the the the birth of Christianity itself and following Jesus we've always been reactionary.

SPEAKER_04 24:47

Like the disciples weren't sitting at the tomb going three two one okay like they they they missed it right and then when Jesus came back they still didn't get it. And then it it's because it's we always it's you're always gonna catch a problem too late. And that's the whole point of grace is like you're never going to catch them all up front. So you it's not Pokemon right like you gotta you gotta just be okay with the fact that like you're gonna miss things like and I know there's people that out there who are perfectionists they hate that they hate the idea of missing anything but guess what sorry you're gonna miss stuff and like you're you're gonna hurt people and because that's what we do because that's what sin does in our lives and you gotta navigate that and you gotta choose to be present you gotta choose to have perspective and you got to choose joy and you got to choose peace and like it's just I mean that's the that's the nature of who we are like so I mean I I think it's great. I think grace is the best thing for us ever ever I don't think that's a controversial take. I think that's what scripture tells us right grace is the best thing for us. We just sometimes don't like taking it we don't like accepting grace.

SPEAKER_00 25:50

So I also think it's important that sometimes we all collectively do fall down because if you are a person who's constantly getting it right getting it right getting it right getting it right like you are that perfectionist where I haven't dropped this ball I haven't dropped this ball I haven't dropped that ball. When you have that moment of failure where you end up looking at it and you're like I just let down all these different people I just had this thing happen I just had this thing come up then when you start recognizing that moment and say okay so I failed here I really want them all to forgive me then you should start taking that opportunity to say oh that's the same level of forgiveness that I should be giving the other people whenever they drop something or when they fall down or whenever they let something slip like that is critically important. Like failure matters like no joke it is really important. Like there was one time I was watching this sports movie I forget what it was but you know one of the coaches had said to this like elder or whatever this like big you know sports guy he's like you know I wish that the team hadn't tied because you can learn a whole lot more from a loss than a tie and I'm like that's actually incredible because it's true like we can learn from failure if we just take the time and look at it and investigate and say okay this happened but let's not look at it from the perspective of how can I fix the problem. Let's look at it from the perspective of how did other people respond to me? What did that look like and how can I extend that same level of grace right back to them whenever they have something similar happen and that matters that is super important.

SPEAKER_04 27:32

Yep yeah so I mean how can you let God interrupt your plans today I've been I've been loving that phrase. Yeah I have I think like when we start talking about this stuff it's really important. So yeah how can you let God interrupt your your plans today and and how can you work through it and work to glorify and honor him more so well until next time this has been the Hodocast and uh thanks for joining us