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Matt Edmundson: Well, hello,
and welcome to Crowd Church.

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My name is Matt Edmundson.

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And beside me is, is the very
funny, actually, Sadaf Beynon.

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We've just been, as you can see,
if you're watching the video,

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we've got our headphones in.

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And during the intro,
I was talking to Sadaf.

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You know, like when you talk to a kid
when they're listening to something

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with their headphones, and it's like
their volume just goes up exponentially.

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Hello!

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Sadaf Beynon: What do you want?

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That was me.

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That

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Matt Edmundson: was Sadaf.

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And I'm just going to stop laughing,
actually, just before the intro ended.

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But welcome to Crowd Church.

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Yes, so it's great that you're
here joining us New Year's Eve.

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And just for, you know, full
disclosure, if you're joining us

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live, this is what we call a non
live live stream on Crowd Church.

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There'll be people in the comments.

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Do come join us in the comments.

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Say hi, say where you're
watching this from.

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But it's non live in the sense that
Sadaf and I aren't really here.

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We're recording this
actually pre Christmas.

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Uh, mainly because everyone's taking the
week off between Christmas and New Year.

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Um, and so we do these non live
livestreams, just give people

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a chance to rest, recuperate.

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Uh, we value rest.

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We value Sabbath.

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So, uh, yes, that's what we are doing.

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So we're kind of pre recording this.

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So we will not be responding
directly to your comments.

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Verbally like we would normally
do, uh, on a live stream.

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Um, but there will be people in
the live stream so you can join

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in and say, you know, join in with
the comments, et cetera, et cetera.

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Uh, today Sadaf, what do we have today?

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Sadaf Beynon: Today we are listening to
John Harding, John Harding, and, um, he is

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going to be talking about heaven on Earth.

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Matt Edmundson: You're just making it up.

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Is that like one of those, it's a
Christian talk, I don't know what it is,

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you're going to be talking about Jesus.

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Sadaf Beynon: Something
about the New Year and

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Matt Edmundson: the New You.

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The New Year, New You thing?

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Yeah.

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Okay, have you actually
listened to the talk?

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No.

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So, are you just making all this up?

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A little bit.

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Yeah, okay, good.

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Well, we're going to find out.

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We're going to find out what this
talk is all about in just a minute.

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We have John doing the talk, then
after that, Sadaf and I will be back

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for a form of Conversation Street.

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It won't be massive, but it will be a form
of Conversation Street, which is where

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we're just going to talk about the talk.

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Yes.

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And ordinarily, we would talk about
your questions, but obviously, do

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put the questions and comments below.

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It'd be great to see them, even if
we can't respond to them directly.

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Um, but yeah, that's
what we're going to do.

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If you're new to Crowd
Church, warm welcome to you.

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It's great that you're here every Sunday.

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I say every Sunday, most Sundays because
I've just disproved my own point.

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Uh, but most Sundays we live stream our
online service 6pm here in the UK, which

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I think is 1pm Eastern Standard Time.

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What's the time in Vancouver when we do

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Sadaf Beynon: this?

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Um, it is 10am.

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10am.

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Matt Edmundson: Yeah.

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So you're eight hours on you.

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So Those sorts of times.

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If you don't know what time it is for
your time zone, go to the website, www.

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crowd.

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church, there's a little time check thing
on there which will tell you where it

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is, or when it is, but it'd be great to
meet you in the livestreams, come join

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in the comments, it'd be great to hear
what you've got to say, and also, just

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to let you know, we have on our website
information about community groups, if you

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want to join a sort of an online community
group, it'd be great to see you in And

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of course, if you've got any questions,
um, or prayer requests throughout the

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week, and you want to reach out to us,
you can do that through the website, www.

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crowd.

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church.

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In fact, if I press this button
here, does it, yeah, look at

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that, it comes up on the screen.

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Uh, you can also reach us at
social media at Crowd Church.

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And if you go to the website, www.

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crowd.

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church, you'll also find our
WhatsApp number, uh, which, uh,

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comes straight through to us.

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So yeah, definitely reach out to
us and let us know what's going on.

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Um, Yeah, so I well Christmas when
this comes out as has happened.

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Did you have a good Christmas?

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Sadaf Beynon: I'm having

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Matt Edmundson: a great one.

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I'm having a great Christmas.

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What about you watching?

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Did you have a good Christmas?

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That's right.

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Yes or no in the comments with maybe
some explanation if you feel like you're

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up to it But we do like Christmas.

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We have our Christmas jumpers
on we get I mean You and I did

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that thing, didn't we, this year?

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Your family joined our family.

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Sadaf Beynon: Yes, we did.

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We have a new

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Matt Edmundson: tradition.

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We have a new tradition.

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So every year we have this tradition.

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The first Saturday of every December we go
out and we buy the Christmas tree, right?

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And, uh, the tree then gets delivered.

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So we choose it as a family.

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We go through this sort of walk through
the park at the bottom of our road.

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It's called The Mystery.

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It's a mystery as to why it's called
a mystery, um, but, uh, we go through

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the park, we buy the tree, we choose,
well, we choose a tree, the guy opens

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up all the trees that we want to see and
then we choose the one and then they're

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going to deliver it a few hours later.

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We get the deckies down, we do the
house, we do the hot chocolate,

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but this year there was 16 of us.

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Yes

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Sadaf Beynon: there was.

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With some amazing

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Matt Edmundson: food.

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Thank you, Matt.

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Yeah, no problem.

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We had a great time.

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There was a whole bunch of us walked
down, wasn't there, to choose the tree.

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You chose a tree, you and Jeff
chose a tree, and the kids.

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It's me, Sharon and well, my daughter,
cause my two sons are, you know,

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apparently they're leaving home, living
the university life, God make it back,

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you know, um, and who else, Johnny and
Rob, uh, Jenny and Rob, yeah, Jennying, we

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came up with this new word, the new verb,
Jennying, so Jenny, uh, for years lived

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with us, she was our lodger, um, and just
lovely, uh, she got married last year.

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I walked down the aisle, which was great.

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Mm-Hmm.

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did the whole father of the bride
speech thing, which was amazing.

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Um, we all love Jenny
and her twin sister Cat.

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They're all big part of the family.

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In fact, Cat came up from London.

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Just did, she was a tree.

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She came to stay with us the weekend.

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So we have this mad Christmas tradition,
but whilst we were all together

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just having a very raucous time.

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Yeah, it was very funny.

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It was very fun.

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Plain articulate.

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Who came up with the verb?

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Jennying?

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Sadaf Beynon: Rob, I think , I think it's

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Matt Edmundson: Rob, is her husband.

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And just explain what Jennying

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Sadaf Beynon: means.

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So Jennying is basically showing off.

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Matt Edmundson: Yeah.

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Yeah.

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So if you're showing off, you're jennying.

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You're jennying.

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So we're just trying to get this
word to catch on around the world.

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Sadaf Beynon: So yeah, use
it in the new year, new word.

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Matt Edmundson: Just ask
people, are you jennying?

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You're jennying right now, aren't you?

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Which was just hysterical.

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So yes, that was our
tradition which you joined.

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So we have our trees.

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We love Christmas.

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But alas, Christmas has passed is the
time of your reading, listening to this.

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So we're looking forward to the new year.

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What are you guys doing New Year's Eve?

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Sadaf Beynon: Um, I'm coming

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Matt Edmundson: to yours.

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Are you coming to ours?

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Yeah.

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Okay, cool.

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I

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Sadaf Beynon: just invited myself.

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Matt Edmundson: It's the first
time I've heard about it,

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but it'd be good to see you.

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It would be good to see Jeff, anyway.

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The kids.

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You're more than welcome, by the way.

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Jan's coming to ours.

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Jan Birch with Tim and the kids.

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Jan's been on Crowd.

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Sue Erdin, who's been on Crowd
before, she's coming to ours,

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so yeah, it's gonna be fun.

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Fun and games, as they say.

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So all the kids are coming.

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Basically, all the kids invite
their mates and the parents

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to sort of get dragged along.

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Just hang out.

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That's normally how it works.

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Anyway, we digress.

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We talk about the fun
and frolics of Christmas.

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Uh, but yeah, absolutely.

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Hope you had a good time.

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Uh, we are going to play John's talk.

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We're going to do that right now.

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After the talk, Sadaf and I will
be back for Conversation Street.

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Don't go anywhere.

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I'm looking desperately for the button.

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There it is.

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I've not got my glasses on.

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I've no idea what's going to happen.

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I'm going to push this
and hopefully it works.

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We'll be back shortly.

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Welcome to this week's
Crowd Church service.

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We are a digital church on a
quest to discover how Jesus helps

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us live a more meaningful life.

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We are a community, a space to explore
the Christian faith, and a place

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where you can contribute and grow.

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Our service will last about an hour,
and in a few seconds we will start

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with a time of worship, after which you
will meet our hosts for our service.

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After the talk, we head into Conversation
Street, where we look at your stories

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and questions that you've posted in the
comments throughout the live stream.

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I want to invite you to connect with
us here at Crowd Church, and there are

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a few ways that you can do just that.

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Firstly, you can engage with Crowd
from any device during our live

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stream, and if you're up for it.

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Why not invite a few friends over
and experience the service together?

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You see, church is all about connecting
with God and connecting with others,

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and one of the easiest ways for you
to do that is to also join one of our

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midweek groups where we need online
together to catch up and discover

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more about the amazingness of Christ.

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You can also subscribe to
our podcast called What's.

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It's the story where we deep
dive into stories of faith and

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courage from everyday people.

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More information about all of these
things that I've mentioned can

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be found on our website at www.

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crowd.

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church, or you can reach us on
social media at Crowd Church.

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If you're new to Crowd or new to
the Christian faith and would like

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to know what your next steps are.

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to take our, well, why not head
over to our website, crowd.

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church forward slash
next for more details.

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And now, the moment you've been waiting
for is here, our online church service

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John Harding: starts.

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Right now.

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Hi there Crowd Church, a very
happy Christmas to you and a

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very happy New Year to you.

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I hope that you have had a joyful,
peaceful, Christ centred Christmas.

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Maybe, maybe not, maybe
to some extent or another.

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I think it's funny the idea that Christmas
might be entirely peaceful and joyful

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00:09:55,734 --> 00:09:57,814
as if somehow we're entitled to that.

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00:09:58,304 --> 00:10:01,834
There's so much out of our
control, out of our influence, to

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00:10:01,834 --> 00:10:05,714
ensure that our Christmas would
be entirely joyful and peaceful.

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We can't control if the relatives
are going to behave, or if the kids

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are going to have meltdowns or not.

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These things are not guaranteed to us.

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00:10:15,554 --> 00:10:19,074
But I think we can focus
on Jesus over Christmas.

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We can keep Him at the centre, and
that's what makes Christmas, Christmas.

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That's what's making all
the difference at Christmas.

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So focus on Him, don't
get distracted from Him.

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So I hope you have had a joyful
and peaceful Christmas, but most

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of all a Christ centred Christmas.

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And I hope you have a sense
of faith and hope and vision.

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for this new year ahead of us.

258
00:10:47,319 --> 00:10:50,209
Faith, hope and vision
for the new year ahead.

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00:10:50,259 --> 00:10:51,809
Are you crazy, John?

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I am barely holding on.

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00:10:53,239 --> 00:10:57,999
I have dragged myself kicking
and screaming through 2023.

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00:10:58,219 --> 00:11:00,689
I've just about fallen
over the finish line.

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Faith, hope, vision for the year ahead.

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It will be a miracle if I don't kill
someone by the end of next week.

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Well, yeah, I get it.

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Uh, life is like that, but I do think
it's really important, I think it's really

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healthy, really good for our mental well
being to take a moment at the end of

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one year, at the start of a new year, to
pause, to reflect, to give thanks, and

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to listen to God for his perspective.

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That's something I always try to do in
the space between Christmas and New Year.

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I don't want to share with you a
lens Through which you can view

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the past, present and future.

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A little framework to help you
reflect on the past and to find

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a focus for the year ahead.

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I'd really encourage you to
mull on this, maybe journal

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00:11:53,724 --> 00:11:55,464
on it over the next few days.

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I've been doing that and I've
found that really, really helpful.

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00:12:00,864 --> 00:12:07,189
So the lens, the framework is taken
from Revelation chapter 1 verse 8.

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A man called John, a church
leader, he was on an island off

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the coast of Greece called Patmos.

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He was there as a prisoner.

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This was a forced labour camp.

283
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His crime was to be a follower of Jesus.

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It was illegal in that place
and in that time to do that.

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00:12:24,219 --> 00:12:29,699
And it says in Revelation chapter 1
that John was worshipping the Lord

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with other believers on the Lord's Day.

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00:12:32,549 --> 00:12:35,209
That's when he had a
vision, a vision of Jesus.

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Jesus revealed himself to John, and
Jesus said to John, Revelation 1.

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8, Jesus said, I am the Alpha and
Omega, the one who is, the one who

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was, and the one who is to come.

291
00:12:49,400 --> 00:12:53,069
John had a vision of
Jesus as the one who was.

292
00:12:53,509 --> 00:12:56,599
The one who is and the one who is to come.

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I want to encourage you to use that as
a lens and a framework in this present

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00:13:02,944 --> 00:13:09,154
moment to help us look back at what was,
and to look ahead into what may come.

295
00:13:09,484 --> 00:13:13,724
So my first question is this,
where was God in your past year?

296
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Where was God?

297
00:13:15,609 --> 00:13:16,819
What was he doing?

298
00:13:17,149 --> 00:13:19,069
What was he doing in you?

299
00:13:19,069 --> 00:13:20,529
What was he teaching you?

300
00:13:20,539 --> 00:13:23,639
How was he transforming and refining you?

301
00:13:23,929 --> 00:13:25,959
Where was God in your past year?

302
00:13:26,329 --> 00:13:28,179
Because he is the God who was.

303
00:13:28,589 --> 00:13:31,219
He is the God who was present.

304
00:13:31,229 --> 00:13:34,829
He was God in every moment.

305
00:13:36,349 --> 00:13:42,199
I think it's easy to look back at the
year gone and make a list of good and bad.

306
00:13:42,539 --> 00:13:44,079
We might even rate the year.

307
00:13:44,169 --> 00:13:47,209
It was a good year, it was a
bad year, it was an okay year,

308
00:13:47,229 --> 00:13:48,959
it was the worst year ever.

309
00:13:49,429 --> 00:13:54,049
I've lived through enough years to know
that's always how it's going to be.

310
00:13:54,819 --> 00:14:00,069
Good stuff and bad stuff, uh, amazing
highlights, crushing lows, every year

311
00:14:00,119 --> 00:14:05,069
I've ever lived has been a mixture of
battle and breakthrough of joy and sorrow.

312
00:14:05,729 --> 00:14:09,369
So the real question, I think,
is not how was your year.

313
00:14:09,719 --> 00:14:12,549
The real question is, where was God in it?

314
00:14:13,709 --> 00:14:17,909
Because I know, I know with every
fibre and ounce of my being that,

315
00:14:18,399 --> 00:14:24,839
that God was there with you in every
moment, however dark, however painful.

316
00:14:26,729 --> 00:14:31,759
I find that really helpful, I find it
really redemptive to look back at some

317
00:14:31,759 --> 00:14:36,189
of the challenges of the past year and
say, Okay, well, Lord, where were you?

318
00:14:37,114 --> 00:14:38,484
Where were you in that?

319
00:14:38,494 --> 00:14:41,524
What were you doing in me
in the midst of all of that?

320
00:14:41,564 --> 00:14:46,384
How were you refining me and
transforming me into your image?

321
00:14:47,214 --> 00:14:50,374
Now if you've faced major trauma
or disaster in the past year,

322
00:14:50,374 --> 00:14:54,114
you might find it helpful to
reflect on that with a counsellor.

323
00:14:55,974 --> 00:14:59,584
But for most of us, in the general ups
and downs of life, I think it's really

324
00:14:59,594 --> 00:15:01,904
healthy, a really healthy process.

325
00:15:01,904 --> 00:15:06,924
I know it's helped me to just
leave some of the past in the past.

326
00:15:07,739 --> 00:15:14,499
Because he is the God who was, and
he is the God who is to come, the God

327
00:15:14,579 --> 00:15:19,029
who will be in each and every moment
and every happening of the future.

328
00:15:19,229 --> 00:15:24,029
So how does that shape how we view the
future, and how we plan for the future?

329
00:15:26,139 --> 00:15:30,349
Well, you know, it is good to set goals
and targets for the year ahead, it can

330
00:15:30,349 --> 00:15:36,089
be good to do that, nothing wrong with
it if you, like me, work In a certain

331
00:15:36,089 --> 00:15:41,719
setting you might have to set some goals
and targets and write some stuff down and

332
00:15:41,719 --> 00:15:43,989
capture a map out where you want to head.

333
00:15:44,409 --> 00:15:46,879
Over the year, what you want
to achieve in the year ahead.

334
00:15:47,579 --> 00:15:51,039
You might do that personally, you might
set some resolutions, you might be well

335
00:15:51,039 --> 00:15:55,459
like, This year ahead I'm going to be
healthier, I'm going to eat less meat, I'm

336
00:15:55,459 --> 00:15:58,579
going to train for a marathon, I'm going
to take a course, I'm going to learn a new

337
00:15:58,579 --> 00:16:01,309
skill, I'm going to save up for something.

338
00:16:01,929 --> 00:16:03,189
Not bad things to do.

339
00:16:04,039 --> 00:16:06,999
And of course, God will be with
you in all of those things,

340
00:16:07,379 --> 00:16:09,639
because that is his promise.

341
00:16:09,769 --> 00:16:12,269
He is always with us.

342
00:16:13,459 --> 00:16:17,579
But let me give you a little
twist on that today, about

343
00:16:17,589 --> 00:16:18,979
thinking about the year ahead.

344
00:16:19,494 --> 00:16:24,044
From this verse in Revelation, we've,
we've read it in Revelation chapter

345
00:16:24,044 --> 00:16:29,434
1, how Jesus is the one who was, and
who is, and the one who is to come.

346
00:16:29,874 --> 00:16:33,864
He is God of the past, of the
present, and he's God of the future.

347
00:16:34,654 --> 00:16:39,014
But there's this interesting switch that
takes place in the book of Revelation.

348
00:16:40,544 --> 00:16:45,804
And 11, John has a vision
of the very end of time.

349
00:16:46,304 --> 00:16:50,779
And in this vision of the end of time,
If you're into the book of Revelation,

350
00:16:50,779 --> 00:16:58,249
the 7th trumpet has sounded, the 7th
seal is open, at that moment, heaven

351
00:16:58,359 --> 00:17:03,549
fully descends to earth, Jesus returns
as a conquering king riding a white

352
00:17:03,559 --> 00:17:09,639
horse accompanied by heaven's armies,
heaven invades earth and all things

353
00:17:09,669 --> 00:17:12,699
are made new and perfected forever.

354
00:17:13,679 --> 00:17:17,729
There is a day that all of creation
is waiting and longing for when Christ

355
00:17:17,979 --> 00:17:19,989
will return and make all things new.

356
00:17:20,349 --> 00:17:26,089
I believe it, I long for it, the longer
I live, the more I become aware of

357
00:17:26,109 --> 00:17:30,629
the pain and the brokenness of the
world, the more I find myself praying

358
00:17:30,659 --> 00:17:36,049
for that day, a day where sin and
pain and death are finished forever.

359
00:17:37,580 --> 00:17:41,029
But this song that is sung in heaven
of Jesus, the one who was and is

360
00:17:41,289 --> 00:17:45,579
and is to come, at this point in
Revelation, chapter 11, from the

361
00:17:45,579 --> 00:17:47,319
moment that heaven invades earth.

362
00:17:47,870 --> 00:17:51,859
Verse 15 says, Revelation 15,
the kingdom of this world has

363
00:17:51,859 --> 00:17:53,459
become the kingdom of our Lord.

364
00:17:53,749 --> 00:17:55,919
At that point, this song changes.

365
00:17:56,549 --> 00:17:59,419
And now the hosts of heaven are
no longer singing to the one

366
00:17:59,419 --> 00:18:01,989
who was and is and is to come.

367
00:18:02,290 --> 00:18:05,949
Revelation 11, 17, they
sing to the one who was.

368
00:18:06,290 --> 00:18:07,489
And who is?

369
00:18:08,330 --> 00:18:09,859
Same thing in Revelation 16.

370
00:18:09,859 --> 00:18:14,639
5, the angel says to Jesus,
you who are, you who were.

371
00:18:15,209 --> 00:18:20,019
So the is to come bit gets dropped,
it's no longer needed because in

372
00:18:20,019 --> 00:18:22,519
that moment, the future has arrived.

373
00:18:22,779 --> 00:18:25,809
The future is here, the job has been done.

374
00:18:27,489 --> 00:18:31,129
And when I read that in my Daily
Readings last week, it really inspired

375
00:18:31,129 --> 00:18:32,719
me to think about the year ahead.

376
00:18:33,350 --> 00:18:37,419
To set some hopes and dreams and
aspirations for the year ahead.

377
00:18:37,419 --> 00:18:44,599
You see The big goal, God's big ultimate
outcome, is that heaven would invade

378
00:18:44,939 --> 00:18:46,819
earth forever, that's the end game.

379
00:18:47,919 --> 00:18:52,199
So in the past week or two, I've been
trying to imagine that, reflect on that,

380
00:18:52,239 --> 00:18:56,429
what might it look like for more of heaven
to invade earth over this coming year,

381
00:18:56,429 --> 00:18:58,119
to set some goals in the light of that.

382
00:18:58,419 --> 00:19:02,379
For more of heaven's peace to
invade my life, because heaven

383
00:19:02,379 --> 00:19:04,009
is a place of perfect peace.

384
00:19:04,709 --> 00:19:08,884
For more of heaven's For to
invade my life, because heaven

385
00:19:08,884 --> 00:19:10,495
is a place of perfect health.

386
00:19:10,975 --> 00:19:14,094
For more of heaven's joy to
invade my life, because heaven

387
00:19:14,145 --> 00:19:15,794
is a place of perfect joy.

388
00:19:16,145 --> 00:19:20,884
And not just for heaven to
be in me, but also through me

389
00:19:20,924 --> 00:19:22,174
and into the world around me.

390
00:19:23,334 --> 00:19:27,124
Somehow through me, more of
heaven's justice would be outworked.

391
00:19:27,125 --> 00:19:31,534
That somehow more of heaven's
provision would be released.

392
00:19:32,214 --> 00:19:38,984
Because injustice and, um, poverty
are displaced as heaven invades earth.

393
00:19:39,374 --> 00:19:40,974
Just that little bit more.

394
00:19:43,314 --> 00:19:48,455
And if you think about it, as followers
of Jesus, we are heaven to earth people.

395
00:19:49,344 --> 00:19:54,134
That's why at the core of our faith we
pray, Father in heaven, whose name is

396
00:19:54,134 --> 00:20:00,074
holy, let your kingdom Let the kingdom of
heaven, let your kingdom come to earth,

397
00:20:00,404 --> 00:20:04,814
and let your will, the will of heaven,
be done on earth as it is in heaven.

398
00:20:05,394 --> 00:20:10,494
And Jesus says to us, pray, pray that
it will be on earth as it is in heaven.

399
00:20:10,814 --> 00:20:15,644
Lord, may there be more peace in my
family as there is peace in heaven.

400
00:20:16,394 --> 00:20:21,234
Lord, may there be the release
of resourcing into Liverpool as

401
00:20:21,234 --> 00:20:22,754
we serve the poorest in our city.

402
00:20:22,754 --> 00:20:24,944
Let there be provision here on earth.

403
00:20:25,814 --> 00:20:28,124
As there is provision in heaven.

404
00:20:29,864 --> 00:20:37,620
So what might it look like this year, if
each one of us committed to living Out,

405
00:20:37,689 --> 00:20:42,139
a little bit more of heaven on earth,
bringing about a little bit more of heaven

406
00:20:42,169 --> 00:20:49,399
to earth, because he is the God who was,
and the God who is to come, but he is

407
00:20:49,929 --> 00:20:55,979
also the God who is, he is the God who
is, he is with you right now, he is the

408
00:20:55,979 --> 00:21:00,984
God in your present moment, he is with
you right now, he is with you right now.

409
00:21:01,454 --> 00:21:06,235
Right now, whatever your present
moment looks like, He is with you.

410
00:21:06,414 --> 00:21:09,104
He wants you to become
more aware of His presence.

411
00:21:09,104 --> 00:21:12,154
He wants to bring His
peace into this moment.

412
00:21:12,564 --> 00:21:14,644
His perspective into this moment.

413
00:21:14,694 --> 00:21:16,634
Just tune into Him right now.

414
00:21:16,894 --> 00:21:21,374
Just allow yourself to focus on
Him and become more aware of Him.

415
00:21:21,714 --> 00:21:23,924
If it helps you as I'm
talking, close your eyes.

416
00:21:24,514 --> 00:21:29,165
Maybe hold out your hands in front of
you as a symbol to receive from him.

417
00:21:29,705 --> 00:21:34,464
And I want to finish just by praying
for you at the start of this new year.

418
00:21:34,494 --> 00:21:36,314
A prayer of blessing.

419
00:21:36,324 --> 00:21:37,584
So let's pray, shall we?

420
00:21:37,614 --> 00:21:41,664
God, we thank you that
you are with us right now.

421
00:21:42,344 --> 00:21:44,334
You have been with us
every step of the way.

422
00:21:44,334 --> 00:21:47,734
There has never been a moment
that you have not been with us.

423
00:21:48,394 --> 00:21:53,944
The God who is with us, the God who
loves us, the God who is for us, the God

424
00:21:54,225 --> 00:21:57,594
who is present with us in every moment.

425
00:21:59,444 --> 00:22:02,274
And we thank you, Lord, that
you are with us right now.

426
00:22:03,354 --> 00:22:06,484
And Lord, as we think about the future,
we don't know what the future holds,

427
00:22:06,484 --> 00:22:08,524
but we know you hold the future.

428
00:22:08,524 --> 00:22:13,894
You are Alpha and Omega, you are Beginning
and the End, you are First and Last.

429
00:22:13,894 --> 00:22:15,774
The God who who is to come.

430
00:22:16,574 --> 00:22:22,174
And so, Lord, as we think about this year
ahead, Lord, give us a confidence that we

431
00:22:22,174 --> 00:22:27,004
might know you in every moment, that we
might live out your kingdom, that heaven

432
00:22:27,004 --> 00:22:30,734
may invade earth in us and around us.

433
00:22:30,764 --> 00:22:37,694
Heavenly Father, let your kingdom come
and let your will be done on earth as it

434
00:22:37,694 --> 00:22:40,964
is in heaven throughout this year ahead.

435
00:22:41,754 --> 00:22:43,504
In Jesus name we pray.

436
00:22:44,384 --> 00:22:44,944
Amen.

437
00:22:46,028 --> 00:22:47,358
Matt Edmundson: Well, welcome back.

438
00:22:47,387 --> 00:22:48,958
What a great talk by John.

439
00:22:49,297 --> 00:22:50,057
That was really good.

440
00:22:50,508 --> 00:22:51,987
I got lots of notes, actually.

441
00:22:52,797 --> 00:22:53,448
I don't know about you.

442
00:22:53,448 --> 00:23:00,371
I've always done this thing where Probably
until about 10 years ago, maybe 7, 8, 9.

443
00:23:00,371 --> 00:23:02,958
It was until a recent time.

444
00:23:03,398 --> 00:23:05,958
At some point in my 40s, I
decided to stop doing it.

445
00:23:05,958 --> 00:23:08,718
But every year I think about my
resolutions for the year ahead.

446
00:23:09,168 --> 00:23:12,367
And I would set these targets and
set these goals for the year ahead.

447
00:23:13,238 --> 00:23:17,918
Um, and actually listening to
John talk, I've kind of understood

448
00:23:17,928 --> 00:23:19,768
why I've stopped doing them.

449
00:23:19,768 --> 00:23:24,983
Why they kind of felt like I don't
know, they weren't quite meeting

450
00:23:24,983 --> 00:23:25,883
the mark, if that makes sense.

451
00:23:26,753 --> 00:23:28,533
Um, but yeah, so we're
going to get into that.

452
00:23:28,543 --> 00:23:30,503
Do you set, did you, do
you, while you're coughing.

453
00:23:30,933 --> 00:23:34,963
Uh, just bring it, just
come a little bit over here.

454
00:23:35,173 --> 00:23:36,263
Don't be on so much of the edge.

455
00:23:36,272 --> 00:23:36,982
There you go, don't be afraid.

456
00:23:36,982 --> 00:23:38,242
All right, there we go.

457
00:23:38,243 --> 00:23:41,522
Um, hopefully I don't smell.

458
00:23:41,523 --> 00:23:41,683
No.

459
00:23:42,123 --> 00:23:43,583
So let's talk about
New Year's resolutions.

460
00:23:43,583 --> 00:23:44,263
Have you ever set any?

461
00:23:44,933 --> 00:23:49,573
Sadaf Beynon: Um, yeah, yeah, I used
to, but I don't anymore, because it

462
00:23:49,573 --> 00:23:51,093
feels like it lasts for about a week.

463
00:23:51,623 --> 00:23:54,553
And also they're quite,
um, they last that long?

464
00:23:54,632 --> 00:23:55,032
Yeah.

465
00:23:55,103 --> 00:23:56,413
Um, if that.

466
00:23:56,453 --> 00:24:00,852
Um, I think they were also quite,
uh, I don't know how to, uh,

467
00:24:00,872 --> 00:24:04,932
how to word it actually, but
quite superficial in some sense.

468
00:24:05,213 --> 00:24:08,573
I think, um, like what John's
talked about today, there's so much

469
00:24:08,583 --> 00:24:10,293
more weight to what he's saying.

470
00:24:10,303 --> 00:24:10,613
Yeah.

471
00:24:10,633 --> 00:24:14,092
What you want to focus on for the
year ahead and what you want to think

472
00:24:14,093 --> 00:24:15,423
about and how you want to frame it.

473
00:24:16,083 --> 00:24:16,913
Um, so

474
00:24:16,963 --> 00:24:17,233
Matt Edmundson: yeah.

475
00:24:17,782 --> 00:24:18,092
Yeah.

476
00:24:18,293 --> 00:24:22,652
No, very, I like you very, I
found that I just, the traditional

477
00:24:22,652 --> 00:24:25,243
resolutions, uh, want to get fit.

478
00:24:25,623 --> 00:24:25,913
Yeah.

479
00:24:25,973 --> 00:24:26,423
Lose weight.

480
00:24:26,433 --> 00:24:27,543
Stop eating as much chocolate.

481
00:24:27,553 --> 00:24:27,933
Mm hmm.

482
00:24:28,413 --> 00:24:32,413
Um, and then he's, like you say, last
about a week and then you've just,

483
00:24:32,643 --> 00:24:34,522
you're just totally forgotten about them.

484
00:24:34,523 --> 00:24:37,653
Um, and then I started to realize,
actually, I don't need to wait

485
00:24:37,653 --> 00:24:40,683
until the other thing I find myself
doing is waiting for new year.

486
00:24:40,693 --> 00:24:41,143
So you just.

487
00:24:42,158 --> 00:24:43,948
You'd go totally nuts in December.

488
00:24:43,948 --> 00:24:45,327
Yeah.

489
00:24:45,328 --> 00:24:46,028
Okay, and then I'll

490
00:24:46,028 --> 00:24:46,820
Sadaf Beynon: make some
resolutions in the new year.

491
00:24:46,820 --> 00:24:47,238
I'm back till the 31st.

492
00:24:50,648 --> 00:24:52,408
Matt Edmundson: Well, actually,
no, you can just start right where

493
00:24:52,408 --> 00:24:54,478
you are right now, and that's
probably the best thing to do.

494
00:24:55,048 --> 00:24:58,507
So John's talked the three lenses,
the God who was, the God who

495
00:24:58,508 --> 00:25:01,628
is, and the God who is to come.

496
00:25:02,508 --> 00:25:04,928
So his first question, where
was God in you all last year?

497
00:25:05,238 --> 00:25:06,278
Got any stories about that?

498
00:25:10,273 --> 00:25:12,303
Sadaf Beynon: God was very
present in my last year.

499
00:25:12,333 --> 00:25:16,873
I have, I've had a lot of, um,
really wonderful experiences of

500
00:25:16,873 --> 00:25:21,952
reconnecting with family and old
friends, um, like throughout the

501
00:25:21,952 --> 00:25:25,013
year, I think it's been marked by
that, which has been really nice.

502
00:25:25,093 --> 00:25:29,912
Um, and, um, it really does
help you kind of keep going.

503
00:25:30,522 --> 00:25:32,282
So yeah, I would say I would

504
00:25:32,282 --> 00:25:32,632
Matt Edmundson: say that.

505
00:25:32,902 --> 00:25:34,002
Yeah, yeah, absolutely.

506
00:25:34,442 --> 00:25:38,238
It's been a, I think it's when you
look back over 2023, it's definitely

507
00:25:38,238 --> 00:25:39,998
been a mixed bag for a lot of people.

508
00:25:40,578 --> 00:25:42,348
Um, and I think I would
probably say it's fair for us

509
00:25:42,348 --> 00:25:43,468
actually, it's been a mixed bag.

510
00:25:43,468 --> 00:25:46,638
There's been some good things, there's
been some bad things, like John

511
00:25:46,638 --> 00:25:47,988
said, you could almost make a list.

512
00:25:48,008 --> 00:25:51,258
The good, the bad, and which one,
therefore, if there's more in the

513
00:25:51,258 --> 00:25:52,588
good column, it was it a good year?

514
00:25:52,627 --> 00:25:52,947
Yeah.

515
00:25:52,998 --> 00:25:53,317
Do you know what I mean?

516
00:25:53,317 --> 00:25:53,617
Yeah.

517
00:25:53,668 --> 00:25:58,928
Um, but rather reframing it and going
actually, whether it was good or whether

518
00:25:58,928 --> 00:26:02,238
it was bad, God, where were you in that?

519
00:26:02,248 --> 00:26:02,578
Mm hmm.

520
00:26:02,658 --> 00:26:03,288
And.

521
00:26:04,193 --> 00:26:07,813
I was, uh, someone, I was replying
to a text earlier, someone sent

522
00:26:07,813 --> 00:26:13,523
through, um, and she mentioned in the
text, uh, that it felt for her life

523
00:26:13,523 --> 00:26:15,563
was a lot like Groundhog Day, right?

524
00:26:15,572 --> 00:26:17,083
Like she was just
repeating the same thing.

525
00:26:17,083 --> 00:26:23,863
She was on this treadmill trying to
get a new job, um, just sick kids, um,

526
00:26:24,253 --> 00:26:28,443
trying to get a job at the same time was
in this cycle of she couldn't get a job

527
00:26:28,473 --> 00:26:29,713
cause she didn't have the experience.

528
00:26:30,323 --> 00:26:34,433
But, but no, if they gave her the job,
she would come up to speed very quickly.

529
00:26:34,463 --> 00:26:36,183
So without the job, she
can't get the experience.

530
00:26:36,183 --> 00:26:41,873
And so it was a catch 22 situation for
her, caught in the same cycle that I think

531
00:26:41,882 --> 00:26:44,273
a lot of people have found themselves
in, especially in the UK with the cost

532
00:26:44,273 --> 00:26:48,943
of living where her rent is going up and
up and up and it becomes problematic.

533
00:26:48,953 --> 00:26:51,622
She uses phrases just like I'm on a
treadmill, it feels like Groundhog Day.

534
00:26:52,503 --> 00:26:55,153
Which I thought was a really interesting
way to sort of phrase it, I don't

535
00:26:55,153 --> 00:26:56,843
know if you've ever seen, have
you seen the movie, Groundhog Day?

536
00:26:56,843 --> 00:26:57,593
Yeah, I don't

537
00:26:57,593 --> 00:26:58,183
Sadaf Beynon: like it.

538
00:26:58,303 --> 00:26:58,963
You don't like Groundhog Day?

539
00:26:58,963 --> 00:26:59,593
No, I don't.

540
00:26:59,643 --> 00:27:00,043
What's wrong with you?

541
00:27:00,243 --> 00:27:03,923
It's just, it just goes around
in circles far too many times.

542
00:27:06,523 --> 00:27:10,224
Matt Edmundson: I think there's
the point, and Sadaf is here,

543
00:27:10,224 --> 00:27:14,479
Sadaf Beynon: and you missed it, so we
have the point here, and you're way over

544
00:27:14,479 --> 00:27:14,782
Matt Edmundson: there.

545
00:27:16,943 --> 00:27:18,363
I really like the movie Groundhog Day.

546
00:27:18,863 --> 00:27:20,683
Um, and it's, it's always interesting.

547
00:27:20,683 --> 00:27:23,272
It's like, you know, a lot of the
conversations that came out of that

548
00:27:23,273 --> 00:27:27,153
movie were if you were going to have
a day like that repeat over and over

549
00:27:27,323 --> 00:27:30,252
and over again, um, what would you do?

550
00:27:30,252 --> 00:27:31,112
What would you learn?

551
00:27:31,672 --> 00:27:35,263
And what was interesting about that movie?

552
00:27:35,963 --> 00:27:38,873
I was thinking about this when,
when I was responding to that text

553
00:27:38,873 --> 00:27:40,493
message, because in a lot of ways.

554
00:27:41,188 --> 00:27:44,718
If I was living in a day that really
was truly repeating, I don't know if

555
00:27:44,718 --> 00:27:48,258
I, how would I feel about work that
I'd done that day, just not counting

556
00:27:48,258 --> 00:27:49,898
for anything, do you know what I mean?

557
00:27:50,107 --> 00:27:51,828
And then having to do
that day in, day out.

558
00:27:52,368 --> 00:27:55,987
But actually the key for me in
that film was when his heart

559
00:27:56,008 --> 00:27:57,267
changed, his life changed.

560
00:27:58,537 --> 00:27:59,978
And it was what he learned on the journey.

561
00:27:59,978 --> 00:28:03,238
And I think actually this is probably
what John's trying to say, isn't it?

562
00:28:03,418 --> 00:28:07,358
In the sense that on the
journey, on the way through.

563
00:28:08,223 --> 00:28:09,773
Over the year, God, where were you?

564
00:28:09,903 --> 00:28:10,773
What did I learn?

565
00:28:10,843 --> 00:28:11,113
Yeah.

566
00:28:11,113 --> 00:28:13,053
You know, you were with
me throughout all of that.

567
00:28:13,823 --> 00:28:15,163
I might not always have felt it.

568
00:28:15,163 --> 00:28:16,573
I might not have always understood it.

569
00:28:16,583 --> 00:28:17,282
There were good times.

570
00:28:17,282 --> 00:28:18,203
There were bad times.

571
00:28:19,143 --> 00:28:20,943
But what have I learned as a character?

572
00:28:21,282 --> 00:28:23,733
And um, I think that's a really
interesting question, you know,

573
00:28:23,863 --> 00:28:25,783
what's the, what's the big
thing God's taught you in 2023?

574
00:28:27,673 --> 00:28:31,323
Um, we've not planned for these
questions, by the way, and I appreciate

575
00:28:31,363 --> 00:28:32,343
I'm totally springing them on

576
00:28:32,343 --> 00:28:32,503
Sadaf Beynon: you.

577
00:28:32,853 --> 00:28:33,643
No, that's fine.

578
00:28:33,673 --> 00:28:34,723
Um, I'm okay with that.

579
00:28:34,763 --> 00:28:36,823
Um, yeah, I think.

580
00:28:38,058 --> 00:28:44,918
Something that I've been reflecting on
recently is, um, how I choose to obey God.

581
00:28:45,948 --> 00:28:49,178
So there'll be parts of the
Bible that I'm like, yeah, okay,

582
00:28:49,838 --> 00:28:51,038
we'll open that another day.

583
00:28:52,328 --> 00:28:55,633
But you know, it's like when, when
God asks you to do something, I want

584
00:28:55,633 --> 00:28:57,416
Matt Edmundson: to know which part, we

585
00:28:57,416 --> 00:28:58,842
Sadaf Beynon: won't record that one.

586
00:28:58,842 --> 00:28:59,198
No.

587
00:28:59,198 --> 00:29:03,957
Um, uh, so yeah, when God asks you
to do something, or if he changes the

588
00:29:03,957 --> 00:29:08,598
plans that you had, your carefully, you
know, laid out plans, and he changes

589
00:29:08,598 --> 00:29:19,293
them, um, our, our, um, Obligation,
can I say, is to obey Him, is to

590
00:29:19,293 --> 00:29:20,903
do whatever He's asking us to do.

591
00:29:20,903 --> 00:29:24,553
The outcome is not in my control.

592
00:29:25,183 --> 00:29:27,583
And it's not my problem.

593
00:29:27,923 --> 00:29:32,883
I have to obey the Lord in the here
and now, and what comes, comes.

594
00:29:33,483 --> 00:29:34,633
And the Lord's in that.

595
00:29:35,648 --> 00:29:37,108
And trusting that process.

596
00:29:37,278 --> 00:29:38,788
Yeah, it has.

597
00:29:39,058 --> 00:29:41,318
So yeah, I've been reflecting
on that, that there's, you know,

598
00:29:41,318 --> 00:29:42,718
some parts, yeah, no problem.

599
00:29:42,738 --> 00:29:46,638
Other parts, like, yeah, we'll just
open up a different part of the Bible.

600
00:29:47,148 --> 00:29:47,727
But now I'm out.

601
00:29:48,148 --> 00:29:48,298
Yeah.

602
00:29:48,817 --> 00:29:52,707
No, but I mean, like, I know, that sounds
like I'm ignoring parts of the Bible.

603
00:29:52,727 --> 00:29:53,277
I'm not.

604
00:29:53,288 --> 00:29:57,098
And the reason that I'm reflecting on
it is because I'm very aware of what's

605
00:29:57,128 --> 00:29:59,478
there and what the Lord's asking me to do.

606
00:29:59,508 --> 00:30:04,523
And I'm just, um, Taking my sweet
time, which again is not right,

607
00:30:04,523 --> 00:30:07,973
but it's something I am, to be
fair, being refined and reformed

608
00:30:08,843 --> 00:30:08,933
Matt Edmundson: Yeah.

609
00:30:08,938 --> 00:30:10,823
But to be fair, it's
what we all do, isn't it?

610
00:30:10,828 --> 00:30:11,183
It's not.

611
00:30:11,543 --> 00:30:13,793
This is not just you and
getting, and I think we're all

612
00:30:13,793 --> 00:30:15,233
very much works in progress.

613
00:30:15,233 --> 00:30:16,523
Thank, thank the Lord for grace.

614
00:30:16,553 --> 00:30:16,643
Mm-Hmm.

615
00:30:17,273 --> 00:30:21,023
. But it's an interesting point, isn't
it's, I think there is something,

616
00:30:22,313 --> 00:30:25,163
people find it really hard, I think
if you're not in church or if you're

617
00:30:25,163 --> 00:30:30,083
outside of church, to, to look at the
Bible and accept that this is God.

618
00:30:30,088 --> 00:30:30,118
Mm-hmm.

619
00:30:30,858 --> 00:30:35,358
God's Word and the actually obedience
to it is probably a smart thing to do.

620
00:30:36,278 --> 00:30:38,738
Can seem counterintuitive.

621
00:30:38,738 --> 00:30:41,518
It can seem complicated.

622
00:30:41,518 --> 00:30:44,108
It can seem like it's destroying your fun.

623
00:30:44,138 --> 00:30:49,978
It's like, there's a million reasons
why I think you wouldn't do this if

624
00:30:49,978 --> 00:30:55,338
you're outside of the church, why this
actually sounds really odd and why

625
00:30:55,368 --> 00:30:58,718
people think it leads to dogma, it leads
to intolerance and so on and so forth.

626
00:31:00,228 --> 00:31:04,278
But here's the thing that I, I
find immensely freeing about this.

627
00:31:04,718 --> 00:31:10,018
Everybody I speak to, and I'm
going through my head thinking it's

628
00:31:10,048 --> 00:31:15,178
everybody that I speak to that is
going through something in life.

629
00:31:17,918 --> 00:31:22,297
You've got to come to a point where
you realize you are not in control.

630
00:31:22,997 --> 00:31:25,398
Now that doesn't mean to say
you cannot control response.

631
00:31:26,133 --> 00:31:29,663
As in how you respond to things,
which I think you totally can, you can

632
00:31:29,663 --> 00:31:37,433
choose how you respond to things, but I
cannot control the situations in life.

633
00:31:37,433 --> 00:31:41,672
And actually, when a lot of stuff
happens, it usually happens either

634
00:31:41,672 --> 00:31:45,623
because we've been stupid, we've
made some foolish decisions or it's

635
00:31:45,873 --> 00:31:48,913
extenuating circumstances, there are
circumstances beyond our control.

636
00:31:48,913 --> 00:31:55,502
So, uh, I speak with one guy on a regular
basis, suffers from severe mental illness.

637
00:31:55,583 --> 00:32:03,853
always looking to blame somebody else
for his problems and he often uses this

638
00:32:03,863 --> 00:32:07,993
phrase I was in total control and it
freaks him out that he's not in control

639
00:32:07,993 --> 00:32:11,822
and I'm part of my conversation is you
had no control whatsoever it was an

640
00:32:11,823 --> 00:32:15,732
illusion yeah I mean yeah and the reason
I mention this is because actually when

641
00:32:15,732 --> 00:32:20,733
you when you say I think when you get
to a point of submission which says

642
00:32:21,273 --> 00:32:24,153
God Not my will, but your will be done.

643
00:32:24,153 --> 00:32:26,853
In other words, let me do
what you've told me to do.

644
00:32:26,883 --> 00:32:29,293
Focus on that as best as I can.

645
00:32:30,263 --> 00:32:33,022
Not get too caught up in the
outcome because that's, you

646
00:32:33,022 --> 00:32:35,083
know, that's your responsibility.

647
00:32:36,333 --> 00:32:39,602
That actually becomes immensely
freeing because that's the one, that's

648
00:32:39,602 --> 00:32:41,223
one thing that I can choose to do.

649
00:32:41,223 --> 00:32:43,093
I can choose to obey God.

650
00:32:43,913 --> 00:32:48,323
I can't control my life, but in obedience
to God, I can trust God for the outcome.

651
00:32:48,413 --> 00:32:48,693
Yeah.

652
00:32:48,753 --> 00:32:49,572
Does that make sense?

653
00:32:49,623 --> 00:32:50,073
Totally.

654
00:32:50,373 --> 00:32:51,332
And I think.

655
00:32:52,068 --> 00:32:55,208
There is a liberation in that
that is quite extraordinary.

656
00:32:55,208 --> 00:32:57,108
I think it's a good lesson to learn.

657
00:32:57,338 --> 00:32:58,668
Yeah, I think we're all learning it.

658
00:32:59,338 --> 00:33:00,637
If you figure it out, let us know.

659
00:33:02,438 --> 00:33:02,917
Sadaf Beynon: Watch this

660
00:33:02,917 --> 00:33:03,187
Matt Edmundson: space.

661
00:33:04,327 --> 00:33:06,118
Next week on Crowd Church.

662
00:33:07,168 --> 00:33:10,748
Sadaf gives us the five top tips on
how to fully obey God in your life.

663
00:33:13,978 --> 00:33:15,928
The following week, Jeff
is going to come on.

664
00:33:15,928 --> 00:33:16,798
Jeff is her husband.

665
00:33:18,327 --> 00:33:23,339
And tell us what really
happens behind the scenes.

666
00:33:23,339 --> 00:33:26,158
I think it's a really good
lesson, a really good lesson.

667
00:33:26,158 --> 00:33:30,948
I think for me in 2023, if I look back,
if I reflect on it, the one thing that

668
00:33:30,948 --> 00:33:35,448
I think we have grown in where I see
God really working in us as a family.

669
00:33:36,478 --> 00:33:40,238
It's actually in the whole community
aspect, so we've always, I say always,

670
00:33:40,238 --> 00:33:44,098
ever since we've been married, we've
had people live with us, um, roommates,

671
00:33:44,118 --> 00:33:49,408
lodgers, whatever you want to call them,
um, and we've always, we've always done

672
00:33:49,408 --> 00:33:54,378
extended family, and I think as, as
we're getting older and more experienced

673
00:33:54,398 --> 00:33:58,818
in life, I think we're doing extended
family better, if that makes sense, so

674
00:33:58,898 --> 00:34:02,198
when you're in your early 20s, living
with someone in their early 20s, it's

675
00:34:02,198 --> 00:34:03,328
kind of like, well, we're just mates.

676
00:34:03,898 --> 00:34:08,188
Um, but as I'm approaching 50, I've
approached 50, I've gone past 50.

677
00:34:08,188 --> 00:34:09,278
That's why I'm in 2023.

678
00:34:09,278 --> 00:34:11,168
I went straight through that number.

679
00:34:12,998 --> 00:34:17,368
Um, I think it, the thing that I've
noticed is, and one of the things I think

680
00:34:17,368 --> 00:34:23,058
God has been speaking about to me over the
last few years is, is you become much more

681
00:34:23,058 --> 00:34:24,608
of a father figure to a lot more people.

682
00:34:25,118 --> 00:34:25,508
Um.

683
00:34:26,513 --> 00:34:27,263
Which is kind of cool.

684
00:34:28,003 --> 00:34:31,553
And so just doing that extended
family an awful lot better.

685
00:34:31,693 --> 00:34:32,423
Like it was really cool.

686
00:34:32,423 --> 00:34:36,023
You guys came and joined us on
whenever it was two weeks ago,

687
00:34:36,023 --> 00:34:40,657
the first Saturday of December.

688
00:34:41,218 --> 00:34:41,818
That, I love that.

689
00:34:41,838 --> 00:34:44,978
And I think we've done that much more
intentionally in 2023 when we've had

690
00:34:44,978 --> 00:34:47,788
people connect with us a lot more
in 2023, which has been awesome.

691
00:34:47,968 --> 00:34:48,378
So yeah.

692
00:34:48,498 --> 00:34:48,717
Sadaf Beynon: Yeah.

693
00:34:48,717 --> 00:34:51,188
You and the Edmundsons are so great.

694
00:34:51,988 --> 00:34:52,028
Awesome.

695
00:34:53,018 --> 00:34:53,968
They are also very great.

696
00:34:56,438 --> 00:34:57,808
We're so humble as well.

697
00:34:58,107 --> 00:34:58,217
Yeah.

698
00:34:58,898 --> 00:35:02,168
No, honestly, the fact that I can just
invite myself over for New Year's Eve.

699
00:35:02,908 --> 00:35:03,028
Matt Edmundson: Yeah.

700
00:35:03,028 --> 00:35:03,748
No one's going to be in.

701
00:35:04,138 --> 00:35:04,532
Sadaf Beynon: They're
going to knock on the door.

702
00:35:06,083 --> 00:35:06,823
I'm still coming.

703
00:35:08,203 --> 00:35:09,453
Um, yeah, brilliant.

704
00:35:09,513 --> 00:35:10,853
You guys are wonderful like that.

705
00:35:11,393 --> 00:35:13,413
Matt Edmundson: But I think it's one of
those things that God's been teaching

706
00:35:13,413 --> 00:35:15,573
us, you know, uh, and drawn us into.

707
00:35:15,573 --> 00:35:16,492
So yeah, 2023.

708
00:35:17,172 --> 00:35:24,053
And I think if I reflect on some of the
harder times in 2023, one of the things

709
00:35:24,053 --> 00:35:28,663
that I, I won't go through them, maybe
not the right time or place, but I, I

710
00:35:28,663 --> 00:35:33,203
think one of the things that I noticed
that made the hard times harder or easier.

711
00:35:33,582 --> 00:35:34,123
Does that make sense?

712
00:35:35,103 --> 00:35:39,703
Uh, so I could, if I'm going through
something, the way I make it harder is

713
00:35:39,733 --> 00:35:47,272
to not create space to hear God, right?

714
00:35:47,283 --> 00:35:48,722
To not go, God, where are you in this?

715
00:35:48,723 --> 00:35:49,502
What are you saying?

716
00:35:49,502 --> 00:35:51,483
What's the right direction here?

717
00:35:51,943 --> 00:35:56,902
To get some sense of what God is doing
in the midst of what I'm going through.

718
00:35:56,902 --> 00:36:03,093
And I tend to find that I can become
so busy that that's very easy to.

719
00:36:05,233 --> 00:36:07,733
And before you know it, four weeks have
gone past and you're like, well, you know,

720
00:36:07,733 --> 00:36:14,173
I've prayed, I've read my Bible, but have
I, have I really had any sort of good sort

721
00:36:14,173 --> 00:36:17,583
of conversation with any quality time?

722
00:36:17,583 --> 00:36:20,862
I don't, you know, I talk to my
wife every day, you know, we connect

723
00:36:20,873 --> 00:36:25,713
every day, but if we don't, if
we don't intentionally spend time

724
00:36:25,713 --> 00:36:27,083
together, it's very superficial.

725
00:36:27,083 --> 00:36:27,753
Do you know what I mean?

726
00:36:30,543 --> 00:36:31,573
So I'd say that's another learning.

727
00:36:31,673 --> 00:36:32,023
Yeah.

728
00:36:32,333 --> 00:36:36,283
Sadaf Beynon: I've actually, I have a
list in my, in my prayer journal of things

729
00:36:36,283 --> 00:36:37,783
that I still need to talk to God about.

730
00:36:39,143 --> 00:36:43,262
I've written them down as just finding the
time and space, like you say, I need to

731
00:36:43,262 --> 00:36:46,412
go and you know, see what the Lord has for

732
00:36:46,423 --> 00:36:47,002
Matt Edmundson: me in this.

733
00:36:47,872 --> 00:36:49,173
Dave Connolly, bless him.

734
00:36:49,473 --> 00:36:51,183
If you're a regular to Crowd,
you'll know who Dave is.

735
00:36:51,183 --> 00:36:53,993
If you're not a regular to Crowd,
stay tuned in, you'll find out who he

736
00:36:53,993 --> 00:36:55,293
is because he is a regular on Crowd.

737
00:36:56,413 --> 00:36:59,863
David's a legend, founder of the church
that John is now the senior pastor of,

738
00:36:59,873 --> 00:37:07,213
Frontline Church, um, awesome guy, father
figure to me, absolute legend, took me, he

739
00:37:07,213 --> 00:37:11,562
said, Matt, let's go grab a coffee, went
and had a coffee with him last week, just

740
00:37:11,582 --> 00:37:14,523
trying to remember when it was, and he's
like, right, God's given me a word for

741
00:37:14,523 --> 00:37:20,223
you, I just was writing it down, streams,
and basically started off with, you need

742
00:37:20,223 --> 00:37:21,953
to go and find a way to create more space.

743
00:37:22,683 --> 00:37:22,933
Awesome.

744
00:37:26,003 --> 00:37:26,803
Okay, thanks, Dave.

745
00:37:26,813 --> 00:37:27,263
Appreciate that.

746
00:37:27,793 --> 00:37:28,873
It was right too.

747
00:37:28,953 --> 00:37:31,293
Um, and so, you know, thank
God for Dave Connolly.

748
00:37:31,403 --> 00:37:31,913
That's all I'm saying.

749
00:37:32,593 --> 00:37:35,582
Uh, so, uh, the screen's gone
blank and it's your computer.

750
00:37:35,583 --> 00:37:39,462
So I've no idea what the next, uh, the
God who was, uh, the God who is to come.

751
00:37:40,293 --> 00:37:41,422
So the God of the future.

752
00:37:41,723 --> 00:37:44,553
Uh, I'm looking forward to the future,
which was an interesting question.

753
00:37:44,823 --> 00:37:48,483
How can you bring more of
heaven to earth in 2024?

754
00:37:48,483 --> 00:37:51,602
Um.

755
00:37:53,923 --> 00:37:58,653
Sadaf Beynon: I think, like, reflecting
on what John was saying, my thought

756
00:37:58,653 --> 00:38:03,812
was, like, how we plan and prepare
for what's in 2024 or in the coming

757
00:38:03,813 --> 00:38:13,863
year, how much of that is actually,
um, gonna, how much of that are we

758
00:38:13,863 --> 00:38:15,423
actually taking to heaven with us?

759
00:38:16,263 --> 00:38:21,683
How much of that is here and now
the material and how much of that

760
00:38:21,703 --> 00:38:23,163
is actually character building?

761
00:38:23,173 --> 00:38:23,733
How much of it?

762
00:38:23,863 --> 00:38:24,053
Yeah.

763
00:38:24,053 --> 00:38:28,643
And I think for me personally, I would
want the majority of my planning and

764
00:38:29,033 --> 00:38:36,483
preparation to be for, um, planning
for heaven, that my character is, as

765
00:38:36,483 --> 00:38:40,053
he said earlier, like, you know, we use
the words being reformed and refined.

766
00:38:40,073 --> 00:38:41,313
I would want more of that.

767
00:38:41,758 --> 00:38:46,288
And sure, that probably welcomes
a lot of, um, lows in the new

768
00:38:46,288 --> 00:38:47,548
year, but I'm okay with that.

769
00:38:47,578 --> 00:38:53,448
As John said, you know, you, you get,
you get a mix of both and, um, yeah, so

770
00:38:53,668 --> 00:38:59,208
I have not had the time and space, the
word keeps coming up, um, to think about

771
00:38:59,208 --> 00:39:02,378
what I want to do in the new year or
what I, what, you know, I want to plan

772
00:39:02,378 --> 00:39:05,998
and prepare for, but that is something
I will definitely be taking with me.

773
00:39:07,548 --> 00:39:08,028
Um,

774
00:39:08,108 --> 00:39:08,897
Matt Edmundson: yeah, yeah.

775
00:39:09,038 --> 00:39:11,918
Yeah, that's a good question.

776
00:39:11,918 --> 00:39:13,878
I don't know.

777
00:39:14,568 --> 00:39:18,738
So I think I did say to Sharon the other
day that I wanted to take some time

778
00:39:18,738 --> 00:39:22,788
out and just really spend a few days.

779
00:39:22,887 --> 00:39:25,057
I might just go up some
hills somewhere, take a tent.

780
00:39:25,067 --> 00:39:25,938
I know it's January.

781
00:39:26,138 --> 00:39:28,298
I would go stay in a hotel or something.

782
00:39:29,493 --> 00:39:33,473
Wander around, do some long walks,
clear my head, connect with God,

783
00:39:34,103 --> 00:39:35,543
have some good conversations.

784
00:39:35,853 --> 00:39:39,743
I think if I think about 2024,
on the whole, I'm pretty excited.

785
00:39:40,053 --> 00:39:42,982
Um, I mean, you and I work together, so,
you know, the company that we're involved

786
00:39:42,982 --> 00:39:44,132
with, I see what's going to happen.

787
00:39:45,443 --> 00:39:48,844
But in my head, I see what's going
to happen, but the reality will be

788
00:39:48,844 --> 00:39:50,171
very, very different, obviously.

789
00:39:50,171 --> 00:39:54,253
Um, but I, I do, I'm excited about
as a company where we're going

790
00:39:54,253 --> 00:39:57,413
in 2024, I'm excited about Crowd
Church 2024, seeing what God does.

791
00:39:58,033 --> 00:40:05,033
Um, but I think in terms of areas
that I want to intentionally grow in,

792
00:40:05,073 --> 00:40:11,843
in 2024, the big one for me, I think
there's two things that are on my list.

793
00:40:12,223 --> 00:40:12,503
Okay.

794
00:40:14,683 --> 00:40:21,622
One is gratitude, uh, and actually, uh,
just as a short heads up in hopefully next

795
00:40:21,623 --> 00:40:24,303
year, it depends, because we've got this
new teaching series coming up, haven't we?

796
00:40:24,362 --> 00:40:25,183
The Healthy Christian.

797
00:40:25,782 --> 00:40:28,022
Uh, it may change its name, but we might
as well call it The Healthy Christian.

798
00:40:28,022 --> 00:40:29,913
What does it mean to
be a healthy Christian?

799
00:40:29,932 --> 00:40:31,603
What does wellness look
like as a Christian?

800
00:40:34,563 --> 00:40:36,133
It's not a few weeks worth of teaching.

801
00:40:36,313 --> 00:40:41,053
There's a lot, there's a lot we're going
to get into, um, and that's probably going

802
00:40:41,053 --> 00:40:44,193
to take, if I, if it doesn't take all of
the year, it's going to take most of it.

803
00:40:44,223 --> 00:40:47,163
I think we've got five parts,
that teaching series and part

804
00:40:47,163 --> 00:40:48,343
one takes us up to August.

805
00:40:48,483 --> 00:40:49,092
Uh, yeah.

806
00:40:49,092 --> 00:40:49,432
Almost.

807
00:40:49,922 --> 00:40:50,772
Sadaf Beynon: June or July, I can't

808
00:40:50,772 --> 00:40:50,842
Matt Edmundson: remember.

809
00:40:50,843 --> 00:40:51,253
Yeah, yeah, yeah.

810
00:40:51,253 --> 00:40:54,333
It's like a few weeks away from the non
live livestreams in August, I think.

811
00:40:54,393 --> 00:40:54,693
Yeah.

812
00:40:54,713 --> 00:40:55,893
So I'm looking at it.

813
00:40:55,903 --> 00:41:01,322
So, but once this is finished, there
is a really strong chance we're going

814
00:41:01,323 --> 00:41:03,553
to do a lot of stuff on gratitude.

815
00:41:04,483 --> 00:41:07,863
Um, and see where that takes us.

816
00:41:07,863 --> 00:41:10,153
It may be even a separate
devotional thing that we do.

817
00:41:10,153 --> 00:41:13,093
Cause I'm really keen to, to dig
into this topic a little bit more.

818
00:41:13,833 --> 00:41:16,483
Um, we've been writing behind the scenes.

819
00:41:16,632 --> 00:41:19,492
Not many people know this, but we've
been writing, writing, writing,

820
00:41:22,522 --> 00:41:25,913
writing, uh, we've been writing
a gratitude journal, um, that

821
00:41:25,913 --> 00:41:27,013
people will be able to buy.

822
00:41:27,438 --> 00:41:30,568
Um, specifically aimed at
Christians, um, and what does it

823
00:41:30,568 --> 00:41:32,328
mean to be people of gratitude?

824
00:41:32,928 --> 00:41:35,558
And the Bible tells us that is
God's will, that we are grateful.

825
00:41:35,568 --> 00:41:37,348
I mean, that's quite
insane, isn't it really?

826
00:41:37,968 --> 00:41:42,527
Um, so really want to grow in gratitude.

827
00:41:43,028 --> 00:41:47,438
Um, and the other thing that I really
want to spend some time looking at next

828
00:41:47,438 --> 00:41:50,038
year, maybe the second half of last year,
once I've, once I've got through the

829
00:41:50,038 --> 00:41:52,628
gratitude stuff, uh, will be identity.

830
00:41:52,628 --> 00:41:53,047
Okay.

831
00:41:53,048 --> 00:41:53,398
Okay.

832
00:41:53,578 --> 00:41:55,098
So when.

833
00:41:57,103 --> 00:42:02,513
When I first became a Christian, so we're
going back to the early nineties now.

834
00:42:03,483 --> 00:42:05,633
There was a, I don't know if you
remember this, there was a big

835
00:42:05,643 --> 00:42:06,973
thing about who you are in Christ.

836
00:42:07,192 --> 00:42:08,123
It was the big question.

837
00:42:08,313 --> 00:42:09,413
Do you remember the guy in Love Flight?

838
00:42:09,463 --> 00:42:11,930
You weren't even born then, were you?

839
00:42:11,930 --> 00:42:13,038
That

840
00:42:13,038 --> 00:42:14,145
Sadaf Beynon: was

841
00:42:14,145 --> 00:42:16,823
Matt Edmundson: a big thing
about who you are in Christ.

842
00:42:16,833 --> 00:42:21,873
The whole question about who you are in
Christ, who, what is your identity as a,

843
00:42:22,082 --> 00:42:23,793
you know, where do you find your identity?

844
00:42:25,418 --> 00:42:28,328
And so in my early Christian years,
we did this whole thing on finding

845
00:42:28,328 --> 00:42:31,898
your identity in Christ, which
was so life giving and so amazing.

846
00:42:31,898 --> 00:42:33,668
And I think it's been
so foundational for us.

847
00:42:34,038 --> 00:42:38,418
We looked at books like, um,
Victory Over the Darkness by Neal T.

848
00:42:38,418 --> 00:42:39,388
Anderson and things like that.

849
00:42:39,388 --> 00:42:41,408
Amazing books, amazing, amazing books.

850
00:42:42,158 --> 00:42:43,438
Very freeing.

851
00:42:43,928 --> 00:42:47,508
Um, especially because I, you
know, I had, I had a past that I

852
00:42:47,508 --> 00:42:48,628
became a Christian when I was 18.

853
00:42:48,628 --> 00:42:49,948
There was some stuff
I needed to deal with.

854
00:42:51,378 --> 00:42:56,408
Just amazing stuff in there, but that
was like 30 years ago, and I think one

855
00:42:56,408 --> 00:43:02,628
is going to be good to revisit it, and
two, I'm, I was really intrigued by a

856
00:43:02,638 --> 00:43:08,207
conversation with Carey Newhoff and Tim
Keller before he passed away, so Tim

857
00:43:08,207 --> 00:43:13,323
Keller, if you don't know, he passed
away recently, he was the senior pastor

858
00:43:13,323 --> 00:43:18,248
at Redeemer Church in New York, very
well known speaker, very respected,

859
00:43:18,938 --> 00:43:23,148
um, incredible, very gifted speaker.

860
00:43:23,158 --> 00:43:27,108
I mean, just loved Tim Keller
and what he stood for, man of

861
00:43:27,108 --> 00:43:28,688
integrity and so on and so forth.

862
00:43:28,688 --> 00:43:29,328
Great guy.

863
00:43:30,028 --> 00:43:32,427
He did an interview with a chap
called Kerry Newhoff, who's a

864
00:43:32,428 --> 00:43:36,878
podcaster, a pastor, no, an ex
pastor now, I think, and a podcaster.

865
00:43:37,878 --> 00:43:43,468
I was listening to Kerry interview him
and said to Tim, if you were starting

866
00:43:43,468 --> 00:43:45,228
all again today, what would you do?

867
00:43:45,818 --> 00:43:48,128
You know, if you're going to plant a
church in New York, he said he would

868
00:43:48,128 --> 00:43:49,928
spend all his time talking about identity.

869
00:43:50,388 --> 00:43:51,238
That's interesting.

870
00:43:51,318 --> 00:43:53,857
Which I thought, that's when
the light bulbs went off for me.

871
00:43:53,858 --> 00:43:59,418
And so, um, I thought it would
be good to get into that.

872
00:43:59,418 --> 00:44:01,687
So after gratitude is identity.

873
00:44:01,997 --> 00:44:02,487
Okay.

874
00:44:03,048 --> 00:44:03,717
Yeah, that's for me.

875
00:44:04,107 --> 00:44:04,567
That's for me.

876
00:44:05,847 --> 00:44:07,398
So what about you?

877
00:44:07,998 --> 00:44:09,568
What does 2024 look like?

878
00:44:09,608 --> 00:44:13,557
How is God going to use you
to bring more heaven to earth?

879
00:44:14,008 --> 00:44:16,838
Maybe for some of you, actually,
that's just taking the next

880
00:44:16,848 --> 00:44:17,978
step on your Christian journey.

881
00:44:17,978 --> 00:44:20,998
I know a lot of people watching
this don't, are unchurched people,

882
00:44:21,018 --> 00:44:24,178
don't go to church, wouldn't really
profess to have a Christian faith.

883
00:44:24,418 --> 00:44:25,078
That's cool, man.

884
00:44:25,498 --> 00:44:26,288
Uh, you're welcome here.

885
00:44:26,288 --> 00:44:29,827
We love, we love, uh, having you at Crowd
and feel free to ask your questions,

886
00:44:29,998 --> 00:44:31,527
WhatsApp us, we'd love to hear from you.

887
00:44:32,408 --> 00:44:34,988
Uh, but I also appreciate that
you are definitely on a journey.

888
00:44:35,108 --> 00:44:38,618
And so for some of you, you
may be on a scale of one to 10,

889
00:44:38,638 --> 00:44:40,388
you know, between one being.

890
00:44:41,133 --> 00:44:44,173
Uh, like, you know, the Apostle
Paul before he met Jesus, just like

891
00:44:44,173 --> 00:44:47,163
so anti faith, Richard Dawkins.

892
00:44:47,603 --> 00:44:48,932
Well, he'd maybe be
number two, number three.

893
00:44:49,063 --> 00:44:50,183
I don't think he's killing people.

894
00:44:50,293 --> 00:44:50,453
No,

895
00:44:52,143 --> 00:44:57,732
Sadaf Beynon: not that we know of.

896
00:44:57,732 --> 00:45:01,563
Matt Edmundson: So you, all the way to,
you know, number 10, the Tim Kellers

897
00:45:01,573 --> 00:45:04,753
of this world, you know, where you are
in your sort of journey, uh, in faith,

898
00:45:04,813 --> 00:45:07,243
you may be at a number two, maybe at
a number three, maybe your aim for

899
00:45:07,243 --> 00:45:08,932
2024 is to go from a three to a four.

900
00:45:09,843 --> 00:45:14,453
Maybe if you're at step seven, you
know, you like me, I'd probably put

901
00:45:14,453 --> 00:45:16,883
myself at maybe a seven on that journey.

902
00:45:16,883 --> 00:45:18,212
How do I get from a seven to a 7.

903
00:45:18,213 --> 00:45:19,523
125?

904
00:45:21,183 --> 00:45:23,882
Um, what takes us further
on, on that journey in Jesus?

905
00:45:23,882 --> 00:45:26,283
I think it's always a
really important question.

906
00:45:26,483 --> 00:45:28,113
You know, God, what, what
have you got planned?

907
00:45:28,113 --> 00:45:30,373
And I think that's
really, that's really key.

908
00:45:30,373 --> 00:45:33,813
And I like what you said Sadaf about,
I can build the material stuff.

909
00:45:35,233 --> 00:45:36,513
Can't really take that with me.

910
00:45:36,753 --> 00:45:38,623
I mean, that's a, I think
that's a side effect.

911
00:45:39,868 --> 00:45:43,968
I mean, I can't diminish the value of it,
but I, it can't be all that life's about.

912
00:45:44,468 --> 00:45:46,638
I mean, there's got to
be more to it than that.

913
00:45:46,638 --> 00:45:49,598
So wherever you are on the journey,
it's great that you're here with us.

914
00:45:50,658 --> 00:45:52,128
Anything else on what John said?

915
00:45:53,868 --> 00:45:54,598
You took way more.

916
00:45:55,097 --> 00:45:56,347
My notes here look empty.

917
00:45:56,937 --> 00:45:58,838
Sadaf's notes.

918
00:45:59,128 --> 00:46:01,818
To be fair, I typed them out on
the computer before it went off.

919
00:46:01,878 --> 00:46:02,128
Yeah.

920
00:46:02,128 --> 00:46:06,917
Sadaf Beynon: I did like how he
pointed out in Revelation 11 where.

921
00:46:07,603 --> 00:46:13,303
They are in the future, and
Jesus is the one who was and is.

922
00:46:14,223 --> 00:46:14,813
I like that.

923
00:46:14,823 --> 00:46:17,413
That's something to look
forward to, for sure,

924
00:46:17,692 --> 00:46:18,493
Matt Edmundson: which is exciting.

925
00:46:18,743 --> 00:46:19,729
You're looking forward to it?

926
00:46:19,729 --> 00:46:21,303
I mean, it's not a stupid question.

927
00:46:21,553 --> 00:46:24,072
I genuinely, I think it's a really
interesting question to ask Christians.

928
00:46:24,133 --> 00:46:25,602
Sadaf Beynon: Yeah, I absolutely am.

929
00:46:25,782 --> 00:46:26,062
Why?

930
00:46:26,752 --> 00:46:30,862
Uh, well, um, I want to
see Jesus face to face.

931
00:46:30,902 --> 00:46:32,302
I want to see my parents again.

932
00:46:32,782 --> 00:46:34,512
I want to see a lot of other.

933
00:46:35,168 --> 00:46:41,698
Friends and family that have gone before
and, um, it's going to be perfect and,

934
00:46:41,698 --> 00:46:45,838
uh, I won't have any problem loving other
people because they will also be perfect.

935
00:46:48,508 --> 00:46:51,638
So that is good because now, you
know, it's hard work sometimes.

936
00:46:52,207 --> 00:46:53,938
Um, yeah,

937
00:46:57,388 --> 00:47:00,798
Matt Edmundson: I just love, I
can just hear you saying to, uh,

938
00:47:01,638 --> 00:47:04,487
maybe I'm just going to pick on
Jeff, maybe to Jeff on an occasion.

939
00:47:04,487 --> 00:47:04,717
Jeff.

940
00:47:05,218 --> 00:47:07,408
You're going to be so much easier
to like when you're in heaven.

941
00:47:09,598 --> 00:47:13,833
Sadaf Beynon: With all my
crayons, I mustn't forget my

942
00:47:13,833 --> 00:47:16,047
Matt Edmundson: crayons.

943
00:47:16,048 --> 00:47:17,038
That's awesome.

944
00:47:17,688 --> 00:47:19,337
You know what I'm going to
do when I get to heaven?

945
00:47:19,338 --> 00:47:21,187
I'm going to slide down
those streets in my socks.

946
00:47:22,258 --> 00:47:23,108
Sadaf Beynon: Of course you are.

947
00:47:24,568 --> 00:47:26,658
Matt Edmundson: I heard a speaker say
that once and I thought, you know what?

948
00:47:26,678 --> 00:47:27,568
That is perfect.

949
00:47:27,598 --> 00:47:29,358
I just, I am so looking forward.

950
00:47:30,263 --> 00:47:33,963
Because the Bible talks about having
streets of gold, you know, paved with

951
00:47:33,973 --> 00:47:35,273
diamonds and all kinds of things.

952
00:47:35,613 --> 00:47:38,946
And I'm just so looking forward just to
sliding down those things in my socks.

953
00:47:38,946 --> 00:47:41,929
Because I think that me and
your kids will be doing it.

954
00:47:41,929 --> 00:47:42,965
Hudson and

955
00:47:42,965 --> 00:47:45,554
Sadaf Beynon: Lincoln, we're going to be

956
00:47:45,554 --> 00:47:46,953
Matt Edmundson: like, come
on Matt, let's do it again.

957
00:47:46,953 --> 00:47:48,033
Yeah, let's do it again.

958
00:47:49,163 --> 00:47:49,893
Sadaf Beynon: Yeah, that would be

959
00:47:49,893 --> 00:47:50,103
Matt Edmundson: good.

960
00:47:50,913 --> 00:47:51,933
I'm very much looking forward to heaven.

961
00:47:52,473 --> 00:47:53,483
I really am.

962
00:47:54,633 --> 00:47:56,703
But it's interesting, isn't it,
because there's this real tension.

963
00:47:57,728 --> 00:48:01,598
Between looking forward to heaven and
then not wishing your life away, uh,

964
00:48:01,608 --> 00:48:04,708
which you have to hold, uh, maybe we
should do something on that at some point.

965
00:48:04,708 --> 00:48:05,638
Yeah, it was really interesting.

966
00:48:05,658 --> 00:48:10,677
So 2024, we hope it is a
fantastic year for you.

967
00:48:11,047 --> 00:48:14,298
But more than that, whether it's good
or whether it's bad, prayer is that you

968
00:48:14,298 --> 00:48:18,018
just see God in whatever you're doing,
that your experience with God grows,

969
00:48:18,028 --> 00:48:22,318
that your journey with God grows, and
that you know him more and more in 2024.

970
00:48:22,318 --> 00:48:23,348
And I think if we all do that.

971
00:48:25,043 --> 00:48:25,943
Life's ultimately good.

972
00:48:26,233 --> 00:48:27,953
So anything else from you?

973
00:48:28,033 --> 00:48:28,743
No, I'm good.

974
00:48:29,023 --> 00:48:29,453
Awesome.

975
00:48:29,823 --> 00:48:30,693
Well, that's it for me.

976
00:48:30,693 --> 00:48:31,363
That's it from Sadaf.

977
00:48:31,363 --> 00:48:34,982
Thank you so much for joining
us on the non live live stream.

978
00:48:35,453 --> 00:48:36,403
Thanks for all your comments.

979
00:48:36,403 --> 00:48:39,612
I'm saying that assuming that people
maybe not, no one's watching this.

980
00:48:39,613 --> 00:48:41,092
I don't know.

981
00:48:41,093 --> 00:48:42,803
But if you have written a comment,
it's great that you joined in.

982
00:48:42,813 --> 00:48:45,293
Do come and join us on
our actual live stream.

983
00:48:45,383 --> 00:48:49,313
I'm thinking a week ahead of When
this is going to come out and it's

984
00:48:49,313 --> 00:48:51,143
going to be live, I'm looking at you.

985
00:48:51,783 --> 00:48:53,233
Um, it is.

986
00:48:53,273 --> 00:48:53,703
Yes.

987
00:48:53,743 --> 00:48:54,213
It is.

988
00:48:54,443 --> 00:48:54,603
Yes,

989
00:48:58,033 --> 00:48:58,893
yes it is.

990
00:48:59,203 --> 00:49:01,972
Sadaf said a production, that's
why I'm looking at Sadaf.

991
00:49:01,973 --> 00:49:05,142
So we are back to our
livestreams next week.

992
00:49:05,143 --> 00:49:08,103
I'd love to tell you who's hosting,
but I genuinely have no idea.

993
00:49:08,113 --> 00:49:09,463
It might be me, it might be somebody

994
00:49:09,463 --> 00:49:09,493
Sadaf Beynon: else.

995
00:49:09,663 --> 00:49:11,213
I think it's you, no.

996
00:49:11,403 --> 00:49:11,863
Me and Anna.

997
00:49:11,913 --> 00:49:13,413
No, you're speaking.

998
00:49:13,413 --> 00:49:14,119
I'm not.

999
00:49:14,119 --> 00:49:14,825
Not speaking.

1000
00:49:14,825 --> 00:49:16,590
No, I don't think so.

1001
00:49:16,590 --> 00:49:18,002
He is not speaking.

1002
00:49:18,313 --> 00:49:21,873
It will, uh, yeah, you'll find out,
it's all going to be very exciting.

1003
00:49:23,763 --> 00:49:25,893
Matt Edmundson: It's our attention to
detail that everybody loves, right?

1004
00:49:25,893 --> 00:49:29,183
Uh, we're just throwing off because
we're recording this in advance.

1005
00:49:30,012 --> 00:49:34,442
Um, but yeah, do come join us,
6pm, like I say, here in the UK,

1006
00:49:34,442 --> 00:49:39,583
1pm Eastern, 8, no, 10am, we said,
uh, on the, uh, eastern coast.

1007
00:49:39,663 --> 00:49:42,643
Uh, so yeah, uh, no, west coast.

1008
00:49:42,713 --> 00:49:43,203
West coast.

1009
00:49:43,203 --> 00:49:43,413
Yeah.

1010
00:49:44,823 --> 00:49:46,303
Time zones in America, right, Matthew?

1011
00:49:46,763 --> 00:49:49,253
Yes, wherever you are in
the world, do come join us.

1012
00:49:49,253 --> 00:49:50,533
We'd love to see you in the live stream.

1013
00:49:51,223 --> 00:49:52,173
It'd be great to hear from you.

1014
00:49:52,193 --> 00:49:54,803
Like I say, any questions, any
comments, you can reach us on the

1015
00:49:54,803 --> 00:49:57,173
website or through the website, www.

1016
00:49:57,202 --> 00:49:57,522
crowd.

1017
00:49:57,693 --> 00:49:58,083
church.

1018
00:49:58,463 --> 00:50:00,933
You can get a hold of us on
social media at crowdchurch.

1019
00:50:01,783 --> 00:50:01,833
org.

1020
00:50:02,188 --> 00:50:06,338
Uh, and on the website, there's also
a WhatsApp number, which you can

1021
00:50:06,518 --> 00:50:08,468
text through your prayer requests.

1022
00:50:08,758 --> 00:50:10,017
I know some people do try to call it.

1023
00:50:10,017 --> 00:50:11,138
It's not a calling number.

1024
00:50:11,138 --> 00:50:12,157
It's a texting number.

1025
00:50:12,188 --> 00:50:15,538
So just text your messages, uh,
on there and we'll try and respond

1026
00:50:15,538 --> 00:50:17,178
to you as quickly as we can.

1027
00:50:17,727 --> 00:50:18,938
Uh, but I think that's it from me.

1028
00:50:18,938 --> 00:50:19,678
I think that's it from Sadaf.

1029
00:50:19,678 --> 00:50:21,128
I think all that's left
to say is Happy New Year.

1030
00:50:21,188 --> 00:50:22,048
Yeah, Happy New Year.

1031
00:50:22,048 --> 00:50:22,888
Hope it's a good one.

1032
00:50:22,948 --> 00:50:23,968
We'll see you in 2024.

1033
00:50:25,568 --> 00:50:26,028
Bye for now.