1 00:00:06,880 --> 00:00:08,960 Good morning. Good morning. Good morning. 2 00:00:10,480 --> 00:00:13,760 It is a good morning. I'm listening to them talk about 3 00:00:14,080 --> 00:00:17,880 there being an abundance and overflow with tithes. And 4 00:00:17,880 --> 00:00:21,560 I was thinking about growing up in my 5 00:00:21,560 --> 00:00:25,320 mom and dad's church. Once a month we had, they would 6 00:00:25,320 --> 00:00:29,110 do a. What was called a pounding for the pastor. It 7 00:00:29,110 --> 00:00:30,910 means a whole different thing now, but 8 00:00:33,070 --> 00:00:36,390 back then you would walk out and there'd be some 9 00:00:36,390 --> 00:00:40,230 groceries on the steps of the porch or there might be a chicken casserole, 10 00:00:40,230 --> 00:00:43,150 which you probably needed to be careful about eating. But anyway, 11 00:00:45,790 --> 00:00:48,110 tithing sometimes looked different 12 00:00:49,870 --> 00:00:53,390 out there where there wasn't much money and people would bring the little and then 13 00:00:53,390 --> 00:00:57,150 they would bring the extras. And that was always such a blessing to see what 14 00:00:57,150 --> 00:01:00,570 God was going to do. We are going to 15 00:01:01,290 --> 00:01:04,650 open with just for a second. I want us to pray for Pastor Kevin, 16 00:01:05,050 --> 00:01:08,410 who's still on sabbatical and I'm not bitter and. 17 00:01:10,090 --> 00:01:13,410 But we miss him so. Father God, I thank you so much for our pastor. 18 00:01:13,410 --> 00:01:17,210 I thank you, Lord, for this season where you've offered him rest. And I pray 19 00:01:17,210 --> 00:01:20,970 that he get that. I said in first gathering, Lord, it would be 20 00:01:20,970 --> 00:01:24,690 awful nice if he had a hammock somewhere where he could 21 00:01:24,690 --> 00:01:27,650 just spend some time, Lord, in your presence. And I just ask that you cover 22 00:01:27,650 --> 00:01:31,110 he and Shari and the girl. I just ask that you bring him that 23 00:01:31,270 --> 00:01:34,470 back refreshed. We know when he comes back, Lord, he'll be up to something. 24 00:01:34,950 --> 00:01:38,230 So Father, help us. In Jesus name, Amen. 25 00:01:39,990 --> 00:01:41,270 That came out wrong. 26 00:01:44,310 --> 00:01:47,030 Sometimes you just put the comma in the wrong place. 27 00:01:49,110 --> 00:01:52,830 I have to tell you, I got tickled. Last week Pastor Allen 28 00:01:52,830 --> 00:01:56,670 had shared, you know, he said, you know, in his benevolent 29 00:01:56,670 --> 00:02:00,070 heart, he did not send in his request for 30 00:02:01,410 --> 00:02:04,730 which book he wanted to teach on. And he said that he would sit back 31 00:02:04,730 --> 00:02:07,970 and let everybody get it. And he wound up with Hosea. 32 00:02:08,530 --> 00:02:12,250 And I saw nothing wrong with that. But anyway, I 33 00:02:12,250 --> 00:02:16,010 just wanted Alan to know that none of us got what 34 00:02:16,010 --> 00:02:19,690 we asked for, but what we 35 00:02:19,690 --> 00:02:23,530 did get was what Pastor Kevin prayed about and 36 00:02:23,530 --> 00:02:26,810 said, no, I think you are carrying the word for this one. And that's what 37 00:02:26,810 --> 00:02:30,450 we always want, right? So I got Jonah 38 00:02:30,770 --> 00:02:31,170 and 39 00:02:35,070 --> 00:02:38,670 it's been so good and it's all for you guys. 40 00:02:38,750 --> 00:02:42,230 And no, it has just been so rich. And 41 00:02:42,230 --> 00:02:45,150 I'm so encouraged by what the Lord has to share with us. 42 00:02:46,110 --> 00:02:49,790 And I love that God always has an 43 00:02:49,790 --> 00:02:52,750 on time word. And 44 00:02:53,950 --> 00:02:57,590 nothing has surprised him about this day, this 45 00:02:57,590 --> 00:03:01,260 week, this month. Nothing has surprised 46 00:03:01,260 --> 00:03:04,900 him. And he sends his word. To do what? To heal 47 00:03:04,900 --> 00:03:08,260 his people. Amen. So we are going to stand up, we're going to read a 48 00:03:08,260 --> 00:03:11,620 couple of verses, and then we are going to turn off the 49 00:03:11,620 --> 00:03:15,260 slides and we are just going to dig into this for a 50 00:03:15,260 --> 00:03:18,220 minute because I need a word from the Lord. Do you need a word from 51 00:03:18,220 --> 00:03:21,580 the Lord this morning? That's what we're going to do today. We are going to 52 00:03:21,580 --> 00:03:25,350 talk about being so much like Jonah, 53 00:03:26,550 --> 00:03:30,350 so much like Jonah. And man, I'm owning that this 54 00:03:30,350 --> 00:03:33,870 morning. To go, God, I see myself in these scriptures and I ask, Lord, that 55 00:03:33,870 --> 00:03:37,390 you help me to overcome this. So let's read it. As Pastor 56 00:03:37,390 --> 00:03:41,110 Kevin would say with gusto. The word of the Lord came 57 00:03:41,110 --> 00:03:44,950 to Jonah, son of Amitti, go to the great 58 00:03:45,030 --> 00:03:48,830 city of Nineveh and preach against it, because its 59 00:03:48,830 --> 00:03:52,150 wickedness has come up before me. But 60 00:03:52,150 --> 00:03:55,270 Jonah ran away from the Lord and headed for 61 00:03:55,270 --> 00:03:58,910 Tarshish. He went down to Joppa, where he 62 00:03:58,910 --> 00:04:02,590 found a ship bound for that port. After paying 63 00:04:02,590 --> 00:04:06,270 the fare, he went aboard and sailed for Tarshish 64 00:04:06,350 --> 00:04:09,310 to flee from the Lord. Father. God, 65 00:04:10,510 --> 00:04:13,910 help us. Help us, Lord, to see 66 00:04:13,910 --> 00:04:17,630 ourselves in your word, Lord, and to see your instruction in the 67 00:04:17,630 --> 00:04:21,310 Word. Father, this morning we're going to come under your truth. Father. God, 68 00:04:21,310 --> 00:04:24,330 there's a whole lot of opinions and a whole lot stuff in the world right 69 00:04:24,330 --> 00:04:27,970 now. But Father, what we need is your truth. And so, Father, that's where we're 70 00:04:27,970 --> 00:04:31,450 submitting ourselves. Today I ask, Lord, that my 71 00:04:31,450 --> 00:04:35,170 stuff fall and your stand. And Father, I'm asking for hearts that 72 00:04:35,170 --> 00:04:38,570 are teachable. You said you would awaken our hearts morning by morning 73 00:04:38,890 --> 00:04:42,730 to be taught of you. And today we have come to learn from you, 74 00:04:42,730 --> 00:04:46,450 Father, settle us, Lord, I ask in Jesus 75 00:04:46,450 --> 00:04:49,610 name. Amen. I find it so 76 00:04:49,610 --> 00:04:52,170 interesting that Jonah. 77 00:04:54,290 --> 00:04:58,090 Ah, Jonah. I look at 78 00:04:58,090 --> 00:05:01,810 that passage of scripture and it says that Jonah decided to 79 00:05:01,810 --> 00:05:05,490 flee from the Lord. And I just have to tell you, Psalms was 80 00:05:05,490 --> 00:05:08,770 written before Jonah. And I'm Pretty sure the 81 00:05:08,770 --> 00:05:12,610 139th Psalm says this, starting with 82 00:05:12,610 --> 00:05:16,290 verse 7. Where can I go from your 83 00:05:16,290 --> 00:05:20,090 spirit? Or where can I flee from your presence? If 84 00:05:20,090 --> 00:05:23,920 I ascend to heaven, you are there. If I make my bed 85 00:05:23,920 --> 00:05:27,760 in Sheol, behold, you are there. If I take the 86 00:05:27,760 --> 00:05:31,600 wings of the dawn, if I dwell in the remotest part of the sea, even 87 00:05:31,600 --> 00:05:35,440 there your hand will lead me, and your right hand will 88 00:05:35,440 --> 00:05:39,160 take hold of me. If I say, surely the darkness will 89 00:05:39,160 --> 00:05:42,840 cover me and the night will only be light around 90 00:05:42,920 --> 00:05:46,760 me. Even the darkness is not dark to you and 91 00:05:46,760 --> 00:05:50,380 conceals nothing from you. But the 92 00:05:50,380 --> 00:05:53,740 night shines as bright as the day darkness 93 00:05:53,980 --> 00:05:57,340 and light are alike to you. 94 00:06:00,700 --> 00:06:04,380 You can run, but you can't hide. You 95 00:06:04,380 --> 00:06:08,060 can run, but you can't hide. And we're good at running, aren't we? 96 00:06:08,540 --> 00:06:12,380 We're really good at deciding that the word that the Lord has given us 97 00:06:12,380 --> 00:06:15,420 is not the one that we wanted. And so it's obviously wrong. 98 00:06:18,870 --> 00:06:22,070 I look at this book of Jonah. If you got your Bible, just go there 99 00:06:22,070 --> 00:06:25,870 with me. It says in chapter one, 100 00:06:25,870 --> 00:06:29,590 verse one, it says, now the word of the Lord came to 101 00:06:29,590 --> 00:06:32,870 Jonah, the son of Amitti, saying, go to 102 00:06:32,870 --> 00:06:33,670 Nineveh, 103 00:06:36,630 --> 00:06:39,590 but Jonah ran away to Tarshish. 104 00:06:40,790 --> 00:06:44,580 I don't like that word. That's hard to say. Tarshish. Say 105 00:06:44,580 --> 00:06:47,980 it three times. No, don't. Tarshish. 106 00:06:48,300 --> 00:06:52,020 So we're going to say that city. So they ran. He ran away 107 00:06:52,020 --> 00:06:55,820 to that city. And actually, that's probably better anyway, because 108 00:06:55,820 --> 00:06:58,780 there are a lot of places that we like to refer to as that city, 109 00:06:59,020 --> 00:07:02,820 right? We look at it and we 110 00:07:02,820 --> 00:07:06,460 go, the word of the Lord. He had a word from the Lord 111 00:07:07,260 --> 00:07:11,030 and he ran. I mean, was this an audible word 112 00:07:11,030 --> 00:07:14,710 from the Lord? Was this in the middle of the night, dream from the 113 00:07:14,710 --> 00:07:18,190 Lord? It doesn't clarify that. But he had a word from the Lord. And we're 114 00:07:18,190 --> 00:07:21,510 like, how do you turn away from a word from the Lord? 115 00:07:23,190 --> 00:07:27,030 And he wasn't just, you know, he was a prophet. 116 00:07:28,390 --> 00:07:32,190 He was a prophet of the Lord, and he 117 00:07:32,190 --> 00:07:34,870 had a word from the Lord. 118 00:07:36,870 --> 00:07:40,630 And we can look at that and go, what? But you see, Jonah only had 119 00:07:40,630 --> 00:07:44,270 one instruction. We got the whole manual. We 120 00:07:44,270 --> 00:07:47,270 got it all right here, the last Will and Testament. 121 00:07:48,310 --> 00:07:52,030 These are the words he left for us. And there are instructions for 122 00:07:52,030 --> 00:07:55,750 every single situation we may find ourselves in. And 123 00:07:55,750 --> 00:07:59,270 there are instructions for how we comfort ourselves 124 00:07:59,430 --> 00:08:02,390 and how we respond to situations, especially 125 00:08:02,710 --> 00:08:05,670 situations that are hard and that we don't understand. 126 00:08:07,800 --> 00:08:10,920 But it says that Jonah gets up early. 127 00:08:12,280 --> 00:08:15,880 One of the translations says he got up early and 128 00:08:15,960 --> 00:08:19,400 headed for Joppa, and he paid the fare 129 00:08:19,880 --> 00:08:23,640 to get on that boat to go to Tarshish. Shush, shush. 130 00:08:26,200 --> 00:08:29,920 He wasn't just, like, detouring just a little bit off the path. 131 00:08:29,920 --> 00:08:32,800 He wasn't like, I'll go to La Verne and then the Lord won't be able 132 00:08:32,800 --> 00:08:36,570 to see me over here in Smyrna. No, he 133 00:08:36,570 --> 00:08:40,170 went so far. He got as far away from God as he could 134 00:08:40,170 --> 00:08:43,730 possibly get. It is literally the mileage 135 00:08:44,290 --> 00:08:47,570 from New York City to Los Angeles within about six miles. 136 00:08:48,850 --> 00:08:52,570 He went all the way to the other coast. He's like, maybe 137 00:08:52,570 --> 00:08:55,730 If I'm over here, maybe God won't see where I am. 138 00:08:56,450 --> 00:09:00,130 Isn't that funny? But we do it all the 139 00:09:00,130 --> 00:09:02,920 time. He can't see me 140 00:09:03,720 --> 00:09:07,440 here in this mess that 141 00:09:07,440 --> 00:09:09,720 I have paid good money to get myself into. 142 00:09:13,320 --> 00:09:16,440 But it says he wanted to get as far away 143 00:09:17,240 --> 00:09:19,920 from the Lord as he could get. Why? Because he didn't like the word that 144 00:09:19,920 --> 00:09:23,640 he'd been given. And he had his reasons for not liking that word that he'd 145 00:09:23,640 --> 00:09:26,600 been given. And we're going to talk about that a little bit. But if you 146 00:09:26,600 --> 00:09:29,940 look down a little bit further, you'll find in chapter one 147 00:09:31,700 --> 00:09:35,220 that a storm comes, a bad 148 00:09:35,300 --> 00:09:38,740 storm. And everybody on the boat is 149 00:09:38,740 --> 00:09:42,180 frightened and they're terrified, and they don't like this situation. 150 00:09:42,660 --> 00:09:46,460 And I think it is so interesting that it says 151 00:09:46,460 --> 00:09:50,220 all of this is going on all around. And Jonah went 152 00:09:50,220 --> 00:09:53,780 to the deepest part of the boat and was sound asleep. 153 00:09:55,550 --> 00:09:59,230 Sound asleep. You know what I do? I look at that and I go, 154 00:10:00,510 --> 00:10:04,350 jonah knew the Lord. And sometimes when 155 00:10:04,350 --> 00:10:08,110 we're running and we're trying to get as far away as possible, 156 00:10:08,510 --> 00:10:12,230 yet we know the voice of the Lord. We have 157 00:10:12,230 --> 00:10:15,990 this tendency to try and shut down everything on the 158 00:10:15,990 --> 00:10:19,670 inside. If we can just buffer that voice for a little bit. If we can 159 00:10:19,670 --> 00:10:23,270 just medicate that voice for a little bit. If we can just step 160 00:10:23,270 --> 00:10:26,730 into this place where we can dull our ears. And enough 161 00:10:27,370 --> 00:10:30,810 that we don't hear the correction or the call of the Holy 162 00:10:30,810 --> 00:10:33,610 Spirit. So we go as deep as we can get, 163 00:10:34,410 --> 00:10:36,970 and we put ourselves to sleep. Spiritually, 164 00:10:38,490 --> 00:10:42,050 we do, because it's the only way we can go on in our 165 00:10:42,050 --> 00:10:45,850 disobedience. It's the only way that we can do it. 166 00:10:46,090 --> 00:10:49,890 And God hadn't forgotten 167 00:10:49,890 --> 00:10:53,340 or lost sight of Jonah. Just as God has not 168 00:10:53,340 --> 00:10:56,980 forgotten us and lost sight of where we are, whether 169 00:10:56,980 --> 00:11:00,660 in obedience or disobedience in the planet, 170 00:11:00,820 --> 00:11:04,340 God has not missed one thing. And 171 00:11:04,420 --> 00:11:08,179 all of the men up there, they're all up, they're despairing 172 00:11:08,179 --> 00:11:11,900 because it looks like they're getting ready to go down. Things look bad. You know, 173 00:11:11,900 --> 00:11:15,700 sometimes when things look bad, we can panic and we can respond in a way 174 00:11:15,940 --> 00:11:19,680 that we shouldn't respond. When what we really need 175 00:11:19,680 --> 00:11:23,280 is to get to the core of the matter, right? And 176 00:11:23,280 --> 00:11:26,880 so I actually really respect this 177 00:11:26,880 --> 00:11:30,240 about Jonah. They wake Jonah up 178 00:11:31,440 --> 00:11:35,120 and they cast lots, basically draw straws. And 179 00:11:35,120 --> 00:11:38,720 the short straw falls to Jonah, and Jonah 180 00:11:38,720 --> 00:11:41,440 fesses up. He said, it's me, 181 00:11:42,960 --> 00:11:46,690 it's me. And there's something on the inside of us that 182 00:11:46,690 --> 00:11:50,410 Holy Spirit of God that will bring conviction, that will cause us 183 00:11:50,410 --> 00:11:54,130 to go, it's me. It's me. I'm in 184 00:11:54,130 --> 00:11:57,930 disobedience. But then there's this other element here that takes place 185 00:11:58,170 --> 00:12:01,530 that to me sounds like the Enemy because it says, 186 00:12:01,530 --> 00:12:05,370 Jonah says, throw me overboard. You know, 187 00:12:07,050 --> 00:12:10,570 sometimes when we've really, really messed up, when 188 00:12:10,570 --> 00:12:14,370 we've really missed God, one of the things 189 00:12:14,370 --> 00:12:17,450 the Enemy does love to do is tell us how bad we are. 190 00:12:18,330 --> 00:12:21,370 And he wants you to despair to the point of death. 191 00:12:21,930 --> 00:12:25,570 And he wants you to go, I don't deserve to live. I have messed this 192 00:12:25,570 --> 00:12:29,370 up so many times. I have run from God, and now I'm 193 00:12:29,370 --> 00:12:33,050 in this ditch and I'm in this mess, and I do not deserve to 194 00:12:33,050 --> 00:12:34,090 survive this. 195 00:12:37,540 --> 00:12:41,380 Throw me overboard. Throw me overboard. Let me 196 00:12:41,380 --> 00:12:44,980 tell you the difference. The convicting work of the Holy Spirit 197 00:12:45,540 --> 00:12:49,220 will go. Kurt, you missed it. Tina, 198 00:12:49,780 --> 00:12:53,460 you missed it. But if you'll return to me, I will 199 00:12:53,460 --> 00:12:57,220 return to you. If you will call on me, I will heal 200 00:12:57,220 --> 00:13:00,860 you. There is promise in the convicting work of the 201 00:13:00,860 --> 00:13:04,700 Holy Spirit. The promise of the Holy Spirit is, well, if you 202 00:13:04,700 --> 00:13:08,160 will correct this, if you will allow me to change, if you will 203 00:13:08,160 --> 00:13:11,840 repent, I will heal this area of your life. But the voice 204 00:13:11,840 --> 00:13:15,600 of the accuser of the brethren, which is Satan, will come and go, 205 00:13:15,600 --> 00:13:18,960 you're not worth saving. You are worthless. 206 00:13:19,280 --> 00:13:22,680 You are pitiful. Nobody wants you to get out of this. 207 00:13:22,680 --> 00:13:25,920 Nobody thinks you should be healed. And everybody sees what you have done. 208 00:13:29,280 --> 00:13:32,920 You're not worth it. But you are 209 00:13:32,920 --> 00:13:36,620 always worth it. God loves 210 00:13:37,100 --> 00:13:40,860 you. God loves us. Even when 211 00:13:40,860 --> 00:13:44,140 we are in the depth of the boat, when we've gone to so much 212 00:13:44,140 --> 00:13:47,980 disobedience that we're still trying to hide. When that realization comes 213 00:13:47,980 --> 00:13:51,700 of what's actually happening in our lives, it would be my hope and it would 214 00:13:51,700 --> 00:13:55,340 be my prayer that we would go, God save me. 215 00:13:56,220 --> 00:13:59,660 God help me. Not that we would despair of life. 216 00:14:00,770 --> 00:14:04,370 He is a life giver. But here's something else, guys. You know what? I 217 00:14:04,370 --> 00:14:05,010 see this 218 00:14:08,850 --> 00:14:11,730 scripture says that the men didn't want to throw him overboard. 219 00:14:12,450 --> 00:14:15,970 They didn't want to do that. They didn't want to be held accountable for this, 220 00:14:16,450 --> 00:14:20,290 for his life. And 221 00:14:20,370 --> 00:14:23,330 sometimes there have been 222 00:14:23,650 --> 00:14:27,170 situations in my office where I'm 223 00:14:27,170 --> 00:14:30,930 watching a family go down for the last 224 00:14:31,010 --> 00:14:34,610 time because they refuse to release something 225 00:14:34,610 --> 00:14:38,370 or someone that God has another plan for, that 226 00:14:38,370 --> 00:14:41,730 God has a plan of rescue that maybe they can't quite get 227 00:14:42,690 --> 00:14:46,450 under your roof or within your advice or 228 00:14:46,450 --> 00:14:50,170 whatever. When you've done everything that you can do. Sometimes we have to release 229 00:14:50,170 --> 00:14:53,620 things to God. We just have to go. God, I don't know what to do 230 00:14:53,620 --> 00:14:57,420 here. But these men, they finally reach the point 231 00:14:57,420 --> 00:15:01,020 and they're like, okay, we've got to throw him. We've got to throw him over. 232 00:15:01,420 --> 00:15:04,380 We've got to let this go. But God. 233 00:15:05,260 --> 00:15:09,100 But God. Can you say that? But God. But God. Now 234 00:15:09,100 --> 00:15:12,780 look at this. In the very last verse of the 235 00:15:12,780 --> 00:15:16,060 first chapter, it says, and I'm reading from the amplified 236 00:15:16,140 --> 00:15:19,500 version, it says, now the Lord had 237 00:15:19,500 --> 00:15:23,220 prepared, appointed, destined, 238 00:15:24,020 --> 00:15:27,300 a great fish to swallow. Jonah. 239 00:15:28,580 --> 00:15:32,020 Appointed, destined, prepared. 240 00:15:32,340 --> 00:15:35,940 Guys, if he can appoint, prepare, and destine a fish, what do you think 241 00:15:35,940 --> 00:15:39,660 he's got for you? What kind of plan do you think he has for 242 00:15:39,660 --> 00:15:43,220 your life? I listened to Pastor Wayne sharing a few weeks 243 00:15:43,220 --> 00:15:47,030 ago about God destining a woman on the other 244 00:15:47,030 --> 00:15:50,310 side of town, a medical worker, to be in front of his house at the 245 00:15:50,310 --> 00:15:53,390 very moment that he had his accident. 246 00:15:55,070 --> 00:15:58,790 God prepared that. And I think about this fish being 247 00:15:58,790 --> 00:16:01,990 on the other side of the ocean going, I don't know why. I just feel 248 00:16:01,990 --> 00:16:03,310 like I need to turn left. 249 00:16:05,870 --> 00:16:09,070 I feel like I'm just supposed to be over there for some reason. 250 00:16:09,870 --> 00:16:13,080 Guys, pay attention to that. Turn left. 251 00:16:14,440 --> 00:16:17,880 Whatever. God di. Unction. If he can prepare and 252 00:16:17,880 --> 00:16:21,720 destine and send a fish, how much 253 00:16:21,800 --> 00:16:25,440 more? How much more does he have 254 00:16:25,440 --> 00:16:29,040 for you? And then this one cracks me up. I 255 00:16:29,040 --> 00:16:32,680 so love this. Guys, you can't. As Joseph says, you can't make 256 00:16:32,680 --> 00:16:35,720 this up. Well, some. Well, never mind. 257 00:16:38,670 --> 00:16:42,110 Isn't this just like us? So much like Jonah. 258 00:16:42,990 --> 00:16:46,350 Jonah. I gotta get as far away from the Lord as I can possibly get. 259 00:16:46,990 --> 00:16:50,750 I'm gonna take my money and I'm gonna give it to these people, and I'm 260 00:16:50,750 --> 00:16:54,510 gonna go with them over to the other side. We look for a group 261 00:16:54,510 --> 00:16:58,310 to run with, don't we? When we're ready to run from the 262 00:16:58,310 --> 00:17:02,070 Lord, we don't like to do it by ourself. So we will immerse ourselves 263 00:17:02,070 --> 00:17:05,390 in people who are going in that same wrong direction. Don't you think? 264 00:17:06,040 --> 00:17:09,560 I was telling the first gathering many years ago, 265 00:17:10,280 --> 00:17:11,720 I vacuumed in 266 00:17:16,440 --> 00:17:20,120 and I was 267 00:17:20,120 --> 00:17:23,480 vacuuming a white rug, okay? 268 00:17:24,120 --> 00:17:27,960 Everything else was a brown rug, and I was vacuuming a 269 00:17:27,960 --> 00:17:31,200 white rug. And there on the white rug was a brown 270 00:17:31,200 --> 00:17:34,920 penny. And I was able to see that penny and 271 00:17:34,920 --> 00:17:38,760 go pick that penny up and vacuum around it. And me 272 00:17:39,000 --> 00:17:42,360 being the master cleaner that I am, I tossed it onto the brown 273 00:17:42,360 --> 00:17:46,160 carpet because I wasn't vacuuming there 274 00:17:46,160 --> 00:17:49,880 yet. Then I turned around and I 275 00:17:49,880 --> 00:17:53,720 couldn't find the penny. Cause it blended so 276 00:17:53,720 --> 00:17:57,360 well with the rest. And sometimes 277 00:17:57,360 --> 00:18:00,950 that's what we want, isn't it? We just want to go blend in with the 278 00:18:00,950 --> 00:18:04,630 brown carpet for a while. We don't want to stick out like a 279 00:18:04,630 --> 00:18:06,950 sore thumb in the middle of a white carpet. 280 00:18:08,550 --> 00:18:12,350 Stick out, stick out. And 281 00:18:12,350 --> 00:18:16,190 don't become deluded to think that you're actually part of that, because 282 00:18:16,190 --> 00:18:19,310 you're not. You might be laying on top of it, but you ain't part of 283 00:18:19,310 --> 00:18:22,310 it. And so 284 00:18:24,230 --> 00:18:27,750 Jonah and his buddies, the ones going as far away from God as they can 285 00:18:27,750 --> 00:18:31,410 possibly get. Now Jonah has been swallowed up by a predestined 286 00:18:31,410 --> 00:18:34,210 whale. There's the quote for next week's Facebook. 287 00:18:40,450 --> 00:18:43,250 And don't you know you find Jesus in the storm. 288 00:18:45,010 --> 00:18:47,730 I titled this next portion whale song. 289 00:18:52,930 --> 00:18:56,610 Yeah, because I'm just that warped anyway. But there he 290 00:18:56,610 --> 00:19:00,330 is. He's drowning. He's in that water. And 291 00:19:00,330 --> 00:19:03,250 who knows how long he's been in that water. It doesn't give us a time 292 00:19:03,250 --> 00:19:07,010 frame. But Jonah finds Jesus because he 293 00:19:07,010 --> 00:19:10,610 says, oh, Lord, my God. When my 294 00:19:10,610 --> 00:19:14,410 soul was fainting within me, I remembered the Lord. You think, 295 00:19:16,890 --> 00:19:20,170 I'm not making fun of Jonah. I'm making fun of all of us 296 00:19:21,290 --> 00:19:24,980 because this is what we do. Everything's great. I'm having 297 00:19:24,980 --> 00:19:28,500 a wonderful day. This is. Oh, and there's a storm. Jesus, I need you. 298 00:19:29,300 --> 00:19:30,340 And then he says, 299 00:19:33,300 --> 00:19:36,900 but as for me, I will sacrifice to you 300 00:19:37,380 --> 00:19:41,100 with the voice of thanksgiving. And I shall pay that 301 00:19:41,100 --> 00:19:42,580 which I have vowed. 302 00:19:44,900 --> 00:19:48,380 The translation. Okay, I'll go do what you asked me to do in the first 303 00:19:48,380 --> 00:19:50,420 place. That's the translation. 304 00:19:54,690 --> 00:19:58,290 I love this. I was thinking about him 305 00:19:58,370 --> 00:20:02,010 out there, you know, Jonah, let's get as far away from God as 306 00:20:02,010 --> 00:20:05,650 we can possibly get. Hove him in the waves. Draw near, 307 00:20:06,050 --> 00:20:09,770 oh, God, draw near. Send the angels, send the 308 00:20:09,770 --> 00:20:13,570 trumpets. God, get us close. I need you, Jesus, to come to my rescue. 309 00:20:13,810 --> 00:20:16,850 Suddenly we want him as close as he can get 310 00:20:17,530 --> 00:20:20,970 right now. Let me show you what the grace. I believe 311 00:20:21,050 --> 00:20:24,650 this is such a marker of grace 312 00:20:24,970 --> 00:20:28,650 in the life of Jonah. Because in chapter 2, verse 10, 313 00:20:28,650 --> 00:20:32,490 it says, so, Jonah. So the Lord 314 00:20:32,490 --> 00:20:35,610 commanded the fish, and it vomited 315 00:20:36,490 --> 00:20:38,730 Jonah up onto the dry land. 316 00:20:40,170 --> 00:20:43,930 Now, see, God could have gone just Mr. Well, just ease up next to 317 00:20:43,930 --> 00:20:47,290 the shore, open your mouth and let Jonah walk out, couldn't he? 318 00:20:48,360 --> 00:20:51,920 But that isn't what he did. Why? Cause 319 00:20:51,920 --> 00:20:54,200 sometimes our deliverance doesn't need to be pretty. 320 00:20:55,400 --> 00:20:58,840 Sometimes when we're coming out of those situations and those hard places, 321 00:20:59,240 --> 00:21:03,080 sometimes it needs to be remarkable. Sometimes we 322 00:21:03,080 --> 00:21:06,800 need to remember why Proverbs 26:11 says, As a dog 323 00:21:06,800 --> 00:21:10,560 returns to his vomit, so a fool returns to 324 00:21:10,560 --> 00:21:14,200 his folly. And sometimes it might 325 00:21:14,200 --> 00:21:18,040 take the smell of vomit to cause you to not go back there 326 00:21:18,040 --> 00:21:21,010 again. Sometimes. You know, 327 00:21:21,650 --> 00:21:25,330 one of my favorite quotes by Bishop Garlington was, I'm so grateful for 328 00:21:25,330 --> 00:21:29,010 every time that God has delivered me in the privacy of my own 329 00:21:29,010 --> 00:21:32,690 mind. But sometimes deliverance 330 00:21:32,690 --> 00:21:36,370 doesn't look like that. Sometimes it shouldn't look 331 00:21:36,370 --> 00:21:39,970 like that. Sometimes that day needs to be marked 332 00:21:40,210 --> 00:21:44,050 to remember and not go back. Amen. Well, 333 00:21:45,730 --> 00:21:49,400 I know that for me. And now it says 334 00:21:49,560 --> 00:21:53,320 chapter three, verse one. Now, the word 335 00:21:53,320 --> 00:21:57,160 of the Lord came to Jonah the second time, saying, go to Nineveh, 336 00:21:57,240 --> 00:22:01,080 the great city, and declare to it the message that I'm going 337 00:22:01,080 --> 00:22:03,400 to tell you. And it says, 338 00:22:05,000 --> 00:22:07,800 and Jonah got up and went straight way to Nineveh. 339 00:22:09,320 --> 00:22:10,520 Picture it with me, 340 00:22:16,940 --> 00:22:19,020 I'm going to Nineveh. I'm on it, God. 341 00:22:21,100 --> 00:22:22,780 Straightway to Nineveh. 342 00:22:24,940 --> 00:22:28,540 And Jonah goes to share this message 343 00:22:28,780 --> 00:22:32,620 that the Lord has given him. And there's a part of me that kind of 344 00:22:32,620 --> 00:22:36,180 wonders a little bit. See, Jonah didn't want Nineveh to be 345 00:22:36,180 --> 00:22:39,860 saved. And he says that. He says, this is the whole 346 00:22:39,860 --> 00:22:43,360 reason that I didn't wanna go. Why? 347 00:22:44,320 --> 00:22:45,840 Because Nineveh was bad. 348 00:22:47,120 --> 00:22:50,880 Nineveh was bad. They couldn't stand people 349 00:22:50,880 --> 00:22:54,480 who didn't agree with them. They didn't like people who didn't worship their same gods. 350 00:22:54,720 --> 00:22:58,560 If they had somebody come into their land that they didn't want there, 351 00:22:58,560 --> 00:23:01,200 they cut off their ears and they cut off their nose and they would send 352 00:23:01,200 --> 00:23:04,320 them back. There was human trafficking. There was 353 00:23:05,040 --> 00:23:08,760 all kinds of sexual immorality. There were murders that says there were bodies in 354 00:23:08,760 --> 00:23:12,320 the streets. They 355 00:23:12,320 --> 00:23:15,520 were a people that 356 00:23:15,840 --> 00:23:19,680 Jonah had decided weren't worth saving. 357 00:23:21,520 --> 00:23:25,160 And isn't that just how it goes sometimes? We 358 00:23:25,160 --> 00:23:28,640 pray God mercy for me and justice for them. 359 00:23:29,840 --> 00:23:33,560 When God is going, what if I have compassion on 360 00:23:33,560 --> 00:23:37,080 everybody? What if I decide? And 361 00:23:37,080 --> 00:23:40,520 so Jonah, I'm thinking about this. He doesn't want them to be 362 00:23:40,520 --> 00:23:44,060 saved. He is moving and going to do what he's called to do. You know, 363 00:23:44,060 --> 00:23:47,020 sometimes we can go and be obedient and not do it with the best heart 364 00:23:47,020 --> 00:23:50,700 that's possible. But it says that Jon went to the 365 00:23:50,860 --> 00:23:54,580 heart of the city and he began to share the message that if you don't 366 00:23:54,580 --> 00:23:58,220 repent in 30 days, this city is going to fall. And 367 00:23:58,220 --> 00:24:01,940 it says that the people began to repent. It says 368 00:24:01,940 --> 00:24:05,780 this it says, the king says, when the word reached the king of 369 00:24:05,780 --> 00:24:09,500 Nineveh. This is verse six, chapter two. When the word 370 00:24:09,940 --> 00:24:13,580 reached the king of Nineveh, he rose from his throne, he 371 00:24:13,580 --> 00:24:17,340 tore off his robe, he covered himself with sackcloth, and 372 00:24:17,340 --> 00:24:20,780 he sat in dust and in repentance. And he issued a 373 00:24:20,780 --> 00:24:24,420 proclamation. And it said, in Nineveh, by the decree of the king, 374 00:24:24,820 --> 00:24:28,220 no man, animal, herd or flock is to 375 00:24:28,220 --> 00:24:31,980 taste anything. They're not even to drink water. They 376 00:24:31,980 --> 00:24:35,780 must be covered with sackcloth. And everyone is to call on 377 00:24:35,780 --> 00:24:39,500 God earnestly. And who knows, 378 00:24:40,140 --> 00:24:43,980 God may turn in compassion and relent and 379 00:24:43,980 --> 00:24:45,980 withdraw his burning anger. 380 00:24:48,460 --> 00:24:52,140 It says in verse 10, God saw their deeds. 381 00:24:52,860 --> 00:24:56,460 It says God had compassion and he relented 382 00:24:57,100 --> 00:25:00,060 concerning what he had said would befall them. 383 00:25:01,660 --> 00:25:02,780 But here's the thing. 384 00:25:07,290 --> 00:25:11,010 Once we make up in our hearts who God needs to 385 00:25:11,010 --> 00:25:14,410 judge, it's hard for us to let go of that. 386 00:25:14,970 --> 00:25:18,610 And we'll justify it and we'll move in 387 00:25:18,610 --> 00:25:22,410 that and go, lord, these people deserve mercy and 388 00:25:22,410 --> 00:25:26,090 these people deserve judgment. But we don't get to make that call. 389 00:25:26,890 --> 00:25:30,730 Because the word of the Lord tells me that he would, that none. 390 00:25:31,060 --> 00:25:34,860 None should perish. None should perish. He's 391 00:25:34,860 --> 00:25:38,700 not slow. He's not being held back by anything other than 392 00:25:38,700 --> 00:25:41,140 his love and compassion for humanity. 393 00:25:42,980 --> 00:25:46,340 And it's interesting to me because it says 394 00:25:46,820 --> 00:25:49,140 at the beginning of chapter four, 395 00:25:50,500 --> 00:25:54,180 it says, God had compassion in chapter three and relented 396 00:25:54,180 --> 00:25:58,020 concerning the disaster he had declared. He didn't do it. 397 00:25:58,500 --> 00:26:02,340 Then it says this, but it greatly displeased 398 00:26:02,500 --> 00:26:05,220 Jonah. And he became angry. 399 00:26:06,340 --> 00:26:10,060 He became angry how, Lord, you've seen 400 00:26:10,060 --> 00:26:13,860 what they've done. You know the people's lives 401 00:26:13,860 --> 00:26:17,700 that they've destroyed. You know the pain, you 402 00:26:17,700 --> 00:26:20,740 know their wickedness, and you have had compassion 403 00:26:21,300 --> 00:26:25,060 on them. I have to wonder if maybe the 404 00:26:25,060 --> 00:26:28,620 smell of the whale vomit had dimmed just a bit in his life. 405 00:26:29,820 --> 00:26:33,540 He wasn't as willing and as open to what God 406 00:26:33,540 --> 00:26:36,860 had in that moment. But here's the cool thing. Well, 407 00:26:37,020 --> 00:26:40,780 it's not necessarily cool, says Jonah does. 408 00:26:41,020 --> 00:26:44,500 If you read the passage of Scripture, Jonah basically does what he did in the 409 00:26:44,500 --> 00:26:47,660 beginning. He takes off to the outskirts of town. 410 00:26:49,070 --> 00:26:52,830 He takes off to the outskirts of town and he sits down in the hot 411 00:26:52,910 --> 00:26:56,750 sun. And I 412 00:26:56,750 --> 00:27:00,590 will just call it sulking. That's the 413 00:27:00,910 --> 00:27:04,710 Barbie amplified version. But he sits down in the 414 00:27:04,710 --> 00:27:08,550 sun and it says he is angry to the point that he wants to 415 00:27:08,550 --> 00:27:11,630 die because the Lord has had 416 00:27:11,630 --> 00:27:15,470 compassion on these people that he's already formed 417 00:27:15,470 --> 00:27:18,590 his opinion about and probably already had 418 00:27:18,590 --> 00:27:22,390 Experiences with. And he was right. They 419 00:27:22,390 --> 00:27:26,030 were wicked. They were bad. They had no morality to 420 00:27:26,030 --> 00:27:29,670 them. They had nothing good 421 00:27:29,670 --> 00:27:33,310 to recommend them. Except when 422 00:27:33,310 --> 00:27:36,870 this king heard the word of the Lord, he did what Jonah 423 00:27:36,870 --> 00:27:40,430 didn't do. He obeyed it. He 424 00:27:40,430 --> 00:27:43,990 obeyed it. And the Lord had compassion on him. Now, this is 425 00:27:43,990 --> 00:27:46,890 interesting to me. I'm gonna get the worship team to come out. Cause I'm going 426 00:27:46,890 --> 00:27:47,770 to do this very long. 427 00:27:50,170 --> 00:27:53,690 Jonah's sitting out there. God has had compassion on these people 428 00:27:54,090 --> 00:27:57,890 that Jonah didn't want compassion extended to. Guys, 429 00:27:57,890 --> 00:28:01,690 we got to constantly check our hearts. We got to 430 00:28:01,690 --> 00:28:05,370 constantly check our hearts. Because we 431 00:28:05,370 --> 00:28:09,090 judge and we pray down curses on people 432 00:28:09,090 --> 00:28:12,850 that perhaps God is wanting to save. Maybe God's 433 00:28:12,850 --> 00:28:16,650 wanting to do something here. And that's what we see. He even has compassion 434 00:28:16,650 --> 00:28:20,190 on Jonah. Jonah's sitting out here in the dirt and the sun's beating down on 435 00:28:20,190 --> 00:28:23,270 him. And the Word tells me that the Lord caused a plant 436 00:28:23,910 --> 00:28:27,350 to grow up over Jonah and to shelter him. 437 00:28:27,590 --> 00:28:31,430 And Jonah loved that plant. It brought him comfort. 438 00:28:31,590 --> 00:28:35,350 And he loved that he now had a covering in that plant. 439 00:28:36,310 --> 00:28:39,350 That was God's grace. His mercy 440 00:28:39,830 --> 00:28:42,150 took. Son, that was acting out again. 441 00:28:44,310 --> 00:28:47,180 But then it says this. The next morning, 442 00:28:48,380 --> 00:28:50,620 the Lord sent a worm to eat the plant. 443 00:28:52,540 --> 00:28:56,260 And it ate the plant. And once again, Jonah is 444 00:28:56,260 --> 00:28:58,940 mad enough to want to die, 445 00:29:00,060 --> 00:29:03,340 to want to die over this plant. 446 00:29:04,060 --> 00:29:07,260 And God steps in and he says, 447 00:29:07,660 --> 00:29:11,100 you will grieve and you will be angry. 448 00:29:12,370 --> 00:29:15,490 This plant. But there are 449 00:29:15,650 --> 00:29:18,210 120,000 people. 450 00:29:20,050 --> 00:29:23,650 120,000 people. And one of the translations 451 00:29:23,650 --> 00:29:26,530 says that doesn't know their right hand from their left. 452 00:29:27,329 --> 00:29:30,970 They are innocent. Not because they haven't done anything, but because 453 00:29:30,970 --> 00:29:34,690 they don't know. They don't know. And God says, you 454 00:29:34,690 --> 00:29:38,290 are going to invest your anger and your frustration 455 00:29:38,610 --> 00:29:42,350 in this one thing when the picture is much 456 00:29:42,350 --> 00:29:46,110 bigger. The picture is much bigger than this 457 00:29:46,110 --> 00:29:49,910 one moment, this one thing that's happening in your world that 458 00:29:49,990 --> 00:29:53,190 casts away. You know what else it tells? This is just me. 459 00:29:55,190 --> 00:29:58,950 But I'll look at this and I go, God basically gave 460 00:29:58,950 --> 00:30:00,950 him 24 hours to sit in his mess. 461 00:30:02,950 --> 00:30:06,710 24 hours to get over the fact that we 462 00:30:06,710 --> 00:30:10,390 serve a compassionate God who would not that one would 463 00:30:10,390 --> 00:30:12,770 perish, Even that one that wish would. 464 00:30:14,050 --> 00:30:17,170 The God that we serve is slow to anger. 465 00:30:17,810 --> 00:30:21,650 And he is compassionate. And sons 466 00:30:21,650 --> 00:30:25,370 and daughters of God, and future sons and 467 00:30:25,370 --> 00:30:29,210 daughters of God that we don't know what's going to happen. If God will turn 468 00:30:29,210 --> 00:30:33,050 their lives around, if God will save them, what he will do. But what we 469 00:30:33,050 --> 00:30:36,370 do have to have is a heart posture of compassion for 470 00:30:36,370 --> 00:30:39,340 humanity. Not just part of it, 471 00:30:40,700 --> 00:30:44,140 all of it. Because God didn't say 472 00:30:44,860 --> 00:30:48,100 there are 110 souls, but those other 473 00:30:48,100 --> 00:30:51,740 10,000. You just stay mad at them or you be upset with them. 474 00:30:51,820 --> 00:30:54,220 No, God said, what if there's a bigger picture? 475 00:30:57,820 --> 00:30:59,740 You grieve over the one thing 476 00:31:02,220 --> 00:31:03,420 and grief is right, 477 00:31:06,040 --> 00:31:09,560 but there's a bigger picture. There's a bigger 478 00:31:09,560 --> 00:31:12,280 picture and we're not always going to understand it. 479 00:31:13,160 --> 00:31:16,840 But what we can know is that we serve a very, very 480 00:31:16,840 --> 00:31:20,680 good God. And he is compassionate 481 00:31:21,400 --> 00:31:24,680 and he is slow to anger. And when people 482 00:31:24,680 --> 00:31:28,520 repent, he does forgive them. So how can 483 00:31:28,520 --> 00:31:30,530 we withhold that? 484 00:31:32,930 --> 00:31:36,290 Here's the thing, guys, that was 485 00:31:36,290 --> 00:31:39,890 120,000 souls we 486 00:31:39,890 --> 00:31:40,210 have. 487 00:31:43,490 --> 00:31:46,690 We have 8.2 billion people 488 00:31:47,810 --> 00:31:51,410 on this planet, a majority of which don't know 489 00:31:51,410 --> 00:31:55,010 their right from their left. The majority of which 490 00:31:55,490 --> 00:31:59,170 that we attribute evil motives to. And they don't know Him. 491 00:31:59,970 --> 00:32:03,570 They don't know Him. And it would be 492 00:32:03,570 --> 00:32:06,810 my heart that we would search our own 493 00:32:06,810 --> 00:32:10,290 hearts and find God's compassionate nature. 494 00:32:10,610 --> 00:32:14,330 Because what the enemy wants is for all of us to rise up and be 495 00:32:14,330 --> 00:32:17,970 angry, just like Jonah was angry, but it did not serve him well. 496 00:32:18,210 --> 00:32:21,150 We find that at the end of the book of Jonah, there is no resolution. 497 00:32:22,740 --> 00:32:26,500 It isn't as if Jonah says, oh, I see it, God. Everything is 498 00:32:26,500 --> 00:32:30,340 fine now, God. And sometimes you just gotta sit 499 00:32:30,340 --> 00:32:34,180 with the discontent while you're sorting through whatever 500 00:32:34,180 --> 00:32:37,900 God wants to sort through in your life. Whatever heart posture that God 501 00:32:37,900 --> 00:32:41,660 wants to sort through in our lives. But I know this much, he 502 00:32:41,660 --> 00:32:44,740 wins. I know this much, 503 00:32:45,540 --> 00:32:47,950 I know that God wins. 504 00:32:52,350 --> 00:32:55,870 If we are going to rise up, let us rise up in compassion. 505 00:32:58,990 --> 00:33:02,270 If we are going to pray, let us pray for the souls of the lost. 506 00:33:05,870 --> 00:33:09,630 If we are going to be grieved in our soul, let us grieve that there 507 00:33:09,630 --> 00:33:13,450 are people who are dying every single day and leaving 508 00:33:13,450 --> 00:33:15,370 this planet without knowing Him. 509 00:33:17,850 --> 00:33:20,490 Let our heart be like his. 510 00:33:21,930 --> 00:33:23,690 Let us be compassionate. 511 00:33:25,210 --> 00:33:27,050 8.2 billion people. 512 00:33:30,650 --> 00:33:33,050 You know, it's not the end of the story. 513 00:33:35,610 --> 00:33:39,380 Because in the book of Nahum, about 150 514 00:33:39,380 --> 00:33:42,860 years later, those same people who had 515 00:33:42,860 --> 00:33:46,580 repented that same lineage that 516 00:33:46,580 --> 00:33:50,020 had given their hearts to God turned away and 517 00:33:50,020 --> 00:33:53,859 Nineveh was destroyed. But I'm so grateful 518 00:33:53,859 --> 00:33:55,540 for the 150 years. 519 00:33:58,020 --> 00:34:01,860 God is a God of second chances and third chances 520 00:34:02,260 --> 00:34:06,110 and fourth chances and fifth chances. And we want 521 00:34:06,110 --> 00:34:09,150 all the chances for us, but Lord cut them off here. 522 00:34:10,270 --> 00:34:13,950 But may our hearts be God of compassion, 523 00:34:14,510 --> 00:34:18,030 have compassion on us and have Compassion 524 00:34:18,270 --> 00:34:21,950 on them. That none would perish. 525 00:34:22,910 --> 00:34:26,750 That none would perish. If you'll stand 526 00:34:26,750 --> 00:34:27,390 with me, 527 00:34:30,680 --> 00:34:34,400 this is what I believe. I know that there are some people that 528 00:34:34,400 --> 00:34:38,240 are kind of that are just questioning this morning 529 00:34:38,240 --> 00:34:41,240 and have pain in your hearts, 530 00:34:41,720 --> 00:34:45,400 grief in your hearts. But what I'm going to ask you to do 531 00:34:45,400 --> 00:34:49,240 is they're going to play some songs and we're going to just come into 532 00:34:49,240 --> 00:34:50,680 the altar for a few minutes 533 00:34:53,480 --> 00:34:57,200 and we're going to lay all that at an feet. All 534 00:34:57,200 --> 00:34:59,120 of the things that go. God, I don't understand 535 00:35:02,240 --> 00:35:06,080 God. And I don't. I. I don't understand. But 536 00:35:06,080 --> 00:35:09,920 God, you are faithful and you are sovereign and you have a plan. And 537 00:35:09,920 --> 00:35:13,680 Lord, just like with Jonah, there's a bigger picture. 538 00:35:14,400 --> 00:35:18,160 There's a bigger picture. So we're going to dim the lights for just a minute 539 00:35:18,400 --> 00:35:21,280 and we're going to sing. I need you, Jesus. 540 00:35:23,010 --> 00:35:25,930 Give me Jesus. And if you have a place that you need to work out 541 00:35:25,930 --> 00:35:29,730 in your spirit, it would be my prayer that when you get up from 542 00:35:29,730 --> 00:35:33,370 this altar space, that 543 00:35:33,370 --> 00:35:37,090 your heart would be for the 8.2 billion. 544 00:35:38,050 --> 00:35:41,570 That your heart of compassion would see as 545 00:35:41,570 --> 00:35:45,250 God sees. And that we would rise in our spirit 546 00:35:45,250 --> 00:35:49,050 man and become intercessors and warriors 547 00:35:49,050 --> 00:35:52,810 in the kingdom of God that speak peace, that bring life, 548 00:35:53,610 --> 00:35:57,450 that bring truth. Because that's the only way they 549 00:35:57,450 --> 00:36:01,210 know they're right from the left. It's the only 550 00:36:01,290 --> 00:36:04,890 way is when the Lord uses you 551 00:36:05,850 --> 00:36:09,690 to bring truth to a world. To offer 552 00:36:09,690 --> 00:36:13,410 compassion to those who we've decided do 553 00:36:13,410 --> 00:36:17,110 not deserve it. So, Father, that's what we're going to do. Do. 554 00:36:19,030 --> 00:36:22,830 We're going to find a knee. We're going to 555 00:36:22,830 --> 00:36:26,430 lean into you, Father God. And all of this, Father, all of the 556 00:36:26,430 --> 00:36:30,190 rebellion, all of the things, Father God, that you see not just 557 00:36:30,190 --> 00:36:33,670 in the world, but Father, in our own hearts. God, that you would 558 00:36:33,670 --> 00:36:37,270 correct those. Bring softness back where the enemy wants our 559 00:36:37,270 --> 00:36:40,990 hearts to be hard, Father. Bring compassion where the enemy 560 00:36:40,990 --> 00:36:44,820 would love to bring judgment. And Father, I ask that you bring peace 561 00:36:45,060 --> 00:36:48,900 where the enemy would love to bring turmoil. We are your kids, 562 00:36:49,620 --> 00:36:53,380 not theirs. And so, Father, we come under your hand. 563 00:36:54,100 --> 00:36:57,900 Prince of Peace. Prince of 564 00:36:57,900 --> 00:37:01,620 Peace. Fill this place with your presence. I 565 00:37:01,620 --> 00:37:05,460 ask in Jesus name. Amen. 566 00:37:05,700 --> 00:37:06,260 Amen.