1 00:00:08,390 --> 00:00:12,109 Good evening and welcome to Crowd Church. I'm Anna Kettle. I'm joined tonight by 2 00:00:12,109 --> 00:00:15,830 Ade. Ade, say hi to everyone. 3 00:00:16,899 --> 00:00:17,760 Good evening. 4 00:00:18,980 --> 00:00:22,533 So tonight is cool because I'm joining you from Liverpool and Ade's joining us 5 00:00:22,533 --> 00:00:26,086 from North Wales, so we're, uh, we're kind of almost multi— well, multinational, 6 00:00:26,086 --> 00:00:29,640 aren't we? 7 00:00:29,690 --> 00:00:29,949 Almost. 8 00:00:33,259 --> 00:00:36,670 Yeah. So, and how are you doing, Ade? 9 00:00:37,500 --> 00:00:42,880 I'm doing very well, thank you. Enjoying some wonderful sunshine in Wales-ish. 10 00:00:43,640 --> 00:00:48,159 It sounds like you've got a little bit more than we have. We've had a tiny bit 11 00:00:48,159 --> 00:00:52,679 today, but it's not been amazing. But anyway, apparently it's getting warmer 12 00:00:52,679 --> 00:00:57,199 next week, so I'm excited about that. So tonight we're carrying on our series 13 00:00:57,199 --> 00:01:01,719 that we've been running, um, and Dan's gonna be joining us tonight and talking, 14 00:01:01,719 --> 00:01:06,239 aren't you, Dan? Tell us a little bit about what you're speaking about. 15 00:01:06,579 --> 00:01:10,164 Um, yeah, talking about are you ever too busy to be present, too busy to be in 16 00:01:10,164 --> 00:01:13,750 the, in the moment. So I look forward to it. 17 00:01:14,040 --> 00:01:18,608 Yeah, that sounds great. I'm, um, I don't know about anyone else, but I find, 18 00:01:18,608 --> 00:01:23,176 um, busyness, like, it's a hard thing. Like, we live in such a busy busy world 19 00:01:23,176 --> 00:01:27,744 and it's been a busy day and then it's just, yeah, it's, it's a challenge. So 20 00:01:27,744 --> 00:01:32,312 I'm looking forward to this one and I think it's got, we've got lots to learn 21 00:01:32,312 --> 00:01:36,880 about this and so I'm looking forward to digging in a minute. But just to say 22 00:01:36,880 --> 00:01:41,449 before we jump into the talk, if you've got any questions, thoughts, comments as 23 00:01:41,449 --> 00:01:46,017 we go, just comment in the chat bar. We would love to hear what you think about 24 00:01:46,017 --> 00:01:50,585 what Dan's saying and if you've got any questions or you want us to unpack 25 00:01:50,585 --> 00:01:55,153 anything. We'll go to Conversation Street at the end and have a bit of 26 00:01:55,153 --> 00:01:59,721 conversation and unpack some of what Dan shares. Um, but I think we'll pass over 27 00:01:59,721 --> 00:02:04,290 to Dan and then come back to that. So Dan, over to you. 28 00:02:05,799 --> 00:02:11,140 Well, welcome this evening. Um, just get straight into it. So who's ever 29 00:02:11,140 --> 00:02:16,480 procrastinated, ever spent too much time doing that, that important task but 30 00:02:16,480 --> 00:02:21,820 your comfortable task, the known entity, because you didn't want to do the other 31 00:02:21,820 --> 00:02:27,160 thing, that other thing that may actually be better, but it's new, it's unknown, 32 00:02:27,160 --> 00:02:32,500 it's a little different. You're going to stick with your day job because you're 33 00:02:32,500 --> 00:02:37,840 busy. You've got work to do. You need to just read the next chapter of a book or 34 00:02:37,840 --> 00:02:43,180 scroll to the next video. Are we sometimes too busy to be present? Today, I'd 35 00:02:43,180 --> 00:02:48,520 like to talk about two I'll leave this out. That's fallen out. Two amazing women 36 00:02:48,520 --> 00:02:53,860 in the Bible and feet. Don't worry, hopefully it'll become clear. Before we go 37 00:02:53,860 --> 00:02:59,201 any further, let's read the main passage, and this is from the Book of Luke, 38 00:02:59,201 --> 00:03:04,541 chapter 10. Now as they went on their way, Jesus entered a village, and a woman 39 00:03:04,541 --> 00:03:09,881 named Martha welcomed him into her house. And she had a sister called Mary who 40 00:03:09,881 --> 00:03:15,221 sat at the Lord's feet and listened to his teaching. But Martha was distracted 41 00:03:15,221 --> 00:03:20,561 with much serving, and she went up to him and said, 'Lord, do you not care that 42 00:03:20,561 --> 00:03:25,901 my sister has left me to serve alone? Tell her to help me.' But the Lord 43 00:03:25,901 --> 00:03:31,241 answered her, 'Martha, Martha, you are anxious and troubled about many things. 44 00:03:31,241 --> 00:03:36,581 But one thing is necessary: Mary has chosen the good portion, which will not be 45 00:03:36,581 --> 00:03:41,921 taken away from her.' Here we are introduced to these two women, Martha and 46 00:03:41,921 --> 00:03:47,262 Mary. We know from— excuse me— another passage in John's Gospel that these two 47 00:03:47,262 --> 00:03:52,602 sisters also had a brother called Lazarus. Yes, the famous Lazarus, the one who 48 00:03:52,602 --> 00:03:57,942 was raised from the dead. So Martha is only mentioned on three occasions here 49 00:03:57,942 --> 00:04:03,282 and in John's Gospel, but just through these verses we can pick up some of who 50 00:04:03,282 --> 00:04:08,622 she was and what she did. A speculation that she may have been a widow, as she 51 00:04:08,622 --> 00:04:13,962 seems to own her own house, which was unusual at that time for a woman. And that 52 00:04:13,962 --> 00:04:19,302 she had enough money that she was able to support the disciples in some of their 53 00:04:19,302 --> 00:04:24,642 travels. Her name Martha simply means lady or mistress, so we don't get much 54 00:04:24,642 --> 00:04:29,982 from her, her name. Her sister Mary in this story is sometimes called Mary of 55 00:04:29,982 --> 00:04:35,323 Bethany. Now there are 7 Marys mentioned in the Bible. I know, I didn't realize 56 00:04:35,323 --> 00:04:40,663 there were so many. We've got Mary the mother of Jesus, Mary Magdalene, Mary of 57 00:04:40,663 --> 00:04:46,003 Bethany who was talking about today, Mary the mother of James, Mary wife of 58 00:04:46,003 --> 00:04:51,343 Clopas, who was with the cross when Jesus died, and two Marys mentioned later in 59 00:04:51,343 --> 00:04:56,683 the letters to the churches— Mary of Rome and Mary the mother of John Mark. It— 60 00:04:56,683 --> 00:05:02,023 listen, all those off, it just helps me to give me a bit of context when I'm 61 00:05:02,023 --> 00:05:07,363 reading the Bible and all these characters and locations, how they all fit 62 00:05:07,363 --> 00:05:12,703 together. And I also did learn that while studying for this talk, the that the 63 00:05:12,703 --> 00:05:18,043 name Mary means bitter, and some scholars think it was a common name at that 64 00:05:18,043 --> 00:05:23,384 time, which it seems to be because we've got 7 of them, um, because the Jewish 65 00:05:23,384 --> 00:05:28,724 people were quite bitter at being ruled over by the Romans. But back to the 66 00:05:28,724 --> 00:05:34,064 story, if you've ever heard it mentioned, the, the story of Mary and Martha in a 67 00:05:34,064 --> 00:05:39,404 Christian perspective or talks before, you may have heard people say, 'Are you a 68 00:05:39,404 --> 00:05:44,744 Mary or are you a Martha?' Meaning, are you one who is a doer a servant, someone 69 00:05:44,744 --> 00:05:50,084 who likes to be busy, or you're a Mary, someone who is prepared to listen and 70 00:05:50,084 --> 00:05:55,424 learn. And I've heard it said you want to be a Mary because that's the woman to 71 00:05:55,424 --> 00:06:00,764 follow. I want to perhaps change that simplicity of thinking. We're all 72 00:06:00,764 --> 00:06:06,104 different, and God has a plan for all of us. So let's think back about the 73 00:06:06,104 --> 00:06:11,445 passage. Martha welcomed Jesus into her house. That's a great thing to do, be a 74 00:06:11,445 --> 00:06:16,785 welcomer. And then she did stuff, she served. Which was the custom of the time. 75 00:06:16,785 --> 00:06:22,125 She sounds like an amazing host. In the next story that she's mentioned in, in 76 00:06:22,125 --> 00:06:27,465 the story of Lazarus, she also is the first to run to Jesus. She's a lady of 77 00:06:27,465 --> 00:06:32,805 action. She likes to get things done. I get the feeling she also likes to get 78 00:06:32,805 --> 00:06:38,145 things right as well, and just so. And this is no bad thing. Um, didn't someone 79 00:06:38,145 --> 00:06:43,485 need to be preparing, getting food ready. No microwaves back then, so no 80 00:06:43,485 --> 00:06:48,825 ordering a takeaway and just letting someone else sort the food. It was a task 81 00:06:48,825 --> 00:06:54,165 that had to be done, a worthwhile activity. Could I say from this passage that 82 00:06:54,165 --> 00:06:59,506 it was her gifting to serve and to help? In 1 Corinthians 12:28, Paul says, 'And 83 00:06:59,506 --> 00:07:04,846 that God has appointed to the church first apostles, second prophets, third 84 00:07:04,846 --> 00:07:10,186 teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, helping, administration, and 85 00:07:10,186 --> 00:07:15,526 various kinds of tongues. Helping is a gift. I was once helping to set some 86 00:07:15,526 --> 00:07:20,866 tables or chairs out for something similar, like at church, years back. And, um, 87 00:07:20,866 --> 00:07:26,206 I remember Dave Connolly came up to me and said, you have the gift of helps. And 88 00:07:26,206 --> 00:07:31,546 I still remember that statement now. I'd never heard of it being a gift before, 89 00:07:31,546 --> 00:07:36,886 and at the time I'm I'm not sure I knew what to think. Part of me was just, 90 00:07:36,886 --> 00:07:42,226 well, stuff needs to be done, I do it. That's always how— that's the way I was 91 00:07:42,226 --> 00:07:47,566 brought up. And I must admit, another part of me was thinking, I didn't know 92 00:07:47,566 --> 00:07:52,907 that was a gift. Isn't it a bit of a lame gift in the list? Before this, we've 93 00:07:52,907 --> 00:07:58,247 got, um, before the, like, the gift of helps, we've got healing and miracles and 94 00:07:58,247 --> 00:08:03,587 prophets and apostles. Isn't the gift of helps just something everyone should 95 00:08:03,587 --> 00:08:08,927 do. If I look around, there are lots of people here and there, and they're not 96 00:08:08,927 --> 00:08:14,267 helping. Perhaps my reaction, like Martha here, was a bit, I've got a gift and 97 00:08:14,267 --> 00:08:19,607 I'm a bit frustrated at others because they're not doing what I think should be 98 00:08:19,607 --> 00:08:24,947 done. Anyone else frustrated when you have to work and others don't? How about, 99 00:08:24,947 --> 00:08:30,287 how about the other way around? How about when you have a day off or afternoon 100 00:08:30,287 --> 00:08:35,627 off from work and you go to the shops or out to the gym or golfing, whatever is 101 00:08:35,627 --> 00:08:40,968 your fun activity, and you're there and you're thinking, what are all these 102 00:08:40,968 --> 00:08:46,308 people doing? Why, why aren't they at work in the middle of the week? Don't they 103 00:08:46,308 --> 00:08:51,648 have work to do? Looking back at yourself, coming back to the story, Jesus says 104 00:08:51,648 --> 00:08:56,988 this: Martha, Martha, you're anxious and troubled about many things. Whenever a 105 00:08:56,988 --> 00:09:02,328 name or a word is mentioned twice in the Hebrew Bible, it's done for a reason 106 00:09:02,328 --> 00:09:07,668 and to emphasize Jesus loved Martha. This was a tender greeting. He showed her 107 00:09:07,668 --> 00:09:13,008 that he cared. Martha, Martha. And he spoke, as he always does, not just to the 108 00:09:13,008 --> 00:09:18,348 immediate statement, but to the heart of the matter. Mary not working was not 109 00:09:18,348 --> 00:09:23,688 the real reason for her annoyance. Martha was anxious about many things. Have 110 00:09:23,688 --> 00:09:29,029 you ever done stuff so you don't need to do some other stuff? Let me explain. 111 00:09:29,029 --> 00:09:34,369 Have you been busy with things so that you can avoid what you really need to do? 112 00:09:34,369 --> 00:09:39,709 I know I have. I've used the gift of helps to hide from doing things I needed to 113 00:09:39,709 --> 00:09:45,049 do, to keep from, um, uh, yeah, to keep the things that being done, but, um, 114 00:09:45,049 --> 00:09:50,389 like genuine, genuine needs, but in that moment they could have waited. 'in that 115 00:09:50,389 --> 00:09:55,729 moment they should have been second. In that moment I could have been sat at the 116 00:09:55,729 --> 00:10:01,069 feet of Jesus.' Are our priorities sometimes skewed or misplaced? Well, this 117 00:10:01,069 --> 00:10:06,409 brings me on to Mary and my second point: feet. Mary was sat at Jesus' feet. 118 00:10:06,409 --> 00:10:11,749 When I've read this before, I've had the wrong image in my head of Jesus' 119 00:10:11,749 --> 00:10:17,090 teaching and Mary just being just being a woman. A woman, I thought of that era, 120 00:10:17,090 --> 00:10:22,430 not as important, naive even. The Roman and Greek culture regarded women as 121 00:10:22,430 --> 00:10:27,770 inferior, even subhuman, and that had become part of Jewish culture too. And 122 00:10:27,770 --> 00:10:33,110 this is not the image here, and this is not how Jesus thought of women. This is 123 00:10:33,110 --> 00:10:38,450 often an image brought on by, by tradition, perhaps sometimes perpetuated by the 124 00:10:38,450 --> 00:10:43,790 church. By our upbringing, by, by famous religious paintings. You know the type, 125 00:10:43,790 --> 00:10:49,130 the men all deep in thought and the woman just there's a bit of eye candy in the 126 00:10:49,130 --> 00:10:54,470 image. Here Mary was at Jesus' feet, like we hear Paul say in the book of Acts 127 00:10:54,470 --> 00:10:59,810 when he's talking about— yeah, so she was at Jesus' feet, but it, it's not— she 128 00:10:59,810 --> 00:11:05,151 wasn't just sitting there. It's like, um, in the book of Acts Paul says This is 129 00:11:05,151 --> 00:11:10,491 when he's talking about how he's raised. I'm indeed a Jew, born in Tarsus of 130 00:11:10,491 --> 00:11:15,831 Caesarea, but brought up in this city at the feet of Gamaliel, taught according 131 00:11:15,831 --> 00:11:21,171 to the strictness of our fathers' law. So I had to change this view, this image 132 00:11:21,171 --> 00:11:26,511 in my mind, how wrong I was. Mary was there to learn. She was there to hear the 133 00:11:26,511 --> 00:11:31,851 voice of the Son of God. Do you know that when Jesus went out with his 134 00:11:31,851 --> 00:11:37,191 disciples, it wasn't always just the 12 disciples. Luke says early in the 135 00:11:37,191 --> 00:11:42,531 Gospel, soon afterward he went on through the cities and villages proclaiming 136 00:11:42,531 --> 00:11:47,871 and bringing the good news of the 12. Um, sorry, we've got new software and it 137 00:11:47,871 --> 00:11:53,212 jumps around, it flows very different. So as I'm, as I'm reading my talk, I'm 138 00:11:53,212 --> 00:11:58,552 just losing myself a bit. Um, and the 12 with him. But also there was women as 139 00:11:58,552 --> 00:12:03,892 well, women who'd been healed of evil spirits and infirmities. Mary called 140 00:12:03,892 --> 00:12:09,232 Magdalene, and from whom 7 demons had gone out, and Joanna, the wife of Chuza, 141 00:12:09,232 --> 00:12:14,572 Herod's household manager, and Susanna, and many others who provided for them 142 00:12:14,572 --> 00:12:19,912 out their means. Many others. Jesus was a revolution— he, a revolutionary. He 143 00:12:19,912 --> 00:12:25,252 went against the culture of the time. We've heard before in talks how God used 144 00:12:25,252 --> 00:12:30,592 so many women, how the first people to see him raised from the, from the dead 145 00:12:30,592 --> 00:12:35,932 were women, breaking the testimony sort of tradition of the time. Mary was 146 00:12:35,932 --> 00:12:41,273 taking every opportunity to hear from the teacher, to learn this good news. All 147 00:12:41,273 --> 00:12:46,613 God's gifts are not exclusive. They're all there for all. They're for rich and 148 00:12:46,613 --> 00:12:51,953 poor, Jew and Gentile, men and women. Now Mary's role in the house was to help, 149 00:12:51,953 --> 00:12:57,293 probably same as Martha's. As people had come to stay with them and eat, but she 150 00:12:57,293 --> 00:13:02,633 prioritized the opportunity to listen. Nothing here to say that she hadn't been 151 00:13:02,633 --> 00:13:07,973 helping before, been cooking, slaving away, but now was her time to listen. 152 00:13:07,973 --> 00:13:13,313 Sometimes we have to stop and think, where are my time priorities? Often 153 00:13:13,313 --> 00:13:18,653 difficult questions, and for me it's often when I'm tired, do I want to study 154 00:13:18,653 --> 00:13:23,993 and work out what I'm going to say at a crowd, or Um, do you want to stay in bed 155 00:13:23,993 --> 00:13:29,333 a little bit better? It's important, you know. Um, we've got other stuff to do, 156 00:13:29,333 --> 00:13:34,674 whether it's working on quotes or invoicing or doing work. It all needs to be 157 00:13:34,674 --> 00:13:40,014 done. We all have busy lives, but is our busyness of life, whatever it may be, 158 00:13:40,014 --> 00:13:45,354 sometimes a distraction and not always necessarily, you know, not always a 159 00:13:45,354 --> 00:13:50,694 necessary not always a necessity at that moment. Yeah, um, I'm going to read the 160 00:13:50,694 --> 00:13:56,034 whole passage, but I'm not going to read the whole passage, but this, this next, 161 00:13:56,034 --> 00:14:01,374 the next time we meet Mary and Martha, it's mentioned in John's Gospel, and 162 00:14:01,374 --> 00:14:06,714 their brother, as I mentioned before, Lazarus, is dying. By the time Jesus gets 163 00:14:06,714 --> 00:14:12,054 to see them, it's seemingly too late and he's died. Martha is the first to come 164 00:14:12,054 --> 00:14:17,394 to meet Jesus. As I said before, she's a doer. Is that a bad thing? I don't 165 00:14:17,394 --> 00:14:22,735 think so. She gets to meet Jesus and she has a conversation with her. Let's read 166 00:14:22,735 --> 00:14:28,075 that in John chapter 11. So when Martha heard that Jesus was coming, she went 167 00:14:28,075 --> 00:14:33,415 and met him with Mary. Mary remained seated in the house. Martha said to Jesus, 168 00:14:33,415 --> 00:14:38,755 'Lord, if you'd been here, my brother would not have died.' 'But even now I know 169 00:14:38,755 --> 00:14:44,095 that whatever you ask from God, God will give you.' Jesus said to her, 'Your 170 00:14:44,095 --> 00:14:49,435 brother will rise again.' Martha said to him, 'I know he will be raised again in 171 00:14:49,435 --> 00:14:54,775 the resurrection on the last day.' Jesus said to her, 'I am the resurrection and 172 00:14:54,775 --> 00:15:00,115 the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live. And whoever 173 00:15:00,115 --> 00:15:05,455 lives and believes in me shall never die.' 'Do you believe this?' she said to 174 00:15:05,455 --> 00:15:10,796 him. 'Yes, Lord, I believe that you are the Christ, the Son of God who is coming 175 00:15:10,796 --> 00:15:16,136 into the world. I love this passage. Martha may have been busy the last time she 176 00:15:16,136 --> 00:15:21,476 was mentioned, but she knew who Jesus was. She hadn't missed who he was and is. 177 00:15:21,476 --> 00:15:26,816 She wasn't lacking in faith. "Even now I know that whatever you ask from God, 178 00:15:26,816 --> 00:15:32,156 God will give you." We don't know much about this lady, but we know that she 179 00:15:32,156 --> 00:15:37,496 knew Jesus. She knew who he was, perhaps from her last encounter. She took to 180 00:15:37,496 --> 00:15:42,836 heart Jesus' words, and she gave those things to God, those things that are 181 00:15:42,836 --> 00:15:48,176 causing her to be anxious. The final time we hear about Martha, she's serving. 182 00:15:48,176 --> 00:15:53,516 She's serving again. Jesus and the disciples are at her house, and this is where 183 00:15:53,516 --> 00:15:58,857 the next mention of feet comes in. Mary is at Jesus' feet again. This time, Not 184 00:15:58,857 --> 00:16:04,197 just listening, she breaks open an expensive vase of perfume and pours it on 185 00:16:04,197 --> 00:16:09,537 Jesus' feet and wipes it with her hair. Like Jesus showed his love for Martha 186 00:16:09,537 --> 00:16:14,877 when he spoke to her, "Martha, Martha," Mary shows her love for Jesus and 187 00:16:14,877 --> 00:16:20,217 anoints his feet. She worships him. Some of the disciples complain, "That's 188 00:16:20,217 --> 00:16:25,557 expensive, could have given that money to the poor." And Jesus knows that this 189 00:16:25,557 --> 00:16:30,897 is her expression of love. And says, "Leave her alone, for the poor you've 190 00:16:30,897 --> 00:16:36,237 always got with you, but me, not always." Why did I mention this? Some things 191 00:16:36,237 --> 00:16:41,577 are time-sensitive. Some things need to be done when we're prompted. Mary may 192 00:16:41,577 --> 00:16:46,918 have not had another chance to do this before Jesus died and ascended to heaven. 193 00:16:46,918 --> 00:16:52,258 It's good to serve, but we need to be present. We need to be listening to God's 194 00:16:52,258 --> 00:16:57,598 prompting. Perhaps some of us hide behind our activities. Lastly, I want to 195 00:16:57,598 --> 00:17:02,938 finish with this, the final mention of feet. At the Last Supper, Jesus washed 196 00:17:02,938 --> 00:17:08,278 the disciples' feet. And when he said this, and he said this in John chapter 13, 197 00:17:08,278 --> 00:17:13,618 'If I then, when your Lord and Teacher have washed your feet, you also are to 198 00:17:13,618 --> 00:17:18,958 wash one another's feet. For I have given you an example that you also should 199 00:17:18,958 --> 00:17:24,298 do.' 'As I have done to you. Truly, truly, I say to you, a servant's not greater 200 00:17:24,298 --> 00:17:29,638 than his master, nor is a messenger greater than the one who sent him. If you 201 00:17:29,638 --> 00:17:34,979 know these things, blessed are you if you do them.' Truly, truly— there's that 202 00:17:34,979 --> 00:17:40,319 emphasis again— blessed are we to serve, whatever position we're in: leading, 203 00:17:40,319 --> 00:17:45,659 following, learning, or teaching. There's no exception to service. Let's serve, 204 00:17:45,659 --> 00:17:50,999 but let's not hide behind service. Let's work, but set our priorities on his 205 00:17:50,999 --> 00:17:56,339 word and his prompting. If God prompts you or me, what's our first reaction? Can 206 00:17:56,339 --> 00:18:01,679 we make an excuse with a valid thing that needs to be done, or can we let God do 207 00:18:01,679 --> 00:18:07,019 something through us? Are you a Martha or a Mary, or are you you? Are you 208 00:18:07,019 --> 00:18:12,359 unique, created by God, born with giftings, and available for God's gifts from 209 00:18:12,359 --> 00:18:17,699 the Son of God, gifts given by his Holy Spirit? Let's learn at his feet, worship 210 00:18:17,699 --> 00:18:23,039 at his feet, and serve at the feet of others. 211 00:18:24,980 --> 00:18:29,317 Thanks, Dan. That was a great talk. I feel like you packed quite a lot of 212 00:18:29,317 --> 00:18:33,654 scripture there in quite a small talk. So yeah, thank you so much for that. Um, 213 00:18:33,654 --> 00:18:37,992 yeah, I, I just feel like there was, yeah, an awful lot in there. I'm looking 214 00:18:37,992 --> 00:18:42,329 forward to unpacking it. Ade, what did What did you think? 215 00:18:45,059 --> 00:18:50,346 I thought Dan touched on an important point that sometimes we have to listen, 216 00:18:50,346 --> 00:18:55,632 because also sometimes we have to act. And I've seen this exact passage be used 217 00:18:55,632 --> 00:19:00,917 to just justify, oh, we're just going to wait. We're just going to wait until a 218 00:19:00,917 --> 00:19:06,203 sign or until something happens. Now, we are called to listen, just like in 219 00:19:06,203 --> 00:19:11,490 Matthew 7, think about the man who built his house on the rock. He listened and 220 00:19:11,490 --> 00:19:16,776 he built his house on the rock and the rain came and it stayed. The man who 221 00:19:16,776 --> 00:19:22,062 built his house on the sand is likened to one who did, who listened but did not 222 00:19:22,062 --> 00:19:27,347 act. And we have to both listen and act and not use listening. I'm still 223 00:19:27,347 --> 00:19:32,634 listening. I'm still listening. As almost an excuse not to go and act. So I like 224 00:19:32,634 --> 00:19:37,920 how he mentioned sometimes we have to listen. 225 00:19:38,500 --> 00:19:43,545 Yeah, yeah, it's a really good point you pick out. I really liked the whole kind 226 00:19:43,545 --> 00:19:48,590 of way that you unpacked it, Dan, as like a bit of an evolution in both of the 227 00:19:48,590 --> 00:19:53,635 girls' narratives. Like, I felt like quite often I'm the same as you. I've heard 228 00:19:53,635 --> 00:19:58,680 that Martha versus Mary story a lot of times in church over the year. Years. 229 00:19:58,680 --> 00:20:03,725 And, um, you know, quite often it's like, yeah, you should be more like Mary and 230 00:20:03,725 --> 00:20:08,771 less like Martha, who's just doing, doing, doing and needs to sit at Jesus' 231 00:20:08,771 --> 00:20:13,816 feet. And that is part of that story, like, that is there, um, and I, and I get 232 00:20:13,816 --> 00:20:18,861 that point. But I think sometimes if you're, as you say, you're more of a 233 00:20:18,861 --> 00:20:23,906 natural helper, server, doer, like quite an active person— I, I am— it, it sort 234 00:20:23,906 --> 00:20:28,951 of becomes a bit polarizing. And actually, the point for me that I I really took 235 00:20:28,951 --> 00:20:33,997 away tonight, and I hadn't seen this before, was that both of those women, it's 236 00:20:33,997 --> 00:20:39,042 like an evolution in both of their lives. Like, they go from a point, one point 237 00:20:39,042 --> 00:20:44,087 with Jesus, and they move forwards, and both of this growth in both of them, 238 00:20:44,087 --> 00:20:49,132 like, from where they are at the beginning of that story to where they end up, 239 00:20:49,132 --> 00:20:54,177 which is, you know, Mary goes from sitting and wanting to learn at Jesus' feet 240 00:20:54,177 --> 00:20:59,222 and then She goes to a place where she worships extravagantly and kind of 241 00:20:59,222 --> 00:21:04,268 blesses Jesus with the oil. And it's extravagant worship, isn't it? And she 242 00:21:04,268 --> 00:21:09,313 really wants to give her all, her very best. And so there's growth path there. 243 00:21:09,313 --> 00:21:14,358 But then equally with Martha, it's like I'd never seen that before, that idea 244 00:21:14,358 --> 00:21:19,403 that she goes from being kind of busy, busy, busy, too busy serving Jesus, is 245 00:21:19,403 --> 00:21:24,448 challenged, and then the next time she encounters Jesus, she's on the lookout 246 00:21:24,448 --> 00:21:29,494 for him. So, at Lazarus's house, she's looking for him. She's expectant for him 247 00:21:29,494 --> 00:21:34,539 to turn up and do something. And actually, she's quite disappointed when he 248 00:21:34,539 --> 00:21:39,584 turns up and he doesn't arrive in time, and he doesn't do what she thinks he 249 00:21:39,584 --> 00:21:44,629 should do, which is heal her brother before he dies. And so, yeah, I like the 250 00:21:44,629 --> 00:21:49,674 fact that there's a growth in both of them. Like from spending time with Jesus. 251 00:21:49,674 --> 00:21:54,720 And that really hit me tonight. I thought that's really cool. 252 00:21:55,430 --> 00:22:00,300 And they both, um, I didn't read it there, but they both have exactly the same 253 00:22:00,300 --> 00:22:05,170 reaction. And they both say the same thing. They say, Jesus, if you were here, 254 00:22:05,170 --> 00:22:10,039 he wouldn't have died. They both know the, the, the power, you know. They both 255 00:22:10,039 --> 00:22:14,910 know this Jesus, that he was, he was a healer. He was able to. Yeah. 256 00:22:15,609 --> 00:22:19,720 And I love that. I love that part. I know this isn't totally what we're supposed 257 00:22:19,720 --> 00:22:23,831 to be talking about tonight, but I love that detail in the story because I feel 258 00:22:23,831 --> 00:22:27,942 like, haven't we, anyone who's been a Christian for any length of time, or maybe 259 00:22:27,942 --> 00:22:32,053 walked away from Christianity because, like, you know, I know lots of people who 260 00:22:32,053 --> 00:22:36,164 have because they've expected something of Jesus. They've expected God to turn 261 00:22:36,164 --> 00:22:40,275 up in their lives in a certain way, maybe give them healing for illness or you 262 00:22:40,275 --> 00:22:44,386 know, someone who's unwell, or, you know, to do a certain thing or answer a 263 00:22:44,386 --> 00:22:48,497 prayer in a certain way, and it's not worked out the way they expected. And 264 00:22:48,497 --> 00:22:52,608 I've, I've sure been there as well. I'm sure you've got examples. Um, and it 265 00:22:52,608 --> 00:22:56,719 makes you think, oh, if only you turned up, if only you'd done that, Jesus. And 266 00:22:56,719 --> 00:23:00,829 sometimes people walk away. 267 00:23:01,049 --> 00:23:01,309 Yeah. 268 00:23:01,450 --> 00:23:05,856 And a bit out of that disappointment. And I think just stick around and see what 269 00:23:05,856 --> 00:23:10,263 God's gonna do, because it may not look the way you think it should or you think 270 00:23:10,263 --> 00:23:14,670 it will, but like what Jesus does in the situation is so much bigger than, you 271 00:23:14,670 --> 00:23:19,076 know. But she still has that expectation, like, "You should have come and healed 272 00:23:19,076 --> 00:23:23,483 my brother, but I still believe you're the Son of God and I still believe you 273 00:23:23,483 --> 00:23:27,889 can do something even now, even in this kind of worst case scenario where my 274 00:23:27,889 --> 00:23:32,296 brother's already died. I still know who you are." And I love that. Kind of just 275 00:23:32,296 --> 00:23:36,703 heart attitude, which kind of opens up space for Jesus to do this amazing 276 00:23:36,703 --> 00:23:41,109 miracle. 277 00:23:41,500 --> 00:23:46,579 Yeah, yeah, I love that. Um, just her great love, a great love for her brother, 278 00:23:46,579 --> 00:23:51,660 for, for her sister, and for, and for Jesus. It's just apparent, isn't it? Um, 279 00:23:51,660 --> 00:23:56,740 and like you said before, it's so many times it's, oh, Martha, she's just 280 00:23:56,740 --> 00:24:01,819 serving and doing. And she does, but she was listening as well. You know, 281 00:24:01,819 --> 00:24:06,899 there's not many people in the Bible that realized that Jesus was the Son of God 282 00:24:06,899 --> 00:24:11,980 straight away and said it out, you know, "Who are you? Who do you think I am?" 283 00:24:11,980 --> 00:24:17,059 But she, yeah, she knew who this man was. 284 00:24:17,319 --> 00:24:22,107 Yeah, it's like she's obviously intimately encountered Jesus, and that's why, 285 00:24:22,107 --> 00:24:26,895 yeah, she knows him because she's met him, like, and it's been personal. I'm 286 00:24:26,895 --> 00:24:31,683 just having a quick look at the feed, and there's a few comments coming through. 287 00:24:31,683 --> 00:24:36,471 Which is great. So we've got a few people— actually, we should start by saying 288 00:24:36,471 --> 00:24:41,259 happy birthday to Erica. Erica's on the feed tonight and it's her birthday, so 289 00:24:41,259 --> 00:24:46,048 happy birthday, Erica. Um, we've also got Jamie and Catherine and Mia on the 290 00:24:46,048 --> 00:24:50,836 vertical stream. Um, we've got Ellis, Alicia, and Sonia all watching on the feed 291 00:24:50,836 --> 00:24:55,624 as well. Alicia said she recently did a Bible study on overwhelm, and Martha and 292 00:24:55,624 --> 00:25:00,412 Mary was kind of came up as a story in that. And I think that's, that's a really 293 00:25:00,412 --> 00:25:05,200 good point, that there's a lot about that sense of like, you know, I suppose 294 00:25:05,200 --> 00:25:09,988 culture today, it's so easy to get in that sense of overwhelm, isn't it? We're 295 00:25:09,988 --> 00:25:14,776 like— and you touched on this, Dan— like, we're busy, busy, busy, and, um, we 296 00:25:14,776 --> 00:25:19,563 can, yeah, quite easily feel overwhelmed. Like, there's lots of things coming at 297 00:25:19,563 --> 00:25:24,351 us from all angles, and, and you touched a bit on this, and It's a real 298 00:25:24,351 --> 00:25:29,139 discipline, isn't it, to sit at Jesus' feet and choose to do that when there's 299 00:25:29,139 --> 00:25:33,927 so many things vying for our time, so many distractions, so many— and, and it 300 00:25:33,927 --> 00:25:38,715 can be overwhelming and it can feel like another thing to do. But I think what 301 00:25:38,715 --> 00:25:43,503 comes out in this story is that, like, spending time with Jesus isn't another 302 00:25:43,503 --> 00:25:48,291 thing on the to-do list. It's the thing that makes the to-do list, like, 303 00:25:48,291 --> 00:25:53,079 dramatically different. It's like, it's should be the top, really, because yeah, 304 00:25:53,079 --> 00:25:57,867 sometimes you can feel like, oh, I need to spend time with God or speak to God 305 00:25:57,867 --> 00:26:02,655 or do my quiet time or spend some time praying, and it can feel like another 306 00:26:02,655 --> 00:26:07,443 to-do, can't it? And yeah, the actual experience of sitting at Jesus' feet is 307 00:26:07,443 --> 00:26:12,231 kind of like, it's like exhaling, like, oh, you know? Yeah, it's really— what 308 00:26:12,231 --> 00:26:17,019 about you, um, Aid? What's, what's your experiences on on all of this? 309 00:26:19,150 --> 00:26:24,920 Certainly spending time with Jesus changes your perspective on the to-do list, 310 00:26:24,920 --> 00:26:30,690 um, and you might find things are added to it, but things are also taken off, or 311 00:26:30,690 --> 00:26:36,460 rather drop down. Yeah, the, um, the, the priority on the to-do list. 312 00:26:37,230 --> 00:26:41,636 Yeah, it can be like a perspective change, can't it? Like, when you spend time 313 00:26:41,636 --> 00:26:46,043 with Jesus, you get his perspective on everything else in your life, and that 314 00:26:46,043 --> 00:26:50,450 can really change how you do it all. 315 00:26:51,059 --> 00:26:54,990 Did I— did feel that— go on, go on, Nate. Sorry, can I say it can— 316 00:26:55,119 --> 00:27:00,050 oh, it can change you in the moment as well. I mean, just looking at that 317 00:27:00,050 --> 00:27:04,981 passage where, um, you know, Martha's saying, if only you were here, and, you 318 00:27:04,981 --> 00:27:09,913 know, Jesus says, well, I will, um, you know, I'm going to resurrect him. And 319 00:27:09,913 --> 00:27:14,844 she says, "Well, I know that he will rise again in the resurrection in my last 320 00:27:14,844 --> 00:27:19,775 day." And Jesus is like, "No, I am the resurrection, the life. It's going to 321 00:27:19,775 --> 00:27:24,705 happen now." And you can see her, just her mind is expanding. She knows him, she 322 00:27:24,705 --> 00:27:29,636 believes what he can do. She thinks, "Right, he's passed now. We'll see him in 323 00:27:29,636 --> 00:27:34,567 the next life." But right there, Jesus is just stretching her mind and just kind 324 00:27:34,567 --> 00:27:39,499 of focusing her on him and what he can do. And it's like you see her her 325 00:27:39,499 --> 00:27:44,430 understanding is just being even more revealed as this passage goes on. 326 00:27:48,509 --> 00:27:54,044 So I was going to say, one, um, another sort of title that I could have put on 327 00:27:54,044 --> 00:27:59,577 that talk was, was priorities. It could be sort of summed down to that, that 328 00:27:59,577 --> 00:28:05,112 word, kind of like you, you've been saying, like perspective or priority is just 329 00:28:05,112 --> 00:28:10,645 We have lots of things to do. We are all busy. There is so much— so many things 330 00:28:10,645 --> 00:28:16,180 vying for our time. But can we adjust our priorities? 331 00:28:16,509 --> 00:28:21,148 Yeah, I think what came across really well and what you said, Dan, was that, 332 00:28:21,148 --> 00:28:25,786 that kind of last bit you talked about, like, presentness and kind of being 333 00:28:25,786 --> 00:28:30,425 present to what God wants to do in the moment, really. And that actually, when 334 00:28:30,425 --> 00:28:35,063 we stop and spend time with him, we're able to be present to what he wants to do 335 00:28:35,063 --> 00:28:39,702 in that moment. And I think sometimes in our busyness, we can just miss it. We 336 00:28:39,702 --> 00:28:44,340 can miss the thing, like, you know, perhaps God wants to bring heaven down in 337 00:28:44,340 --> 00:28:48,979 that moment and do something really dramatic, like even, you know, raise someone 338 00:28:48,979 --> 00:28:53,617 from the dead or heal someone. Um, and, and we can miss it in our busyness if we 339 00:28:53,617 --> 00:28:58,256 don't stop and listen and make space in our already busy agendas. Like, I often 340 00:28:58,256 --> 00:29:02,894 think it's about our agendas versus God's agenda and making space for God's 341 00:29:02,894 --> 00:29:07,533 agenda to break into our day rather than just kind of what we already had 342 00:29:07,533 --> 00:29:12,171 planned for ourselves. Yeah, so I think that's really— yeah, that really 343 00:29:12,171 --> 00:29:16,809 challenges me. 344 00:29:18,470 --> 00:29:23,090 And we can very easily have that, that excuse that, um, our daily tasks or our 345 00:29:23,090 --> 00:29:27,710 task— 346 00:29:28,089 --> 00:29:28,190 we— 347 00:29:28,569 --> 00:29:32,710 what I'm trying to say, we I didn't mention it, we can hide behind things, can't 348 00:29:32,710 --> 00:29:36,849 we? Hide behind genuine stuff. And that, for me, I know I've done so many times, 349 00:29:36,849 --> 00:29:40,990 and I really have to be conscious of that hiding behind stuff that has to be 350 00:29:40,990 --> 00:29:45,130 done. 351 00:29:45,420 --> 00:29:48,462 Can you unpack a bit more about that, Dan? Like, what— because I was interested 352 00:29:48,462 --> 00:29:51,505 in this when you were talking about it, but you know when you're just sort of 353 00:29:51,505 --> 00:29:54,547 talking about like, sometimes we can hide behind our busyness. What do you think 354 00:29:54,547 --> 00:29:57,589 are some of the reasons that we do that? 355 00:29:57,910 --> 00:30:03,092 Like, I don't know, for me it was, it was easier. I knew there was— let's take 356 00:30:03,092 --> 00:30:08,275 an example of, of church and stuff, doing lots of like helping, and, and I was 357 00:30:08,275 --> 00:30:13,457 there, and God might have given me something to do. Even if you've been to a 358 00:30:13,457 --> 00:30:18,640 Christian service where it's a bit more interactive— I don't know your 359 00:30:18,640 --> 00:30:23,822 experience of church, but In some churches, someone will do a talk like, like 360 00:30:23,822 --> 00:30:29,005 we've done now, um, and instead of the questions at the end, it might be, well, 361 00:30:29,005 --> 00:30:34,187 if, if God— if you feel God has said something to you, then perhaps go and talk 362 00:30:34,187 --> 00:30:39,369 with someone, um, or go and get prayer. And my busyness and my duties, I say, oh 363 00:30:39,369 --> 00:30:44,552 well, I need to do, I need to do the PA, I need to turn these mics down, I need 364 00:30:44,552 --> 00:30:49,734 to do this. But I knew that God was prompting me, no, you should go and get, you 365 00:30:49,734 --> 00:30:54,917 know, you get prayer, you need to go and meet with God now. And that for me was 366 00:30:54,917 --> 00:31:00,099 where something came in that I genuinely had a job to do. No one would notice. 367 00:31:00,309 --> 00:31:00,470 Yeah. 368 00:31:00,769 --> 00:31:02,549 Um, they thought, oh, you know, he's just doing what he should do. 369 00:31:02,950 --> 00:31:07,577 But sometimes it's like trying, trying to— I know sometimes it's a little bit 370 00:31:07,577 --> 00:31:12,204 outside of our comfort zone, isn't it, when God wants to break into the moment 371 00:31:12,204 --> 00:31:16,832 and speak to us or got our attention. Or maybe we order our priorities, that can 372 00:31:16,832 --> 00:31:21,459 be Sometimes it can be uncomfortable for me, and I think sometimes I can avoid 373 00:31:21,459 --> 00:31:26,086 in the busyness because I perhaps know that God's going to challenge my 374 00:31:26,086 --> 00:31:30,714 priorities, or yeah, or it might be a little bit uncomfortable in short term, 375 00:31:30,714 --> 00:31:35,341 even though you— just as it was for Martha and Mary, but actually it was for 376 00:31:35,341 --> 00:31:39,968 their growth, and you can see that growth trajectory in their story. But I think 377 00:31:39,968 --> 00:31:44,596 sometimes It's, yeah, it's that fear of like, oh, is this going to be 378 00:31:44,596 --> 00:31:49,223 challenging or difficult, or is God going to say something maybe I don't like, 379 00:31:49,223 --> 00:31:53,851 or that's, I know, just uncomfortable. But like, it's knowing, it's knowing that 380 00:31:53,851 --> 00:31:58,478 God is good and he's for you, isn't it? And I, I loved, um, what you said at the 381 00:31:58,478 --> 00:32:03,105 beginning, which was, um, you're talking about kind of when he, when Jesus says, 382 00:32:03,105 --> 00:32:07,733 Martha, Martha, and it, and it's That really struck me as well, because I 383 00:32:07,733 --> 00:32:12,360 thought, yeah, that's it. Sometimes I've read this story and it's like a bit of 384 00:32:12,360 --> 00:32:16,987 a ticking off of Martha. And the way I've heard it is, oh, you know, if you're 385 00:32:16,987 --> 00:32:21,615 too busy and you're not making enough time for God in your life or in your day, 386 00:32:21,615 --> 00:32:26,242 then, you know, like, well, you really should be, you know. And it's a bit of a 387 00:32:26,242 --> 00:32:30,869 ticking off, and I hear it that way sometimes. 388 00:32:30,960 --> 00:32:33,589 This story— say your name twice just so you listen. 389 00:32:33,710 --> 00:32:38,224 Yeah, yeah, like, you really need to listen. Anna, Anna, come on now. Bit like 390 00:32:38,224 --> 00:32:42,738 my dad doing his stern voice. And actually, that's not the thing at all. It's 391 00:32:42,738 --> 00:32:47,253 like tender. It's like, Martha, Martha, I really want your attention here 392 00:32:47,253 --> 00:32:51,767 because I love you. And it's like understanding the tone and the kind of, yeah, 393 00:32:51,767 --> 00:32:56,282 the kind of way that Jesus is saying that. And I think that really illuminates 394 00:32:56,282 --> 00:33:00,796 the whole passage. It's like, oh, he's not telling her off. He's really calling 395 00:33:00,796 --> 00:33:05,311 her to come to him out of his love. And It's the tender thing and I really like 396 00:33:05,311 --> 00:33:09,825 that. And I thought, yeah, that's absolutely right. Yeah. Any more thoughts from 397 00:33:09,825 --> 00:33:14,339 you, Aidh? 398 00:33:15,990 --> 00:33:20,167 I think there's a popular, almost social misconception that if you're busy, 399 00:33:20,167 --> 00:33:24,345 you're important because you've got lots of stuff to do rather than, well, 400 00:33:24,345 --> 00:33:28,523 actually, maybe you're just not very good at organizing your time. And, you 401 00:33:28,523 --> 00:33:32,701 know, as people, it can be very easy to fall into that trap of just getting 402 00:33:32,701 --> 00:33:36,878 caught up in the busyness and even in the buzz of being busy. And, you know, 403 00:33:36,878 --> 00:33:41,056 I've been in a similar place to Dan where I'm down at the PA desk and it's the 404 00:33:41,056 --> 00:33:45,234 end of a service, or I'm at the front, I've been leading worship and the stuff 405 00:33:45,234 --> 00:33:49,412 needs taken down. And you can see people kind of looking around, kind of, you 406 00:33:49,412 --> 00:33:53,590 know, maybe looking looking for someone to talk to or not, and you're like, ah, 407 00:33:53,590 --> 00:33:57,767 but I've got so much stuff to do here. And then, you know, we have to be out of 408 00:33:57,767 --> 00:34:01,945 the building by such and such a time. And being, being human beings and 409 00:34:01,945 --> 00:34:06,123 task-oriented, we tend to just focus on the task that's immediately in front of 410 00:34:06,123 --> 00:34:10,301 us and then block out what's around us. And, you know, it's just, it's done, 411 00:34:10,301 --> 00:34:14,478 it's done from a good place of, you know, serving the body by doing this task. 412 00:34:14,478 --> 00:34:18,656 But then you have to think, well, maybe if we took a step back and looked at it 413 00:34:18,656 --> 00:34:22,834 from Jesus' perspective, are we serving the body in the best way we can? By 414 00:34:22,834 --> 00:34:27,012 focusing on this task in front of us, or maybe there are people over here who 415 00:34:27,012 --> 00:34:31,190 could benefit more from our attention. 416 00:34:32,159 --> 00:34:36,502 Yeah, that's, that's a really good point. I think sometimes we can feel a little 417 00:34:36,502 --> 00:34:40,844 bit like we've already got an agenda or things we need to do, and it can be a 418 00:34:40,844 --> 00:34:45,186 bit inconvenient, kind of, to kind of veer off that. But sometimes I think God 419 00:34:45,186 --> 00:34:49,528 wants to interrupt our day or our moment and to be like, 'Well, what about this 420 00:34:49,528 --> 00:34:53,871 person over here who perhaps really needs someone to talk to or to listen or to 421 00:34:53,871 --> 00:34:58,213 pray with them for a few minutes?' I've been thinking, just perhaps when you go 422 00:34:58,213 --> 00:35:02,555 to the shops, you know, there's someone outside who's begging or asking for 423 00:35:02,555 --> 00:35:06,897 money or something, but your immediate reaction is, 'Well, I'm doing my 424 00:35:06,897 --> 00:35:11,239 shopping.' Yeah. 425 00:35:11,329 --> 00:35:15,898 'I'm doing this.' And that's— I'm speaking to myself here— that's what I'm 426 00:35:15,898 --> 00:35:20,466 making myself busy Yeah, what's, what's another minute to just to talk to 427 00:35:20,466 --> 00:35:25,034 someone? Um, yeah, and I, I need to know what I, what I do with that. Am I, am I 428 00:35:25,034 --> 00:35:29,603 making myself— this is my task, I mustn't veer from my task— just so I can not 429 00:35:29,603 --> 00:35:34,171 do that thing that's a little bit awkward, a little bit— I don't quite know what 430 00:35:34,171 --> 00:35:38,739 to do here. 431 00:35:39,260 --> 00:35:43,840 We can be a bit, I don't know, inflexible, can't we, as human beings? We can be 432 00:35:43,840 --> 00:35:48,420 a bit kind of just fixed, fixed on what we plan to do. 433 00:35:48,579 --> 00:35:50,809 Excuse. Yeah, it's a great excuse in your head why you didn't do it, because I 434 00:35:50,809 --> 00:35:53,039 had to do this other thing. 435 00:35:53,219 --> 00:35:54,099 That's for me. 436 00:35:54,510 --> 00:35:56,849 For me, it's— yeah, great. 437 00:35:57,090 --> 00:36:02,165 Yeah, it's, it's hard, isn't it? I think, um, I like what Alicia said on the, 438 00:36:02,165 --> 00:36:07,241 um, on the feed here. She says, I think the Lord was showing compassion to 439 00:36:07,241 --> 00:36:12,317 Martha in the way, in that moment. Um, and I think so, I think we're going back 440 00:36:12,317 --> 00:36:17,392 to that point about Martha, Martha, when, um, Jesus was like speaking 441 00:36:17,392 --> 00:36:22,468 compassionately and tenderly to her. And I think that's the thing that I really 442 00:36:22,468 --> 00:36:27,544 take away though, and like I hope others at home take this away as well, that 443 00:36:27,544 --> 00:36:32,619 it's not a, it's not a like kind of harsh thing, like, oh, you really should be 444 00:36:32,619 --> 00:36:37,695 less busy, and you really, Dan, you really should listen to me in the 445 00:36:37,695 --> 00:36:42,771 supermarket when I tried to get your attention then. And like, it's not a like 446 00:36:42,771 --> 00:36:47,847 taking off. It's, uh, yeah, like, it's Jesus' compassion and that actually he, 447 00:36:47,847 --> 00:36:52,922 you know, he's got compassion. But he equally, just as he had compassion for 448 00:36:52,922 --> 00:36:57,998 Martha, he's got compassion for our inflexibility and the times we miss it and 449 00:36:57,998 --> 00:37:03,074 miss the moment and don't create time for him and don't hear him and don't make 450 00:37:03,074 --> 00:37:08,150 space for him in our day. I think, you know, we're all a work in process, aren't 451 00:37:08,150 --> 00:37:13,225 we? So I think for me, I guess I just wanted to say as well, it's a real grace 452 00:37:13,225 --> 00:37:18,301 thing. Like, We're all learning. Like, none of us are experts at this. And I 453 00:37:18,301 --> 00:37:23,377 think, yeah, it is a compassionate thing. Like, Jesus is like, come on. Like, I, 454 00:37:23,377 --> 00:37:28,452 you know, I've got a lot of grace for you here, but like, let's grow and let's, 455 00:37:28,452 --> 00:37:33,528 you know, kind of partner together and work together. Yeah. Yeah. I'm just 456 00:37:33,528 --> 00:37:38,604 having a quick look through the feed. I can't see much else at the moment. Any 457 00:37:38,604 --> 00:37:43,679 other thoughts from you, Ade? 458 00:37:49,449 --> 00:37:50,929 Not at this point in time. 459 00:37:52,739 --> 00:37:54,795 Dan, how about you? Are you— any other thoughts as you're planning the tour for 460 00:37:54,795 --> 00:37:56,849 anything? 461 00:37:56,909 --> 00:38:01,855 No, I think we spoke yesterday about that— not yesterday, last week— It was 462 00:38:01,855 --> 00:38:06,801 mentioned that, um, you know, when we're praying, it was, well, God wants to 463 00:38:06,801 --> 00:38:11,748 hear your voice. Um, and he wants us to hear his voice too, as well. Sometimes 464 00:38:11,748 --> 00:38:16,693 we can do all the talking, can't we? And it's just like, yeah, listen to my 465 00:38:16,693 --> 00:38:21,639 voice. Daniel, Daniel, just— 466 00:38:21,780 --> 00:38:26,266 yeah, I think that's really right. And I, I've— yeah, I think it's really hard 467 00:38:26,266 --> 00:38:30,753 for us culturally as well. Like, we live in a very fast-paced society, don't we? 468 00:38:30,753 --> 00:38:35,240 And Yeah, I think there's not much space for listening at all. I mean, you can 469 00:38:35,240 --> 00:38:39,726 see that in politics, you can see it in our day, you see it the way people are 470 00:38:39,726 --> 00:38:44,213 on mobile phones and you just like quick text. Like, culture has never moved 471 00:38:44,213 --> 00:38:48,699 faster, really, has it? And so this, it's quite, it's quite alien to us in some 472 00:38:48,699 --> 00:38:53,186 ways. And I think we've got a lot to learn about listening and stilling 473 00:38:53,186 --> 00:38:57,673 ourselves and being present in the moment and being present to what God wants to 474 00:38:57,673 --> 00:39:02,159 do in the moment. Yeah. 475 00:39:03,909 --> 00:39:08,942 In Ephesians it says, um, it says, look carefully then how you walk, not as 476 00:39:08,942 --> 00:39:13,974 unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time because the days are evil. 477 00:39:13,974 --> 00:39:19,007 So it's just, yeah, the time can run away from you, basically what it's saying. 478 00:39:19,007 --> 00:39:24,039 But let's make the, the best use of all that we've got. 479 00:39:24,329 --> 00:39:27,966 Yeah, that's right. Yeah, I love that. So I think that probably is a natural 480 00:39:27,966 --> 00:39:31,603 conclusion to our conversation straight, but can you tell us a little bit about 481 00:39:31,603 --> 00:39:35,239 what's happening next week, Dan? 482 00:39:35,969 --> 00:39:39,250 Yeah, so we've got, uh, Dave Connolly doing the talk. 483 00:39:39,559 --> 00:39:40,070 Brilliant. 484 00:39:40,199 --> 00:39:44,929 And he is talking about— and I did remember it, and, uh, here we go— When You're 485 00:39:44,929 --> 00:39:49,659 Running on Empty. So yeah, looking forward to that. 486 00:39:49,760 --> 00:39:53,903 That's kind of continuation from this theme, isn't it? Because we've talked 487 00:39:53,903 --> 00:39:58,048 about being present and trying to, yeah, just be still and spend time with Jesus 488 00:39:58,048 --> 00:40:02,192 and spend time at his feet today. And I guess Running on Empty is— and Alicia 489 00:40:02,192 --> 00:40:06,336 mentioned it tonight on the feed, actually— overwhelm. And that, yeah, it feels 490 00:40:06,336 --> 00:40:10,480 like part of the same theme, really, like too much going on. 491 00:40:10,530 --> 00:40:12,789 And then when you have got time, yeah, you just want to— 492 00:40:12,900 --> 00:40:15,710 you just want to, yeah, watch Netflix or whatever it is, whatever your channel 493 00:40:15,710 --> 00:40:18,519 of choice is. But yeah, um, that sounds really good. And who's hosting next 494 00:40:18,519 --> 00:40:21,329 week? 495 00:40:21,670 --> 00:40:23,019 So that'd be Sharon and Mike. 496 00:40:23,519 --> 00:40:28,355 Awesome dream team. So that's pretty much all from us. Any last thoughts from 497 00:40:28,355 --> 00:40:33,190 you, Ade? 498 00:40:33,480 --> 00:40:37,360 Hopefully we'll see you all in the live lounge in a couple of minutes. 499 00:40:37,679 --> 00:40:38,579 Yeah, the link— 500 00:40:38,579 --> 00:40:42,069 a bit like having tea and coffee after church, only you bring your own tea and 501 00:40:42,069 --> 00:40:45,559 coffee, so you can't complain if the drinks are naff. That's on you. 502 00:40:46,559 --> 00:40:51,195 I love that. I love that. So the link for that should be somewhere in the feed. 503 00:40:51,195 --> 00:40:55,831 Or coming up shortly if it's not there. Yep, it's there, I am told. So there it 504 00:40:55,831 --> 00:41:00,467 is. So yeah, come and join us and we'd love to chat some more if you want to 505 00:41:00,467 --> 00:41:05,103 unpack anything that we've talked about tonight and meet some of the team. Yeah. 506 00:41:05,103 --> 00:41:09,739 And if not, we will see you next week. So that's it from us. Say bye, Dan. 507 00:41:10,909 --> 00:41:12,369 See you. See you next week. 508 00:41:13,340 --> 00:41:14,909 Say bye, Dan. Bye, Dan. 509 00:41:15,090 --> 00:41:15,500 Bye, Dan. 510 00:41:15,730 --> 00:41:17,969 Bye, Dan. See you, everyone. Have a good week.