Mission Sent
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Mission Sent
The Joy of Living Simply and Selflessly
What if you could find true freedom by letting go of material possessions and societal expectations? Inspired by Romans 12:2, we explore the transformative power of renewing your mind and breaking free from the world's standards. We entertain the radical notion of selling your house and living in a van, much like the biblical rich young ruler who faced challenges in giving up his wealth for spiritual fulfillment. Drawing parallels with the 90s hit "Mr. Wendell" by Arrested Development, we reflect on how simplicity can be perceived as foolish, yet offer unexpected liberation.
Shifting our focus to the heart's intentions, we confront the thorny issue of default selfishness, even in spiritual contexts. The biblical tale of Jesus feeding the 5,000 serves as a backdrop to challenge the idea that influence is merely a numbers game. What if true greatness is found in serving others selflessly, as Jesus did? We probe deep into our motivations, questioning the human tendency to ask, "What's in it for me?" and inviting listeners to consider the rarity and beauty of self-sacrifice for the greater good.
As we journey through personal growth and spiritual maturity, we emphasize the significance of evolving beyond surface-level beliefs. Through humorous anecdotes and personal stories, we illustrate the necessity of continuous transformation, akin to progressing from childhood to maturity. With the teachings of Corinthians as our guide, we delve into the importance of renewing our minds to align with our faith and purpose. Discover how evidence-based thinking can shape not only your spiritual journey but also your everyday life, fostering a richer, more meaningful existence.
We will be in this same verse at least for the next three weeks, all right, just because there's so much in it that we really need to unpack and really digest and understand. So last week, we looked at what it means to not conform, all right, and I told you guys, I wish these shirts would have came in before last week, because it would have made more sense for me to wear it last week while I was preaching about that. Unfortunately, they came in on Monday, so what am I going to do? However, we looked at what it means to not conform. We saw that what we put in matters whether it's TV shows or podcasts or music or books we read, or whatever it is Everything that we're taking in is conforming us to something, and that we are what we consume. So if that's what we're filling our brains with, that is what we are going to be, and so we saw that last week, and this week we're going to dig into that a little bit more by looking at the next part of verse two. So I'm going to pray and then we are going to jump back into it.
Speaker 1:Father, I ask and I pray that as I preach God, you know that my goal is just to be used by you. That, father. It is not my words that I am interested in people's hearing. It is not my thoughts that I am interested in people understanding, father, but it is yours. So I ask that, as I preach through your word this morning, that I be faithful to your word, that it be your word that your people are hearing, that cut to our heart, to transform us, father, to more the image of your Son. Father. We pray all of this in Jesus' name, amen.
Speaker 1:All right, so Romans 12.2. And it's hard because I learned this in a different like. I memorized it in a different translation. So if at points today you hear me go, do not be conformed to the ways of this world. That is the NIV translation, which is what I memorized it in. However, the ESV says it like this do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect, all right. So do not conform to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind.
Speaker 1:Let me ask you this, and you don't have to participate if you don't want to, but it's a good, good little thing. Raise your hand if you own a house. Like, raise your hand if you own a house and you're making payments for said house for the rest of your life, like student loans. I don't know that would be most of us right. Let me ask you this would your life be better if all of the money aid when, instead of going to your mortgage payment, your insurance payment which here in Florida I mean, let's be honest your property taxes?
Speaker 1:What if you could keep all of that money? Like, if I could give you a way and I'm about to this isn't a pyramid scheme but if I can give you a way to keep all of that money, would you want to? Would you like to have that extra money every month? Super easy, you ready. Sell your house. Sell your house and go live in a van or a bus If you want to be down by the river. But see, at that point you know what you would have Freedom, because if you can make the same amount of money you make now but not have to worry about making a mortgage payment, an insurance payment, a property tax payment, how much more freedom would you have? Like you would have money to go do whatever you would want. All of a sudden, the burdens and the pressures that you live with every day would not matter, because now you have that glorious God of money to make your life anything you want it to be. Do you have any idea how many guns I could buy if I didn't have to pay for all of these things? Or what fishing points or fishing trips I could take? Me and JT could finally take that trip down to Costa Rica and get a world record tarpon. Like we would finally be able to do all of the things that we have talked about doing.
Speaker 1:All I have to do is sell my house, and most of us are like, nope, not doing that. Kind of like having a place to live, kind of like having a shower to take, I like having a room to go into. Well, that's the same thing Jesus says to the rich young ruler right, like he comes to him and he's like Jesus. I've done everything. I've followed everything you've told me to follow. I've kept all the commandments since I was a child One obviously, he obviously didn't keep the lying part and Jesus goes cool, sell everything you own and come follow me. And he went away. What Sad, because, just like us. We went no, like you're supposed to have a house, you're not supposed to, supposed to be homeless, like I'm better than that. But yet, going back to the 90s okay, this is why my 90s trivia banner has not come down. It has nothing to do with. I'm too lazy to actually take it down.
Speaker 1:There's a song called Mr Wendell by Arrested Development, and Mr Wendell is a bum, and the whole song is about how we view life, and one of the lines is this Mr Wendell has a freedom, a freedom that you and I think is dumb free to live without the worries of this world. For Mr Wendell's a bum. But have you ever stopped and thought about the truth in that? I'm going to tell you where this blew me away.
Speaker 1:A few years ago, I was teaching juniors and seniors, because I do better with high schoolers, where I can actually have a conversation, like I don't do with little kids, where you got to try to figure out what they're saying. That being said, we were going around it was like a couple of weeks until graduation and so we were going around the room and I was talking to a lot of these seniors and I was like, hey, look, I understand. Like five weeks from now, you will no longer have the state going. You have to go to school. What are you doing with your life? And most of them said the typical right, I'm going to be a professional YouTuber, I'm going to be a model, I'm going to go to the league. Like I'm going to be a professional athlete, like all those things that you're in your mind as an adult. Going okay, might want to have a backup plan, just saying, a lot of them were like hey, I'm going to college.
Speaker 1:And then I get to this one girl and she's like oh, she is going to go buy a van and live in a van for the next year. And I kind of like skipped over it when she first said it. And I'm, you know, the next one. Like that like, well, hold on, hold on. What did you say you're going to do? Oh, I'm buying a van and I'm going to go just for for a year. I'm just going to go live in this van.
Speaker 1:And like I came home and I was like Debbie, there is this 17 year old child who thinks that after she graduates high school, she can just buy this van and go live in it. And she was like telling me to look it up on YouTube, it's this whole thing. And sure enough, I went home because YouTube is my second God, and I went let me look this up. And I'm looking at it and I'm going. There's a whole culture of people that do this. Debbie, why the heck did we buy a house, like do you understand? At the beach, like our morning could just be like me sleeping on top of a van, with the ocean water just hitting me in the face and heaven forbid it clean out my nostrils.
Speaker 1:Like, why did we do this? We did this because I was told my whole life here's what happiness looks like. You graduate high school. You go to college, you get a degree that's going to allow you to make millions of dollars a year Lie, you'll pay your student loans off in the next like three to five years. That was a lie. Then you buy a house. Well, you get married, you buy a house, then you have kids and then one day, if you're smart with your money, you get to retire, like I was told that's what happiness was.
Speaker 1:So my mind grabbed a hold of this and went it has to look like this, because if it doesn't look like this, then there's no way I can be happy in life, there's no way I can be fulfilled in life, there's no way that my life will be able to turn out the way it's supposed to turn out. And then we see Paul coming along and he goes hey, be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Why? Because up here controls everything out here. It controls how I treat people, it controls how I see and perceive the world, it controls everything about my life, everything. And so when we're looking at this being transformed by the renewing of our mind, understand there's a lot we can get into with this.
Speaker 1:I could probably spend a month just talking about transforming our mind and it would be very easy for me to go for that low-hanging fruit and go oh, here, let me just give you some practical steps. But there's one thing I want to unpack before we get there, and for it we have to go all the way back to Romans 3. In verses 10 through 12, we see this. In verses 10 through 12, we see this as it is written none is righteous, no, not one. No one understands, no one seeks for God. All have turned aside. Together, they have become worthless. No one does good, not even one.
Speaker 1:It's easy for me, being prior law enforcement, to be able to read that verse and see the truth in that. Because every single person I've ever dealt with, even victims, lie straight to your face with a straight face. So it's easy for me to see this verse and go Paul, truth, preach it, brother. That verse is easier for me to see than when we fast forward to Romans 8 and I see there is now no condemnation for those found in Christ Jesus. This verse resonates with me a lot more because I go. I've seen humanity like that. I've seen humanity through that lens where it's easy for me to look and go. There's no one good, myself included.
Speaker 1:Now, that being said, why is Paul so downtrodden on humanity? Because it's also one of the biggest critiques I hear from people about like the way I preach, they're like man. You're so like, just like. Like the way I preach, they're like man. You're so like, just like. Like there's nothing like encouraging and it's like, yeah, but we have to understand this. Like there's a reason Paul is so downtrodden and it has to deal with our minds.
Speaker 1:See, understand and I've preached this a lot we no one in this world, all 8 billion of us are not basically good people who just need a little bit of help to smooth over the edges. That's not who we are. None of us. We are dead people who need a resurrection. We need to be completely different than what we are, and when we understand that, we can understand that every single one of us in here does have a natural way of being. We do have a default status that we go back to.
Speaker 1:That's why the biggest lie of the modern world is this you are perfect just the way you are. Think about the past couple of years of our existence. Think about what you've seen on the news. Think about what you've seen on social media. Heck, think about your own life and what you think that you're perfect just the way you are. You don't need to change anything. In fact, everybody else needs to bend around what you already think.
Speaker 1:Well, here's the problem with that is, if everybody else is bending around what I think, then what about what you? Then? What about what you think? What about what you envision? See, we can't sit here and hold all of these things true, because they can't all possibly be true, because a lot of these things contradict one another, see, but our natural way of being is just that, that we sit here and go. Everybody else needs to. Like, bend to what I believe. Do you realize that Jesus never had that mentality?
Speaker 1:Think about this Jesus feeds the 5,000. Miraculously right. Two fish, five loaves of bread Feeds 5,000 people, and we all know that it was actually more like 20,000, because it was only 5,000 men. So he gets done feeding the people as the people are eating. He goes hey, hold on. And he gives a sermon and he talks about sowing seed out in the field, and it's kind of confusing, because Jesus always talked in parables, and so, like the people don't get it, jesus ends his sermon with this let he who has ears listen.
Speaker 1:And then walks away. Like, think about this, the disciples get mad at him. Like, the disciples go to Jesus and they're like, why would you just walk away? Did you not just see the crowd that was there? Do you not understand the influence we can have with the world if we have this many people following after us? Like if we can just talk them into being on our side? Do you understand like we can impact this world? And Jesus goes?
Speaker 1:That's not what I came for, though. Like I didn't come to build a crowd, because if you want to build a crowd. That's not what I came for, though, like I didn't come to build a crowd, because if you want to build a crowd, it's easy, right, you guys know the secret to building a big youth group Anybody Pizza party. Let me give you some food, and guess what you're going to do? You're going to invite your friends because you're going to be able to go to them and go hey, we got free food. There's going to be games. To go to them and go hey, we got free food, there's going to be games. It's going to be awesome Dating myself with that right, because now it's probably like, oh, we're going to have some like quinoa and like all this other weird crap, and you know what. You'll get people to show up. You'll have a packed house that night, and that poor youth pastor will stand there and, just because I've been in this position before and they're going to be like man, we're going to go get them and you're going to get up. You're going to preach your face off, and you know what's going to happen the following week when you don't offer anything free. It's going to be your same group that you always have, and Jesus knew that, and that's why, when I'm not interested in building a crowd, he goes.
Speaker 1:Because you want to know why most of these people were here? They're selfish. They went what's in it for me? This is our default way of being. We sit here and go what's in it for me. What benefit can I get out of it? This is who we are at the core. And if you don't believe me, just go adopt a child or have a child. Either way you want to look at it, you will very quickly see that our default is that what's in it for me.
Speaker 1:We come to Jesus because we're sitting here going what's in it for me? Can Jesus help with my marriage? Can he help with my finances? Hey, I got some things going on. Can Jesus fix this? And we can't. We use this line, right? Well, I'm no longer being fed. I just don't really click with anyone because you came here for the wrong reason.
Speaker 1:We come here to serve others, not be served. That's Matthew 20, 28. And why is that something that's important? Because can I be selfish if I'm worried about serving someone else? But see, when I look at it and I go, but this was built so that I can. That is our common way of being.
Speaker 1:That's why Jesus had to die on the cross. Because if left up to us, I'm not even sitting here going, hey, can you live a righteous life, because we all know that would be now. But if left up to us, would you die for someone else, and I know all you men in here went. I would die for my wife. The Bible would argue against you on that one. In fact, in Romans 5, 7, paul says this, for one will scarcely die for a righteous person, though perhaps for a good person one would even dare to die. Now I get it. I'm prior military, prior law enforcement. I signed up going hey, I'm going to defend those who can't defend themselves, and if that causes me to lose my life, so be it.
Speaker 1:And I love looking at Debbie and going baby, I love you so much I would die for you, and chances are I probably would, just because that part of my brain that controls rational thought sometimes doesn't work the way it's supposed to, right, I like being afraid. It just does something inside of me. Steven was showing me a while back they went on a pig hunt with spears and I was like that is the coolest thing I have ever seen. Like that's what I want to go do, like it was amazing. But see what the Bible is telling us is if given the opportunity. But see what the Bible is telling us is if, given the opportunity, yeah, okay, let's take it out of the realm of my wife or my kids.
Speaker 1:Like, let's say it's just me and one of someone else and someone busts them with a gun, am I jumping in front of that bullet? What if it's someone I don't know Like? What if it's someone that's just a complete stranger to me? Am I still willing at that point to jump in front of it Because I'm going to go out on a limb and say, no, most of us wouldn't, especially if it's someone you don't know. If it's someone you know, someone you love, like cool, you probably would do that. But if it's someone like you're just at the mall and they're like, hey, can you die for me? You would probably be like, okay. So for some of you you don't know what a mall is. But before social media we had this place. You could go to be around your friends, all right, but we would not. Yeah, that it was this crazy face-to-face interaction kind of thing. Like I know, we can't do that anymore.
Speaker 1:Covid. Now I can't share it because we said what should not be named, but anyway, see, but that's our natural default state in who we are. What's in it for me? What do I get? Now? Why do I spend so much time focusing on that? What does that have to do with transforming our minds? Well, number one we have to start with where we are, because if we can't start with where we are, how are we going to get to where we're going? Like if you went to your GPS and went hey, I want to go to I don't know Joe's house for brisket, because, by the way, he found a way to cook brisket in six hours. That turns out phenomenal. But if you don't, if your GPS can't go, okay, you're here, here's how you get there. How are you gonna get there? Because it has no idea where you're starting from and directions can be vastly different depending on where you're starting from. So why do we start with? This is our default position, because that is the entire point of salvation.
Speaker 1:Salvation is this, and it's found in in Ezekiel 36, 26 I know this is familiar to some of you. The Prophet says and I will give you a new heart and a new spirit I will put within you and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. Here's what the prophet is saying. When you have salvation, you are no longer the same. There should be a difference. In other words, I'm going to tell you like this it is impossible for you to meet Jesus and be exactly the same. There are two things that can happen you can be hardened to the gospel or you will be softened to the gospel, but that's it. You can't meet the creator of all creation and go.
Speaker 1:It was cool. Sure, I believe in him, but absolutely nothing inside of me is going to change. Why? Because the Bible tells us that salvation is Christ giving us a new heart. Now, what I want you to understand is even the ancient people, when they use that word heart, know it's not the muscle inside my chest that is pumping my body or my blood through my body. They knew that that word heart is what causes me to do all of the things I do, which would be what Our minds.
Speaker 1:Now, that being said, what he is sitting here saying is Jesus is going. Hey, when I save you, when I put, when you put your faith in me, you will not remain the same, and here's what we need to remember. Jesus loved you enough to save you at your worst, like. Jesus doesn't wait until you're all cleaned up. Jesus doesn't wait until you get it all. Jesus doesn't look at you and go hold on. Will you pass the salvation test? He saved you where you were, but here's the deal he loves you enough to not leave you at your worst. See, think about it.
Speaker 1:Why did I teach my kids to use utensils like to eat with? Like. Why did we take time to sit here and go? Here's a fork, here's what a fork's for. Here's a spoon, here's what a spoon's for. Like. Why would I teach them? Here's how you bathe, like. Why would I teach them? Here's how you use the restroom? Why not just let them run around in the backyard and do whatever they gotta do?
Speaker 1:Because when you're a baby, sitting in a high chair and you got the spaghetti for you and the bowls on your head and you're like, ah, it's a cute picture, right? It's not cute when you're an adult, though. Like. Could you imagine like, if you were at like, let's just say Goodfellas or somewhere, and like at the table next to you, like Joe, I'm going to use you for an example, just for you. Look over and Joe's sitting there and he's just got spaghetti all over him. You look at him and go, that's so cute? Probably not. Look at him and go, man, you're supposed to be a grown man. Learn how to eat. That's disgusting Anyone in here.
Speaker 1:Like, smacking was a big thing for us growing up. You weren't allowed to smack while you chewed your food, right that whole. You got hit in the head every time that happened. We didn't know about CTE growing up, apparently because my dad was not afraid to just haul off and hit. Now, that being said, I had to sit next to my dad because I was the one with the worst habit of going, because it's hard for me to breathe through my nose. So, like, if I got too big of a mouthful of food, I literally couldn't breathe. So my brain has to go. Okay, is it more important to eat or breathe? To which eating is always more important? And so, like I would be eating and put way too much in there and I would have to, like, try to sneak a breath.
Speaker 1:So it'd be like and it was like all at the same time, right, and it was like all at the same time, right, but understand, it's not cute when you're a grown adult when someone's sitting across the table from you and they're just like trying to talk to you and the food's coming out and it's just like it's absolutely disgusting. But when they're kids it's cute, right. Why do we treat them different? Why do we teach them different? Why do we teach them different? Because we go, the things you do when you're young aren't cute anymore when you get older. You ever had those friends that their their kid learned to cuss and it's like. You know, they're two, they're still learning to like talk and they're like, oh, and that cute, and it's like it ain't cute when they're 15 doing it at you, though, is it? It ain't anymore.
Speaker 1:So if you don't correct it back here, it's going to kill you up here. See and that is the entire point of salvation, that is what Paul is driving at here Be transformed. You are not good and perfect the way you are. We're not the way you are. We're not. We are selfish, we are self-serving. When Jesus came and found us at our lowest, we were in rebellion against the God of the universe. What would make you think that that's perfect? What would make you think, oh, you just got a couple of little things you got to work on, but most of us, that's what we do, like think about it.
Speaker 1:Why do we even have the church? What is the purpose of this? Is it just because you guys had nothing better to do on a Sunday morning? Because the Daytona 500's today? I don't know if there's any NASCAR fans in here Like you could sit for the next next like four hours and just watch a car make a left hand turn Like. What I'm saying, though, is there are things to do. Right, the weather is not going to be real good. Fishing Like it could be hit and miss today. We got that cold front coming in Could be really good, get caught in the storm Could be really bad, but what I'm saying is we have a point right.
Speaker 1:Ephesians 4.11 says this and he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds, the teachers. Why? Why do people like me exist? To equip the saints, for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until when we attain the unity of faith and knowledge of the Son of God, to what Mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ, so that we may no longer be children tossed to and fro by the waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by human cunning, by craftiness in deceitful schemes. Rather, speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way to him, who is the head into Christ, from whom the whole body, joined and held together by every joint with which it is equipped, when each part is working properly, makes the body grow so that it builds itself up in love. Here is the thing. If you are sitting here today and you are calling yourself a Christian, if you are sitting here today, going, hey, church is supposed to do something. Here's what it's supposed to do. Grow us up, some of us.
Speaker 1:I'm going to go ahead and tell you we've been struggling with the same thing for years and years and years and years. Why have you not grown with this? Why are you still acting like a little child? Why are you still acting like a little baby? Think about it. It's the same conversation I have with my 17-year-old son, right. It's the same conversation I have with my 17-year-old son right, where I will look at him and I will go hey, in nine months, the government is going to look at you and go you are a grown man. You are so far from that, though, that it ain't even like I have done nothing over the past 17 years. Like, sometimes I look at him and I'm like, dude, where did I drop the ball? Was it when you were like three? And you just haven't progressed in this area since then? There are other times I look at him and I go, hey, dude, you got it. But see, it's those areas that I don't look at and go, hey, man, you are like top notch in this. He's one of the most respectful. Like he gets compliments everywhere he goes about how respectful he is. But then, on the other hand, like, jt, did you get done with schoolwork today? I might as well go over to elementary and be like, hey, you guys want to talk about quantum physics, because I get the same kind of looks. See, the whole point of this is we're supposed to grow. You're not supposed to be the same as when Jesus saw you or found you. You're supposed to be moving along. You're supposed to be conforming to the image of Jesus. You are supposed to look more like Jesus every single day. Think about it In Paul's first letter to the Corinthian church, in chapter 13, the love chapter.
Speaker 1:Right, love is patient, love is kind, love is like all of those things. At the very end of that chapter, in verse 11, he says this when I was a child, I spoke like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child, but when I became a man, I put away the childish things. See again, men, it's not cute if you are 30, 35 years old, still living at your mom's house playing video games. That ain't cute. I'm going to go ahead and give you, you younger guys in here. I'm going to give you just a little advice. Women do not find that attractive. Like a woman's never going to look at you and go oh cool, let's go back to your parents' house Just throwing that out to you. You would have better luck buying a van and going. Let's go back to my van. That's creepy in a whole different way, but you would still have better luck, right, right, ladies, am I correct in that it ain't cute when you're supposed to be a grown man and you still have all these childish ways.
Speaker 1:As a Christian, it ain't cute when you're supposed to be a mature Christian and you still have all these childish ways. And obviously I'm going to go ahead and tell you that the Corinthian church didn't get it, because in his second letter to the church, paul says this in chapter three and we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, when you see Jesus for who Jesus is, that's what he's saying are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another, for this comes from the Lord, who is spirit. Here's what he's saying. You should look more like Jesus from one degree of glory to the next. So maybe right now God's working on this, but at some point he finishes that work and you move on to the next. That's what he is saying. So if you still look, think and talk like you did when you first came to know Jesus, you are missing something in your spiritual walk with Jesus.
Speaker 1:Some of us have even moved backwards Our spirit walk. Like some of us, you are a little bit further along than you are now, because you done heard some other things that are like hold on, how can I add this into Christianity? See, some of us have been struggling with the same thing for years. Some of us have never moved deeper into our faith than this. Well, when I die, I get to go to heaven and be with my best friend, jesus.
Speaker 1:You know, the Bible never says that. That's something we explain to little kids during vacation Bible school, right, that Jesus just wants to be your best friend. Jesus never said I want to be your best friend. Jesus went I want to be your Lord. And here's what a Lord does. I say you do See, a a best friend? Yeah, like we're equals, right? Neither one of us have the edge in that relationship, but a Lord, that's different and that's what Jesus says.
Speaker 1:But some of us never move past that that Jesus just wanted to be my best friend. He just couldn't imagine living eternity without me. Because I am so special and unique and I bring so much to the table. Think about your own life. What do you really bring to the table of Jesus? Even me, because I'll be the first one to slam it. Oh what? Because I can get up here and ramble on for 30 minutes to an hour, depending on what I'm preaching.
Speaker 1:On Some of y'all's face just went an hour, like maybe this one is going to be a little longer. Does that make me more special? Does that mean Jesus is looking at me? Going, man, I couldn't do this without Josh. He didn't need my help when he went let there be light and he doesn't need my help. Now I get to do this. This is an honor and a privilege for me. I never look at this like, oh, I have to come do this Ever. Why? Because I am sitting here going. God entrusted me enough to go. I want you to take my word and preach, and to me that's a responsibility and a privilege bigger than anything I could have ever thought of. Because here's what he is saying Move deeper, some of us. It's time for us to get out of the nursery. You need to at to get out of the nursery. You need to at least get into children's church. They're building terrariums today. Okay, and if you're sitting here going, hey, like I can't handle this yet, go outside with my mom and just like you can do children's church, I'm good with that, but I guess you've got to start moving in your relationship.
Speaker 1:So how do we do that? What is maturity in Christ? What is being transformed? Here's where we start. Understand this. Your mind up here is where all spiritual warfare happens. Every single attack from the devil is going to hit you in your mind. That is where spiritual warfare happens. That's the first thing. We have to understand that your mind is what causes all your actions based on your beliefs. So there's a quote, and Wednesday night, during the men's group, I went back and forth because it's actually from a Chinese philosopher, all right, and I went. I don't like doing that, right, I'm not just taking little things from all over the world and putting them into Christianity, but our book reworded the quote, so I'm quoting this from Fighting Shadows, not how did you say his name, not Sun Tzu? It says this, the quote from Fighting Shadows, but maybe we shouldn't be surprised. The war is in the mind. It starts there, and more men need to do war in the mind so that they can win the war in the world. Our thoughts become our actions, our actions behaviors, and our behaviors become life. That, right there, sums up why you need to be transformed by the renewing of your mind, because your mind is going to create your life.
Speaker 1:You know that 80 percent, 80 percent, eight out of ten Americans hate their job, like they have to force themselves to get up and go to work. 8 out of 10. Some of you are like, cool, I'm part of the 2 out of 10. And that's awesome. Why, though? Well, what else am I going to do? There's a whole world out there to do Go sell bananas, like you can literally make money doing almost anything Like you have options, but yet we stay where we're unhappy. Why? Because our minds have us trapped there by going. There's nothing else I can do. What else do I bring to the table? Like, seriously, guys think about? Like, think about like this okay, I started in construction.
Speaker 1:I went to the military because I hated construction. Medically, I had some issues in the military, so they discharged me. I went back to construction. I spent years of my life going there's nothing else I can do. Then I went oh great, oh great. 2008 happened. There is no more construction. So I went I'm going to be a cop. Why, I don't know, hated that from day one too. That was a terrible idea. Got trapped there. Then I went back to construction. Why? Because I went back to construction? Why, because I went. This is all I can do.
Speaker 1:I was driving by a school during summer, all right, looked over and went man, it was an elementary school. Looked over and then, like, remembered how much I loved summer break and I went. Do you guys realize? Like the guy I was riding with I went. Do you realize they get a two-month vacation every year, like they don't have to take PTO, they don't have like none of that. Like they just get the whole summer. Like, do you remember? Like when you were a child and like those of you that weren't homeschooled and and like you had summer break, like it was amazing, right, you got two whole months. Like there are cartoons If you've ever seen Phineas and Ferb, it is based on summer vacation. Right, like summer vacation was great. So, like I'm driving, I came home and I'm like Debbie, I'm going to go be a teacher. Why? Because I get two months of vacation. Do you know the fishing I can get done? And it just so happens that Coastal Conservation Association has a summer tournament every year. That's all summer long.
Speaker 1:Like it's amazing how these things just line up and God goes, look here. Why? Because I stopped being trapped in my mind, because I stopped looking at life and going. There's nothing I can do. I just gotta muscle through this Some things. Yeah, you gotta muscle through, right, my marriage. I have to muscle through when times are not as good as others. Why? For better or worse? Unfortunately, sometimes there is that worse side.
Speaker 1:Now, that being said, though, your mind is what comes to conclusions. Your mind is what perceives reality. Your mind controls how you deal with the world around you. You want to know where all your problems start In your mind. Just take sin, for instance. In the book of James it says this God tempts no one, but each man is tempted by his own desires. Where did those desires come from your mind, like when it's like one o'clock in the morning and you know you should be sleeping, but your stomach's going hey, I want. And you are walking out to the kitchen, you hearing that boy, we've seen it on the camera. Sure, that's your own temptation. That's your own brain going hey, you know it would be really good right now. That's not god going. Hey, I'm gonna like, tempt you with this. That's you sitting here, going I want cake.
Speaker 1:And for some of us we have to understand, like our minds, you need to start transforming them. You need to start sitting here going hold on, I got to think differently. I have to do differently because if you want different in your life, you have to do different. Because if you always do what you've always done, you will always get what you've always got. So if you're sitting here going hey, there's some things I want to work on. Understand, you have to change the variable at some point. You have to, because if you're not changing it, it ain't going to change. Think about your own life.
Speaker 1:I was talking with a guy this past week we have a men's thread and like a separate conversation broke off from one of the comments that was made. And so I'm talking to this guy and they were like hey, so how's your week going? And it's crazy because he's like the only guy in here that actually asked me like hey, are you good? And so I was like look, man, I'm going to be honest. I feel like God's pruning some stuff in my life right now and I'm really struggling with this and it's really hard with me and I don't know what to do, because at this point I feel like it's too much. And their response was look, I get it. I feel the same way from time to time. Hang in there, I know you got this, though, and that was it. Like it wasn't this, like he didn't like go all into okay, and then in this verse it says this and this. Like he didn't do all of that, he just went hey, I'm here for you, I'm going to walk with you through it and I believe in you. You got this and I went dang. Maybe, and I went dang, maybe it's not all bad, maybe I can get this done Because, see, understand your mind is very powerful.
Speaker 1:In every counseling situation I've ever done, there are two things I tell you you can change. You can either change your situation or you can change the way you look at your situation. But those are the only two possible outcomes. You can do with anything, that's it. You can change the situation itself or you can change the way you look at it. Go back to the jobs. Right, you hate your job. You can get a different job. I hear from like business owners all the time that it's like impossible to find good help. So, if you are good, help, understand, you can get a different job so you could change the situation. Or you could sit here and go hey, it's just a job, it's something that I can do to put money in my pocket and food on my table. So I can either change the entire situation or I can change how I look at the situation. See, our mind and the Bible differ. Gosh, we may have to pick this up next week, because I am like just a little bit over halfway done and I just looked at the clock, but I'm going to leave with this, so I'm going to have to pick up into this next week too. How come no one first of all did this thing? We have talked about this over and over and over, right like I have given everyone permission to do that, and actually it was the kids. I heard, and like I heard it's talking, and I looked up at the clock and I was like oh, and then I looked at how many more slides I had left to do, but my end with this and understand this was not the ending that I originally intended For some of us.
Speaker 1:We need to start transforming our minds, though, because the world may tell you you're perfect the way you are, but the Bible tells us we have some work to do to look like Jesus. See our minds, where our minds and the Bible differ. See where our minds and the Bible differ. The Bible needs to inform how our minds should think. We have to stop relying on these two words.
Speaker 1:You want to take a guess? What words are they? Jt? I feel those should be cuss words in your house, I feel, because the problem with I feel. I feel is based on the heart, and jeremiah 79 tells us very clear that your heart is wicked and deceitful above all things. Now I get it. I know there are people in this room I am one them that struggle with various mental health issues. I get it so when I say those should be cuss words in your house. Understand this. I want you to understand how dangerous it is to start a sentence or to come up with a concrete idea in your head of going feel, because I promise you you are not going to feel that forever, and sometimes our feelings change a lot quicker than our mind can. So so I'm gonna end with one final illustration and then we'll close it out.
Speaker 1:Debbie loves. I just want everyone to know this. Debbie loves when I give like intimate illustrations from our life, I never hear about it. When we leave. She's like thank you so much for taking our pain and just throwing it out there. But I want you to understand this. Here's the problem with I feel. There may or may not have been an argument that lasted almost all week long. If you were a men's group, you may or may not have heard about it on Wednesday, and here we are on Sunday.
Speaker 1:Finally, at some point in this argument it came to this conclusion. Debbie, I mean, I'm sorry, one of us was like you can't come to conclusions and then look backwards and try to get evidence. You have to start with the evidence and then come to the conclusion. See, it's easy when I'm led by, I feel, because your emotions are very powerful and your emotions can cause you to feel and do all sorts of things. But understand, when we start with I feel, what you now have to do is look back and find evidence to justify what you feel. What you now have to do is look back and find evidence to justify what you feel. So, all of the sudden, these little things start going. Oh well, you made a face when you said that, so that must mean. However, how more even keeled can you live your life when you start with the evidence and come to the conclusion? That's when I can go, I know, see, in a court, and I'll never forget the first time I had to do a DUI case, as, as I think I'd been at the sheriff's office for like six months, it was my first deposition.
Speaker 1:It was like my first, like all well, I'd been to depots before, but like as a like witness, so it was. It was a lot different. Like when you walk in there as a cop like and I thought everyone in the courtroom was on my side, right, I have seen law and order enough to know that there are two equally distinct but separate, like whatever these are their stories, like I know that right, and they always look buddy buddy in the shows. So like I'm walking into the courtroom and I'm like I'm waiting for the lawyer to hit the moment in the case that blows it wide open. I legit was like that. So I'm sitting there and it's a DUI and the judge looks over at me, or not? The judge, the lawyer, looks over at me. The defense lawyer, who was not my friend.