1 00:00:05,160 --> 00:00:08,200 Thank you for listening to Riverbend Church's podcast. 2 00:00:08,240 --> 00:00:11,560 To find out more about this message or Riverbend Church, 3 00:00:11,680 --> 00:00:14,920 connect with us online at Riverbend Church dot live. 4 00:00:22,840 --> 00:00:25,480 The Fleming so thankful that they were able to share their 5 00:00:25,480 --> 00:00:32,800 story with us, Darcy and Tommy and of course heart and really, 6 00:00:33,320 --> 00:00:36,840 if you got anything from their story, really the main character 7 00:00:36,840 --> 00:00:40,320 of their story is God and and their reliance on him. 8 00:00:41,520 --> 00:00:45,360 One of the things that that that we love to do is just be able 9 00:00:45,360 --> 00:00:48,640 when people are telling their story, their God's story to 10 00:00:48,640 --> 00:00:50,800 people is we love just to kind of promote that. 11 00:00:51,000 --> 00:00:53,800 Darcy actually just came out with a book, Me But Mighty 12 00:00:54,280 --> 00:00:58,040 starring God and heart with that. 13 00:00:58,200 --> 00:01:00,680 Highly recommend that you pick that up. 14 00:01:00,680 --> 00:01:04,480 Sweet, sweet book. You know, one of the things 15 00:01:04,480 --> 00:01:09,880 that, that, that part of that interview is they did start 16 00:01:09,880 --> 00:01:14,560 praying for not just heart's finger, but also Heart's heart. 17 00:01:14,720 --> 00:01:18,680 And Heart had been asking a lot of questions about what it means 18 00:01:18,680 --> 00:01:21,280 to follow Jesus. And, you know, walking through 19 00:01:21,280 --> 00:01:24,400 those questions with a child, with a, with a kid can be really 20 00:01:24,400 --> 00:01:27,440 tricky. And Julie does an incredible job 21 00:01:27,480 --> 00:01:32,960 of, of, of basically giving tools to parents to help them 22 00:01:32,960 --> 00:01:36,560 take the ball and move it forward and to help them have 23 00:01:36,560 --> 00:01:39,840 conversations with their kids. And a couple months ago, if you 24 00:01:39,840 --> 00:01:43,760 were here with us, you may remember that we got the honor 25 00:01:43,760 --> 00:01:45,960 and privilege of being able to baptize Heart. 26 00:01:45,960 --> 00:01:49,360 So love just being a part of their story. 27 00:01:50,240 --> 00:01:53,760 We are, in case you didn't know, we are just on the very front 28 00:01:53,760 --> 00:01:58,960 edge kicking off today, actually tonight at 6:00, our 21 days of 29 00:01:58,960 --> 00:02:03,360 prayer and fasting. And if you've been with us for 30 00:02:03,360 --> 00:02:06,560 for a few years and you've been a part of 21 days of prayer and 31 00:02:06,560 --> 00:02:10,520 fasting here at Riverbend, you know what a powerful, powerful 32 00:02:10,520 --> 00:02:13,200 time that is. And over the course of this 33 00:02:13,200 --> 00:02:17,840 month, you're going to be seeing more stories like this play out 34 00:02:17,840 --> 00:02:23,200 about how people just specifically prayed to God about 35 00:02:23,200 --> 00:02:27,680 something and how God really just blew them away and answered 36 00:02:27,680 --> 00:02:31,720 above and beyond what they could possibly ever imagine or hope 37 00:02:31,720 --> 00:02:33,160 for. And one of the things that I 38 00:02:33,160 --> 00:02:38,120 would tell you as, as, as your pastor is a lot of things that 39 00:02:38,120 --> 00:02:44,480 we're able to do now that or the prayers that God answered during 40 00:02:44,480 --> 00:02:49,160 these seasons four years ago. So 21 days of prayer and 41 00:02:49,160 --> 00:02:52,080 fasting. We very much invite you into 42 00:02:52,360 --> 00:02:57,720 into this time is kind of where we're going to be aiming our 43 00:02:57,720 --> 00:03:01,000 message series throughout this month and then on into next 44 00:03:01,000 --> 00:03:02,840 month. We also want to provide 45 00:03:02,840 --> 00:03:06,400 resources for you that are going to help you to be able to just 46 00:03:06,400 --> 00:03:10,360 spend some more time with God and to experience him like never 47 00:03:10,360 --> 00:03:11,720 before. And maybe you've never been a 48 00:03:11,720 --> 00:03:14,080 part of a fast and and that's OK. 49 00:03:14,080 --> 00:03:18,480 And I would say that 2026 is a perfect time for you to begin. 50 00:03:19,280 --> 00:03:22,360 Some of the resources that we make available to you is number 51 00:03:22,360 --> 00:03:24,520 one. We want to invite you back here 52 00:03:24,520 --> 00:03:27,200 tonight, 6 O clock. We're going to have just a night 53 00:03:27,200 --> 00:03:30,600 of worship, a night of worship and a night of prayer from six 54 00:03:30,600 --> 00:03:33,040 to seven just to kind of kick off the season. 55 00:03:33,360 --> 00:03:36,640 And then on top of that, you may have noticed in the lobbies as 56 00:03:36,640 --> 00:03:40,840 you came in, we developed devotional gods in house 57 00:03:40,840 --> 00:03:44,040 devotional gods. So we developed one for adults, 58 00:03:45,760 --> 00:03:49,760 Nathan developed one for students, and then Julie 59 00:03:49,760 --> 00:03:52,080 developed one for kids and families. 60 00:03:52,360 --> 00:03:55,360 And these are on the tables in the main lobbies, in the rear 61 00:03:55,360 --> 00:03:59,120 lobby, in the main lobby up front for you to pick up and for 62 00:03:59,120 --> 00:04:01,400 you to walk through and for you to journey through. 63 00:04:02,120 --> 00:04:06,520 They, they go side by side with the same scripture references. 64 00:04:07,080 --> 00:04:09,840 And we just think it's going to be a very, very powerful tool 65 00:04:10,440 --> 00:04:13,240 for you and your family during this time and during this 66 00:04:13,240 --> 00:04:15,760 season. So really excited about about 67 00:04:15,760 --> 00:04:20,839 being able to kick this off. With that said, if you are new 68 00:04:20,839 --> 00:04:23,800 to Riverbend, thank you so much for choosing to be with us. 69 00:04:24,680 --> 00:04:27,560 I hope that your 2026 has started off well. 70 00:04:27,760 --> 00:04:30,360 If we haven't had the chance to meet yet, my name is Ben get to 71 00:04:30,360 --> 00:04:33,160 serve as the lead pastor here. We'd love to get to meet you. 72 00:04:33,160 --> 00:04:35,400 We'd love to get to know you would actually love to to be 73 00:04:35,400 --> 00:04:38,760 able to connect you with some people, maybe similar age stage. 74 00:04:38,760 --> 00:04:41,600 That's what that connect card is for that you received on your 75 00:04:41,600 --> 00:04:44,120 way in. That Connect card also allows 76 00:04:44,120 --> 00:04:47,480 us, if you're new to Riverbend, it also allows us to know where 77 00:04:47,480 --> 00:04:51,040 to ship a small thank you gift out into the mail to you. 78 00:04:51,200 --> 00:04:54,560 So again, thank you so much for choosing to be with us. 79 00:04:54,560 --> 00:04:56,760 But whether you're new to Riverbend or call Riverbend 80 00:04:56,760 --> 00:05:00,040 home, like I said, I hope that your 2026 has already started 81 00:05:00,040 --> 00:05:03,760 off well, regardless of who you are, regardless of your 82 00:05:03,760 --> 00:05:07,760 background, regardless of all the different variables and the 83 00:05:07,760 --> 00:05:11,360 factors out there. I know that if we were to 84 00:05:11,360 --> 00:05:17,760 summarize kind of our goals, our collective goal for 2026, it 85 00:05:17,760 --> 00:05:22,080 would be if we were to boil it down into a couple of words, it 86 00:05:22,080 --> 00:05:24,800 would be to just simply live well. 87 00:05:25,160 --> 00:05:29,040 We just want to live well. Here's the here's the issue with 88 00:05:29,040 --> 00:05:32,800 wanting to live well. However, there's a discrepancy 89 00:05:33,360 --> 00:05:37,640 between what you may think is living well and the person next 90 00:05:37,640 --> 00:05:40,520 to you or the person in front of you or the person behind you may 91 00:05:40,520 --> 00:05:44,680 think is living well. So for some, living well maybe 92 00:05:45,000 --> 00:05:49,160 to to gain name recognition, to gain likes and followers and 93 00:05:49,160 --> 00:05:53,560 notoriety online social media, maybe. 94 00:05:53,560 --> 00:05:55,800 Maybe you're in a business that's dependent upon that. 95 00:05:56,160 --> 00:05:59,160 While likes, followers, notoriety, name recognition. 96 00:05:59,160 --> 00:06:01,400 For others that may be your worst nightmare. 97 00:06:02,360 --> 00:06:07,120 For some, living well would involve maybe a promotion, maybe 98 00:06:07,120 --> 00:06:12,000 maybe a raise at work. While for others they hear that 99 00:06:12,000 --> 00:06:15,360 and they automatically start thinking about how those things 100 00:06:15,360 --> 00:06:19,040 inevitably come with sacrificing more time away from home. 101 00:06:19,840 --> 00:06:23,240 For some, living well may involve having a getting a new 102 00:06:23,240 --> 00:06:28,080 car or truck or house or boat. While for others you may 103 00:06:28,080 --> 00:06:30,480 automatically start thinking your your brain may 104 00:06:30,480 --> 00:06:33,880 automatically start thinking to increased insurance cost and gas 105 00:06:33,880 --> 00:06:37,760 cost and upkeep cost. You see our definitions of 106 00:06:37,760 --> 00:06:39,720 living well. They they all vary. 107 00:06:39,960 --> 00:06:45,320 The issue is not the goal for us to or the collective goal for us 108 00:06:45,320 --> 00:06:48,800 to want to live well. The issue is having the right 109 00:06:48,800 --> 00:06:51,840 definition of what it means to live well. 110 00:06:52,440 --> 00:06:53,800 I don't know your church background. 111 00:06:53,800 --> 00:06:56,600 You may be very new to church. You, you may you may have 112 00:06:56,600 --> 00:07:01,320 started 2026 off thinking, you know what, I'm going to give God 113 00:07:01,320 --> 00:07:03,600 a shot. I've I've tried doing it my own 114 00:07:03,600 --> 00:07:06,240 way for so long. I'm going to give God a shot. 115 00:07:06,560 --> 00:07:11,120 And if that's you and welcome, we just so happen to believe 116 00:07:11,440 --> 00:07:15,280 that God himself has a definition of what it means for 117 00:07:15,280 --> 00:07:19,320 us to live well. And that definition is also 118 00:07:19,320 --> 00:07:23,240 serving as the main truth or the big idea throughout this series. 119 00:07:23,240 --> 00:07:26,160 So if you, if you're taking notes with us, it's on the back 120 00:07:26,160 --> 00:07:27,760 of the bulletin. If you're taking notes with us, 121 00:07:27,760 --> 00:07:29,760 I want to get you to jot this down. 122 00:07:30,080 --> 00:07:35,200 To live well is to live God's way, firm in faith, steady in 123 00:07:35,200 --> 00:07:39,440 trials, anchored in hope. To live well is to live God's 124 00:07:39,440 --> 00:07:44,960 way, firm in faith, steady in trials, anchored in hope. 125 00:07:45,360 --> 00:07:48,280 And what we're going to do throughout this series is we're 126 00:07:48,280 --> 00:07:52,160 going to allow God's word and specifically a small book 127 00:07:52,160 --> 00:07:55,880 towards the end of your Bible called First Peter to guide us 128 00:07:55,880 --> 00:08:00,720 in what it means to live God's way and how we are to be firm in 129 00:08:00,720 --> 00:08:04,520 faith and steady in trials and and anchored in hope. 130 00:08:04,840 --> 00:08:08,200 So if you have a Bible with you, I invite you to find the book of 131 00:08:08,200 --> 00:08:12,000 first Peter, like I said, is towards the very end of the 132 00:08:12,000 --> 00:08:15,320 Bible. Just kind of give you a quick 133 00:08:15,480 --> 00:08:17,840 pastor tip. If you find the book of second 134 00:08:17,920 --> 00:08:21,600 Peter, you've gone too far. Flip back a couple pages. 135 00:08:21,760 --> 00:08:24,760 You'll find first Peter as typically how I find first 136 00:08:24,760 --> 00:08:30,880 Peter, give you some context on what we need to know about first 137 00:08:30,880 --> 00:08:34,600 Peter before diving in. If you were with us last week, 138 00:08:35,000 --> 00:08:39,000 Pastor Todd did an awesome job of being able to introduce to us 139 00:08:39,000 --> 00:08:42,400 and to remind us who this guy Peter was. 140 00:08:42,400 --> 00:08:44,920 And if you weren't able to be with us last week, I would 141 00:08:44,920 --> 00:08:48,400 highly encourage you spend some time in this week to come kind 142 00:08:48,400 --> 00:08:50,800 of go back through, walk back through, listen back through 143 00:08:51,080 --> 00:08:55,400 that message. But in a nutshell, Peter was one 144 00:08:55,400 --> 00:09:00,400 of Jesus's chosen 12 apostles. And of those chosen 12 he had an 145 00:09:00,400 --> 00:09:05,200 inner circle of three and Peter was one of those 3, meaning 146 00:09:05,400 --> 00:09:07,920 Peter was one of Jesus closest friends. 147 00:09:07,920 --> 00:09:11,600 So Peter knew Jesus like like no other. 148 00:09:11,880 --> 00:09:17,040 He was one of Jesus chosen 12 apostles, or after Jesus died 149 00:09:17,040 --> 00:09:19,600 and resurrected from the dead and ascended back to heaven, 150 00:09:19,880 --> 00:09:22,960 Peter finds himself in the position of pretty much 151 00:09:23,240 --> 00:09:27,560 anchoring the church, this new thing called the church, in the 152 00:09:27,560 --> 00:09:30,440 city of Jerusalem. Well, if you know anything about 153 00:09:30,440 --> 00:09:34,120 history, you know that the Roman Empire came down on the 154 00:09:34,120 --> 00:09:37,560 Christians in Jerusalem like a sledgehammer and then the 155 00:09:37,560 --> 00:09:41,640 Christians had to disperse all over that region of the world. 156 00:09:41,640 --> 00:09:46,320 It's called the Diaspora. And from that point in time when 157 00:09:46,320 --> 00:09:49,600 the Christians scattered from Jerusalem, guess what they took 158 00:09:49,600 --> 00:09:51,480 with them? They took the gospel of Jesus 159 00:09:51,480 --> 00:09:54,120 with them. Well, the Roman Empire in that 160 00:09:54,120 --> 00:09:57,880 time and, and stage in history was very, very vast, very, very 161 00:09:57,880 --> 00:10:01,680 powerful, very, very evil. So they started persecuting 162 00:10:01,680 --> 00:10:04,520 Christians wherever they found Christians. 163 00:10:04,760 --> 00:10:07,080 So the book of first Peter, if you want some historical 164 00:10:07,080 --> 00:10:11,400 context, Peter wrote the book of first Peter to persecuted 165 00:10:11,400 --> 00:10:13,680 Christians. He wrote it to them and it was 166 00:10:13,680 --> 00:10:17,600 circulated by persecuted Christians in modern day Asia 167 00:10:17,600 --> 00:10:23,480 Minor around 60 to 62 AD. That gives us a little bit of 168 00:10:23,480 --> 00:10:28,760 historical context because if you think that the Bible is all 169 00:10:28,760 --> 00:10:32,960 about like, you know, golden brick roads and like flowers 170 00:10:32,960 --> 00:10:37,720 and, and, and, and everything is going great all the time, then 171 00:10:38,040 --> 00:10:42,040 you're going to find a lot of affinity towards what Peter's 172 00:10:42,040 --> 00:10:45,160 actually going to write here. Because I happen to believe even 173 00:10:45,160 --> 00:10:48,480 though we may not be facing the level of persecution that the 174 00:10:48,480 --> 00:10:53,720 Christians were in 60 to 62 AD, we still grapple with what it 175 00:10:53,720 --> 00:10:58,040 means for us actually to live by faith and for us to be faith 176 00:10:58,320 --> 00:11:01,200 focused. And if we're not faith focused, 177 00:11:01,360 --> 00:11:04,600 then it's very difficult, I would even say really impossible 178 00:11:04,760 --> 00:11:09,360 for us to actually live in hope. So in order for us to become 179 00:11:09,360 --> 00:11:13,000 faith focused, I want to, I want to invite you to read with me. 180 00:11:13,080 --> 00:11:16,080 We're going to read just for a little bit first, Peter chapter 181 00:11:16,080 --> 00:11:19,960 1, verses 3 through 9 this morning. 182 00:11:20,960 --> 00:11:23,800 This where Peter starts off. He says blessed be the God and 183 00:11:23,800 --> 00:11:27,600 Father of our Lord Jesus Christ according to his great mercy. 184 00:11:27,600 --> 00:11:30,720 He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through 185 00:11:30,720 --> 00:11:34,560 the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead to an inheritance 186 00:11:34,560 --> 00:11:38,760 that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for 187 00:11:38,760 --> 00:11:42,160 you, who by God's power are being guarded through faith for 188 00:11:42,160 --> 00:11:45,760 a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 189 00:11:45,920 --> 00:11:48,840 Verse 6. In this you rejoice, though now 190 00:11:48,840 --> 00:11:52,120 for a little while, if necessary, you have been grieved 191 00:11:52,120 --> 00:11:55,400 by various trials, so that the tested genuineness of your 192 00:11:55,400 --> 00:11:58,440 faith, more precious than gold that perishes, though it is 193 00:11:58,440 --> 00:12:02,480 tested by fire, may, may be found to result in praise and 194 00:12:02,480 --> 00:12:05,480 glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 195 00:12:06,160 --> 00:12:09,720 Verse 8, though you have not seen him, you love him. 196 00:12:10,080 --> 00:12:13,600 Though you do not now see him, you believe in him and rejoice 197 00:12:13,600 --> 00:12:18,960 with him, that is with joy that is inexpressible and filled with 198 00:12:18,960 --> 00:12:23,120 glory, obtaining the outcome of your faith, the salvation of 199 00:12:23,400 --> 00:12:25,680 your souls. Now here's what I want to do in 200 00:12:25,680 --> 00:12:28,840 our time together this morning is I want to unpack that for us. 201 00:12:29,280 --> 00:12:33,760 And I want to 1st talk about how we can be faith focused, what it 202 00:12:33,760 --> 00:12:37,120 means for us to be faith focused and, and, and, and what is 203 00:12:37,120 --> 00:12:42,000 required of us to be faith focused in order that we may 204 00:12:42,000 --> 00:12:46,360 live in hope that, that the, that the trials and the issues 205 00:12:46,360 --> 00:12:49,000 and all the stuff that's going on in our lives right now. 206 00:12:49,440 --> 00:12:55,160 Don't rob us of our faith or don't rob us of our hope. 207 00:12:55,760 --> 00:12:59,000 If you're taking notes with us, looking first of all at what it 208 00:12:59,000 --> 00:13:01,920 means for us to be faith focused, we have to remember 209 00:13:02,120 --> 00:13:06,520 this, that whatever captures my attention eventually guides my 210 00:13:06,520 --> 00:13:09,280 steps. Whatever captures my attention 211 00:13:09,280 --> 00:13:15,840 eventually guides my steps. Whatever captures my attention 212 00:13:15,840 --> 00:13:19,560 eventually guides my steps. Tell a quick story. 213 00:13:19,560 --> 00:13:24,920 We, we lived in Jacksonville. We had a, we had a boxer, a dog, 214 00:13:25,600 --> 00:13:29,320 not a man that fought. We had a, we had a boxer named 215 00:13:29,320 --> 00:13:32,320 Cooper. Cooper got a picture of Cooper. 216 00:13:32,680 --> 00:13:40,400 Cooper was man, he was, he's awesome, sweet, lovable, but 217 00:13:40,400 --> 00:13:47,440 dumb, Really, really dumb. So anyway, I called up a dog 218 00:13:47,440 --> 00:13:51,160 trainer, a very highly recommended dog trainer to come 219 00:13:51,160 --> 00:13:55,040 over to our house to do an in house session of obedience 220 00:13:55,040 --> 00:13:58,280 training with with Cooper. Like I said, this guy, highly, 221 00:13:58,280 --> 00:14:02,840 highly recommended, comes over to our house and man, he is 222 00:14:02,840 --> 00:14:06,520 pulling out all the stops. He's giving Cooper commands and 223 00:14:06,640 --> 00:14:10,320 Cooper's not listening. This guy's expertise was no 224 00:14:10,320 --> 00:14:15,360 match for Cooper's dumbness. All right, so as a, as a last 225 00:14:15,360 --> 00:14:18,800 resort, as a last resort, the guy looks at us and he goes, 226 00:14:18,800 --> 00:14:21,480 hey, I want to try one last thing before I leave. 227 00:14:22,160 --> 00:14:25,760 And he sees that we have an Ottoman, you know, up against a 228 00:14:25,760 --> 00:14:27,680 chair. He, we, we have an Ottoman in 229 00:14:27,680 --> 00:14:30,480 our living room. He, he, he gets Cooper to go up 230 00:14:30,480 --> 00:14:33,960 on the Ottoman. And then while got a picture of 231 00:14:33,960 --> 00:14:36,520 Cooper up on the Ottoman. You see, he's really happy about 232 00:14:36,520 --> 00:14:39,880 it. But from there, he was able to 233 00:14:39,880 --> 00:14:43,720 give Cooper a command. And to all of our surprise, 234 00:14:44,080 --> 00:14:47,400 Cooper followed the command. And we're like, what in the 235 00:14:47,400 --> 00:14:49,600 world? We have a magic Ottoman. 236 00:14:50,960 --> 00:14:54,200 So I asked, I asked the guy like when he was when he was about to 237 00:14:54,200 --> 00:14:58,160 leave, I was like, hey, man, like what is it about this 238 00:14:58,160 --> 00:15:03,760 Ottoman that, that, that like triggered obedience in, in, in 239 00:15:03,760 --> 00:15:06,240 our dumb dog. And he goes, listen, I'm going 240 00:15:06,240 --> 00:15:08,360 to tell you something. He said it's not really about 241 00:15:08,360 --> 00:15:11,200 the Ottoman at all. He said it's really about 242 00:15:11,200 --> 00:15:15,480 getting Cooper off of his feet, off of his normal grounding so 243 00:15:15,480 --> 00:15:19,400 that then I can give him command so that he can, I can command 244 00:15:19,400 --> 00:15:24,080 his attention. He said, if you can get, if you 245 00:15:24,080 --> 00:15:29,520 can get a dog's attention, then they're prompt to take commands. 246 00:15:29,800 --> 00:15:34,360 And then from there he taught us how to, how to use, how to use 247 00:15:34,360 --> 00:15:37,960 an E collar on Cooper. And some of y'all are like, I 248 00:15:37,960 --> 00:15:40,600 don't know what that is. And some of y'all are gasping 249 00:15:40,600 --> 00:15:44,680 going, oh, that is so medieval. We didn't shock him or 250 00:15:44,680 --> 00:15:48,120 electrocute him. An E collar, if used properly, 251 00:15:48,200 --> 00:15:53,000 what it does is it sends a slight vibration to to the dog 252 00:15:53,240 --> 00:15:56,680 and it's almost like a tap to get their attention. 253 00:15:56,920 --> 00:15:59,960 And once you have the dog's attention, then you can train 254 00:15:59,960 --> 00:16:01,840 the dog. You can give the dog commands. 255 00:16:02,360 --> 00:16:06,000 Now, not to sound demeaning to any of us. 256 00:16:06,840 --> 00:16:09,000 Here's what I want to remind us of right here. 257 00:16:09,000 --> 00:16:13,320 Very front edge 2026, the statement that we're about to go 258 00:16:13,320 --> 00:16:15,440 back and review again and read again. 259 00:16:16,040 --> 00:16:18,280 I think that this is a Holy Spirit E collar. 260 00:16:18,760 --> 00:16:22,520 I think there's a Holy Spirit tap for us to say, hey, don't 261 00:16:22,720 --> 00:16:26,040 miss this. Don't miss this because it's so 262 00:16:26,040 --> 00:16:30,720 easy for us to gloss over. Go back to where Peter first 263 00:16:30,720 --> 00:16:32,880 started. Blessed be the God and the 264 00:16:32,880 --> 00:16:36,120 Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. That's it. 265 00:16:36,520 --> 00:16:41,120 Blessed be the God and the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. 266 00:16:41,400 --> 00:16:44,840 Do not miss that. That is huge because here's what 267 00:16:44,840 --> 00:16:46,920 I know. Everything that was behind you, 268 00:16:46,960 --> 00:16:49,360 everything that is ahead of you, everything that you're in the 269 00:16:49,360 --> 00:16:52,320 midst of right now, it is all about God. 270 00:16:52,320 --> 00:16:56,600 And it is all about you and I acknowledging God for who He 271 00:16:56,800 --> 00:17:01,480 really is. We cannot start 2026 with any 272 00:17:01,480 --> 00:17:07,040 measure of success without this small little tidbit of a worship 273 00:17:07,040 --> 00:17:09,800 service that Paul's or that Peter starts with here. 274 00:17:10,000 --> 00:17:13,119 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. 275 00:17:13,280 --> 00:17:16,839 That's where it's got to start, because we've got to remind 276 00:17:16,839 --> 00:17:21,400 ourselves that whatever captures my attention will eventually 277 00:17:21,400 --> 00:17:27,200 guide my steps. So if a guy or a girl is the 278 00:17:27,319 --> 00:17:31,320 object of your attention, don't be surprised when that guy or 279 00:17:31,320 --> 00:17:33,920 girl eventually guides your steps. 280 00:17:34,400 --> 00:17:39,160 If a title or a promotion or raise is the object of your 281 00:17:39,160 --> 00:17:42,880 attention, don't be surprised when it's that company that 282 00:17:42,880 --> 00:17:46,920 guides your steps. And if you and I are truly 283 00:17:46,920 --> 00:17:52,400 serious about God transforming us from the inside out and 284 00:17:52,400 --> 00:17:56,560 directing our steps into a new direction that honors His Word, 285 00:17:56,560 --> 00:18:01,600 His will, His ways, then God has got to be the central focus 286 00:18:01,600 --> 00:18:05,880 point of our attention, our affection, and our devotion. 287 00:18:06,080 --> 00:18:10,520 Whatever God's our steps, or whatever captures our heart, 288 00:18:10,760 --> 00:18:14,720 captures our attention, will eventually guide our steps. 289 00:18:14,880 --> 00:18:18,320 I love how Peter starts this off with a seemingly small little 290 00:18:18,320 --> 00:18:21,560 worship service, but that's not where he ends. 291 00:18:21,560 --> 00:18:24,160 Check this out back half of verse 3. 292 00:18:24,360 --> 00:18:27,880 According to his great mercy, he's caused us to be born again 293 00:18:28,120 --> 00:18:30,920 to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ 294 00:18:31,200 --> 00:18:34,440 from the dead. If you and I are to live faith 295 00:18:34,640 --> 00:18:38,600 focused, we have to remember that it all comes down to the 296 00:18:38,600 --> 00:18:42,120 second point. Here we go is I am not who I 297 00:18:42,120 --> 00:18:44,960 used to be because there's a new king over my life. 298 00:18:45,840 --> 00:18:49,120 Notice it doesn't say I'm not who I used to be because I made 299 00:18:49,120 --> 00:18:52,480 a good resolution. I'm not who I used to be because 300 00:18:52,480 --> 00:18:55,680 I learned from my mistakes. I'm not who I used to be because 301 00:18:55,680 --> 00:18:59,560 I have good intentions. No, no, I'm not who I used to be 302 00:18:59,560 --> 00:19:01,520 because there's a new king over my life. 303 00:19:01,920 --> 00:19:04,640 Let me get you to think in these terms. 304 00:19:05,320 --> 00:19:09,520 Every single person with us in the room and online, every 305 00:19:09,520 --> 00:19:16,160 single life has one throne, has room for one throne in that 306 00:19:16,160 --> 00:19:20,400 life, in and over that life. And what that means is when push 307 00:19:20,400 --> 00:19:25,360 comes to shove, there's one voice of authority that dictates 308 00:19:25,360 --> 00:19:27,800 the decisions and the choices that we make. 309 00:19:29,000 --> 00:19:33,680 Whoever sits on that one throne in our life, whoever has that 310 00:19:33,680 --> 00:19:36,920 singular voice of authority dictates the decisions and the 311 00:19:36,920 --> 00:19:39,480 choices that we make. Here's something else. 312 00:19:39,640 --> 00:19:43,240 You and I, every single one of us in the room online, we 313 00:19:43,240 --> 00:19:48,080 actually have been given the choice, the ability to choose 314 00:19:48,080 --> 00:19:52,840 who sits on that throne. For some of us, it may be your 315 00:19:52,840 --> 00:19:57,120 spouse, For some of you, it may be your family, maybe your kids. 316 00:19:57,120 --> 00:20:00,560 For some of you, it may be your sense of financial security. 317 00:20:01,280 --> 00:20:03,640 It may be a boss, it may be a supervisor. 318 00:20:05,160 --> 00:20:06,720 It may be it may be a best friend. 319 00:20:06,720 --> 00:20:10,040 For some of us, I think that this is probably the most likely 320 00:20:10,040 --> 00:20:14,000 scenario. It's ourselves, it's what we 321 00:20:14,000 --> 00:20:17,320 think, it's our preferences. It's our experiences. 322 00:20:17,320 --> 00:20:23,560 We put ourselves on that throne, or we can choose to put Jesus. 323 00:20:24,160 --> 00:20:30,080 On that throne you may say, OK Ben, first of all, that sounds 324 00:20:30,080 --> 00:20:33,360 really churchy. Second of all, why in the world 325 00:20:33,360 --> 00:20:36,840 would I do that? Why would I put Jesus on that 326 00:20:36,840 --> 00:20:40,160 throne instead of myself? Well, two reasons. 327 00:20:40,160 --> 00:20:43,720 Number one is because you and I, we need to understand and we 328 00:20:43,720 --> 00:20:47,560 need to remember that there is a God that created us and loved us 329 00:20:47,560 --> 00:20:51,160 so much that he sent Jesus, his only son, into this world to 330 00:20:51,160 --> 00:20:54,360 down a cross so that we can be forgiven of our sins. 331 00:20:55,080 --> 00:20:58,160 And this Jesus came into the world and he lived a perfect 332 00:20:58,160 --> 00:21:01,800 life and, and, and he healed and, and he performed miracles 333 00:21:01,800 --> 00:21:05,080 and he pointed people to a relationship with God and how 334 00:21:05,080 --> 00:21:06,760 they can have a relationship with God. 335 00:21:06,760 --> 00:21:10,040 And, and in the midst of his teachings, he even predicted his 336 00:21:10,040 --> 00:21:13,840 own execution and resurrection from the dead. 337 00:21:14,360 --> 00:21:16,440 And sure enough, he was executed. 338 00:21:16,440 --> 00:21:20,360 He was murdered on a cross. But three days later, after he 339 00:21:20,360 --> 00:21:24,880 was dead, three days later, he rose again from the dead. 340 00:21:26,600 --> 00:21:30,160 And that grave is still empty. As a matter of fact, you and I, 341 00:21:30,160 --> 00:21:35,680 we can go to Israel right now. And there are various spots to 342 00:21:35,680 --> 00:21:38,600 where people think that the empty grave is. 343 00:21:39,080 --> 00:21:41,040 They're not even sure which grave it is. 344 00:21:41,240 --> 00:21:43,760 There's various empty holes in the ground. 345 00:21:44,200 --> 00:21:47,560 Do you know why they didn't memorialize the empty tomb? 346 00:21:47,840 --> 00:21:50,400 Because there was nobody in it to memorialize. 347 00:21:50,880 --> 00:21:54,400 He's not there. And if Jesus rose from the dead, 348 00:21:54,600 --> 00:21:58,480 then anything is possible. And he did rise from the dead. 349 00:21:58,680 --> 00:22:01,960 And I just so happen to think that it's a really good idea to 350 00:22:01,960 --> 00:22:05,480 go with the one that called his own shot and that he was going 351 00:22:05,480 --> 00:22:07,840 to be murdered and resurrected himself from the dead. 352 00:22:08,360 --> 00:22:13,440 I just think that's a really good idea #2 how's your way been 353 00:22:13,440 --> 00:22:17,120 working for you? How's my way been working for 354 00:22:17,120 --> 00:22:19,440 me? It hasn't. 355 00:22:20,680 --> 00:22:25,280 So we settle for lesser things like New Year's resolution, New 356 00:22:25,280 --> 00:22:31,200 Year, New me, when we really just find out that just because 357 00:22:31,200 --> 00:22:34,320 a calendar flips over doesn't mean that we leave our past in 358 00:22:34,320 --> 00:22:37,160 the in a previous year. We need a savior. 359 00:22:37,160 --> 00:22:40,800 And you, you may say, well, Ben, why in the world would God do 360 00:22:40,800 --> 00:22:44,280 that for me? Ben, if you knew me, I wouldn't 361 00:22:44,280 --> 00:22:46,480 do that for me. Why would he do that for me? 362 00:22:47,400 --> 00:22:50,720 Because He loves you and because He's merciful and He's gracious 363 00:22:50,720 --> 00:22:54,280 and He's kind. And catch this, He's not 364 00:22:54,280 --> 00:22:57,240 finished with you. You are not too far gone. 365 00:22:57,240 --> 00:22:59,920 If you were here with us this morning or with us online, it 366 00:22:59,920 --> 00:23:02,320 doesn't matter what's in your past, what you've done, what 367 00:23:02,320 --> 00:23:04,920 you've been about, how much you know, how little you know. 368 00:23:05,160 --> 00:23:10,880 God is not finished with you yet, and the only way for us to 369 00:23:10,880 --> 00:23:16,840 live a full own true transformational life is to be 370 00:23:16,840 --> 00:23:21,360 born again, to lay down, to surrender our lives to Jesus and 371 00:23:21,360 --> 00:23:25,320 go Jesus, I can't do it. You take my brokenness and give 372 00:23:25,320 --> 00:23:28,720 me your healing. You take my sin and you give me 373 00:23:28,720 --> 00:23:30,600 your holiness and your righteousness. 374 00:23:31,040 --> 00:23:33,320 And the Bible teaches us that we'll be born again. 375 00:23:33,320 --> 00:23:36,560 And that is the only way that we have hope for living a 376 00:23:36,560 --> 00:23:42,200 transformed life. I'm different now not because I 377 00:23:42,200 --> 00:23:45,320 have gained education, because I've read a lot, because I have 378 00:23:45,320 --> 00:23:48,160 good intentions, because I have good ideas, but because there's 379 00:23:48,160 --> 00:23:52,560 a new king over my life. But the third element for us 380 00:23:52,560 --> 00:23:56,760 that we have to understand in order to live faith focused is 381 00:23:56,760 --> 00:24:01,080 to go back to what Peter said in first Peter, starting in verse 382 00:24:01,240 --> 00:24:04,040 four, he talks about an inheritance that is 383 00:24:04,040 --> 00:24:07,760 imperishable, undefiled and unfading, kept in heaven for 384 00:24:07,760 --> 00:24:10,440 you, who by God's power being guarded through faith for a 385 00:24:10,440 --> 00:24:13,120 salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. 386 00:24:13,280 --> 00:24:17,840 This is what we're reminded of. Third and final point of this 387 00:24:17,840 --> 00:24:21,680 section of our notes is what lies ahead of me is far greater 388 00:24:21,680 --> 00:24:24,840 than what lies behind me. What lies ahead of me is far 389 00:24:24,840 --> 00:24:27,440 greater than what lies behind me. 390 00:24:28,120 --> 00:24:31,800 When Peter talks about inheritance here, he's using, 391 00:24:31,800 --> 00:24:35,080 he's kind of tapping into an Old Testament language or Old 392 00:24:35,080 --> 00:24:40,000 Testament concept of inheritance and basically that verbiage and 393 00:24:40,000 --> 00:24:43,360 that concept was simply this. All that the father has, the 394 00:24:43,360 --> 00:24:47,480 descendants would be given. It is same thing for you. 395 00:24:47,720 --> 00:24:50,760 All that the father has, the descendants, the children would 396 00:24:50,760 --> 00:24:52,760 be given. Here's the keyword and what I 397 00:24:52,760 --> 00:24:54,920 just said. Given, not earned. 398 00:24:55,640 --> 00:24:58,480 It's given. Given not based off of anything 399 00:24:58,480 --> 00:25:00,800 that you've done or anything that you've accomplished or even 400 00:25:00,800 --> 00:25:04,360 your own potential, but given because you were a son or 401 00:25:04,360 --> 00:25:13,080 daughter of the Most High God. Isn't it interesting how much 402 00:25:13,080 --> 00:25:17,840 time we spend like worrying and stressing out over things that 403 00:25:17,840 --> 00:25:21,360 will eventually dull and fade and and wear out? 404 00:25:23,080 --> 00:25:26,640 Listen, I'm not at all saying that the things that that are in 405 00:25:26,640 --> 00:25:30,240 your life, the issues and the trials and the storms and the 406 00:25:30,240 --> 00:25:32,880 concerns in your life, I'm not saying they're meaningless. 407 00:25:33,280 --> 00:25:35,960 I'm not even, I'm not saying that they're worthless and I'm 408 00:25:35,960 --> 00:25:38,560 certainly not even saying that they're not worthy of giving 409 00:25:38,560 --> 00:25:41,080 over to God in prayer. As a matter of fact, if it's a 410 00:25:41,080 --> 00:25:43,920 big enough for you, if it's a big enough deal for us to worry 411 00:25:43,920 --> 00:25:46,280 about, it's a big enough deal for us to give over to God in 412 00:25:46,280 --> 00:25:49,800 prayer. What I am saying is a lot of 413 00:25:49,800 --> 00:25:53,280 times we lose sight of the things that we cannot lose 414 00:25:53,480 --> 00:25:56,400 because we're worried about not gaining the things that will 415 00:25:56,400 --> 00:25:59,560 eventually wear out. And here's what I would 416 00:25:59,560 --> 00:26:03,800 encourage you with is there's absolutely nothing. 417 00:26:04,200 --> 00:26:06,400 Come what may, there's absolutely nothing. 418 00:26:06,400 --> 00:26:10,000 If you've surrendered your life to Jesus Christ, there's nothing 419 00:26:10,000 --> 00:26:13,400 that can ever change the fact that you are a son or daughter 420 00:26:13,400 --> 00:26:17,840 of God Almighty. The fact that that that you are, 421 00:26:18,160 --> 00:26:22,040 that your, that your sins have been forgiven and that you will 422 00:26:22,040 --> 00:26:27,760 spend eternity with him face to face, your eternity is secured. 423 00:26:28,120 --> 00:26:33,720 Nothing will ever change that. So we can say from a very real 424 00:26:33,720 --> 00:26:39,440 and a very authentic and a very, very genuine point of view, what 425 00:26:39,440 --> 00:26:45,160 lies ahead of me is far greater than anything that lies behind 426 00:26:45,160 --> 00:26:48,160 me. That helps me. 427 00:26:48,240 --> 00:26:51,760 Those three reminders help me to be faith focused. 428 00:26:51,760 --> 00:26:56,920 We need those reminders in order to understand what it means to 429 00:26:56,920 --> 00:27:02,400 live and to walk by faith. Here's why that's so important. 430 00:27:03,600 --> 00:27:07,720 Here's why that's so important is if you and I, if we are going 431 00:27:07,720 --> 00:27:14,440 to live in hope and if hope is always future tense and it is 432 00:27:15,280 --> 00:27:19,560 and we have things that are going on in our lives, storms or 433 00:27:19,560 --> 00:27:22,360 trials or issues or complications or whatever we may 434 00:27:22,360 --> 00:27:25,320 call them that they will never, none of those things will ever 435 00:27:25,320 --> 00:27:30,360 last forever and they won't. Then what do we need to know 436 00:27:30,360 --> 00:27:34,160 about hope or what do we need to know about our current 437 00:27:34,160 --> 00:27:39,920 situations that do not rob us of our future hope? 438 00:27:40,240 --> 00:27:43,000 You follow me. What do we need to know about 439 00:27:43,000 --> 00:27:45,920 our current situations, whatever that situation or circumstance 440 00:27:45,920 --> 00:27:48,560 may be? What do we need to know about 441 00:27:48,560 --> 00:27:52,800 those situations that they will not rob us that knowing these 442 00:27:52,800 --> 00:27:56,840 three essential truths will keep us from being robbed of our 443 00:27:56,840 --> 00:28:02,040 future hope? Well, let's turn back to Peter 444 00:28:03,040 --> 00:28:05,480 first. Peter chapter 1 read with me 445 00:28:05,480 --> 00:28:09,040 starting in verse 6. In this you rejoice, though now 446 00:28:09,040 --> 00:28:12,560 for a little while if necessary, you've been grieved by various 447 00:28:12,560 --> 00:28:15,560 trials, so that the tested genuineness of your faith, more 448 00:28:15,560 --> 00:28:17,920 precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by 449 00:28:17,920 --> 00:28:21,760 fire, may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at 450 00:28:21,760 --> 00:28:27,600 the revelation of Jesus Christ. Though you have not seen Him, 451 00:28:27,840 --> 00:28:31,120 you love Him. Though you do not now see Him, 452 00:28:31,120 --> 00:28:33,480 you believe in Him and rejoice with joy. 453 00:28:33,480 --> 00:28:36,800 That is inexpressible and filled with glory, obtaining the 454 00:28:36,840 --> 00:28:42,240 outcome of your faith, the salvation of your souls. 455 00:28:43,040 --> 00:28:47,240 So what are three reminders that you and I here, January 11th, 456 00:28:47,240 --> 00:28:52,280 2025, need to hold on to about what we are currently going 457 00:28:52,280 --> 00:28:57,120 through so that what we're currently going through does not 458 00:28:57,120 --> 00:29:04,080 rob us of our future hope as we kind of turn towards the final 459 00:29:04,080 --> 00:29:06,160 lap of our time together this morning. 460 00:29:06,400 --> 00:29:08,680 If you're taking notes with us, here's the first thing. 461 00:29:09,000 --> 00:29:11,520 This isn't earth shattering. And as a matter of fact, I'm 462 00:29:11,520 --> 00:29:13,600 sure that I'm just reminding you of something that you already 463 00:29:13,600 --> 00:29:14,760 know. Here it is. 464 00:29:14,760 --> 00:29:16,480 God's never surprised by our trials. 465 00:29:17,200 --> 00:29:18,720 God's never surprised by our trials. 466 00:29:20,360 --> 00:29:25,440 Again, my guess is this morning, you probably are already 467 00:29:25,440 --> 00:29:29,320 familiar with that truth that God that what surprises me 468 00:29:29,320 --> 00:29:34,240 doesn't surprise God, that wasn't that that what surprises 469 00:29:34,240 --> 00:29:39,360 me doesn't surprise God. Let let's kind of put some feet 470 00:29:39,360 --> 00:29:45,160 on that to to take it more into the into the personal that that 471 00:29:45,160 --> 00:29:50,160 boatload of questions that was just recently dumped on you and 472 00:29:50,160 --> 00:29:54,200 your spouse. God wasn't surprised by that. 473 00:29:56,360 --> 00:30:03,880 The downturn in business that has now led to a lot of doubts 474 00:30:04,160 --> 00:30:08,040 about future plans. God wasn't surprised by that. 475 00:30:09,200 --> 00:30:11,680 The change of a relationship status. 476 00:30:12,600 --> 00:30:16,360 God wasn't surprised by that. You may go well, Ben, OK, I get 477 00:30:16,360 --> 00:30:17,800 it. God's not surprised by what 478 00:30:17,800 --> 00:30:19,720 surprises me. What's the big deal? 479 00:30:20,120 --> 00:30:23,720 It's a huge deal. You see, God's not surprised by 480 00:30:23,720 --> 00:30:25,440 what? By what surprises you. 481 00:30:25,720 --> 00:30:30,400 Neither is God surprised by where that leads you. 482 00:30:31,480 --> 00:30:35,000 You see, your story is not unraveling. 483 00:30:35,240 --> 00:30:37,480 Your story is still being written. 484 00:30:38,160 --> 00:30:41,920 And the author of your story is still God. 485 00:30:42,160 --> 00:30:46,360 He is loving, He is merciful, He is good, He is kind. 486 00:30:47,240 --> 00:30:49,520 Again, your story is not unraveling. 487 00:30:49,800 --> 00:30:55,080 Your story is being written. Let me kind of go a layer deeper 488 00:30:55,440 --> 00:30:58,720 on that thought. Number 2, Not only is God not 489 00:30:58,720 --> 00:31:02,280 surprised by our trials, God never wastes our trials. 490 00:31:02,280 --> 00:31:05,840 God never wastes our trials. There is nothing that you and I 491 00:31:05,840 --> 00:31:10,360 will ever go through simply because God's bored or simply 492 00:31:10,360 --> 00:31:13,000 because we just chalk it up to, well, that's life. 493 00:31:13,520 --> 00:31:16,000 There's no such thing in the Kingdom of God. 494 00:31:16,000 --> 00:31:19,280 There's no such thing as gratuitous suffering or 495 00:31:19,280 --> 00:31:25,560 suffering without a point. God uses all things, all things 496 00:31:25,560 --> 00:31:32,480 for our good and for His glory. Let me get you to look at the 497 00:31:32,480 --> 00:31:34,640 top of your note sheet, at the passage at the top. 498 00:31:34,880 --> 00:31:37,360 And if you have a Bible with you have, if you have a Bible, you 499 00:31:37,360 --> 00:31:39,680 can circle what I'm about to ask you to circle on your note 500 00:31:39,680 --> 00:31:41,000 sheet. You can circle it in your Bible. 501 00:31:41,200 --> 00:31:43,960 It's 2 words that change everything in this text. 502 00:31:44,200 --> 00:31:48,800 It's the words if necessary, if necessary. 503 00:31:50,000 --> 00:31:52,840 In this you rejoice. Now, though now for a little 504 00:31:52,840 --> 00:31:58,080 while, if necessary, you've been grieved by various trials. 505 00:31:58,400 --> 00:32:02,360 Let me tell you what if necessary means. 506 00:32:04,640 --> 00:32:08,240 If necessary means that God, in his infinite wisdom and His 507 00:32:08,240 --> 00:32:13,400 goodness, He knows not only how we need to grow in our 508 00:32:13,400 --> 00:32:18,360 relationship with Him, but the ways in which we will grow in 509 00:32:18,360 --> 00:32:26,160 our relationship with Him. If necessary, If necessary means 510 00:32:26,680 --> 00:32:31,280 that God allows certain things to grow us, to come into our 511 00:32:31,280 --> 00:32:35,480 lives, to grow us closer to Him and nothing more. 512 00:32:36,760 --> 00:32:39,000 You see, I think that there's a lot of us that we get in the 513 00:32:39,000 --> 00:32:42,720 midst of a trial or a storm or, or something in life and we sit 514 00:32:42,720 --> 00:32:46,080 there and go, God, can you just ease off? 515 00:32:46,200 --> 00:32:47,960 Why do you got to keep pouring it all? 516 00:32:48,200 --> 00:32:52,640 Listen that God knows what it will take to grow you closer to 517 00:32:52,640 --> 00:32:56,200 Him and the ways that you can only grow close to Him. 518 00:32:56,400 --> 00:33:00,760 But He also knows because He is a good and loving Father, He 519 00:33:00,760 --> 00:33:06,720 will allow certain things and not an inch more if necessary. 520 00:33:07,000 --> 00:33:13,680 Means that even though I may not understand the methods, I trust 521 00:33:13,680 --> 00:33:17,720 the heart of God to do what seems like it hurts. 522 00:33:18,240 --> 00:33:22,960 But I trust knowing that God is actually using what hurts to 523 00:33:22,960 --> 00:33:28,200 bring about my ultimate healing. Let me get you to think of some 524 00:33:28,200 --> 00:33:30,600 storms and trials in your life. Maybe there's something going on 525 00:33:30,600 --> 00:33:35,160 in your life even now. Let me get you to to to reframe 526 00:33:35,480 --> 00:33:36,760 what's going on in your life right now. 527 00:33:37,040 --> 00:33:43,160 Think of God as that world class master surgeon and in a in, in 528 00:33:43,160 --> 00:33:47,680 any, any surgery, a surgeon is going to make strategic cuts and 529 00:33:47,680 --> 00:33:51,960 incisions not to inflict pain, but to bring about healing. 530 00:33:53,280 --> 00:33:56,920 Maybe what God is allowing us to go through now, maybe what God's 531 00:33:56,920 --> 00:34:00,000 allowing you or your family to walk through right now. 532 00:34:00,640 --> 00:34:04,840 You feel the pain of the cut and the incision, but think of it 533 00:34:04,840 --> 00:34:08,960 this way, the cuts and the incisions are necessary on you, 534 00:34:09,239 --> 00:34:13,520 are necessary to remove the harmful and the deadly cancer 535 00:34:13,719 --> 00:34:18,199 from within you. You see, God is not allowing 536 00:34:18,199 --> 00:34:22,000 these storms and trials to afflict you in a way of 537 00:34:22,000 --> 00:34:26,880 punishment, but in a way of bringing you back to Him. 538 00:34:27,600 --> 00:34:31,360 He never wastes anything in our lives. 539 00:34:32,040 --> 00:34:35,120 Third thing that we need to keep in mind about what we're 540 00:34:35,120 --> 00:34:40,080 currently going through is God has saved us and is saving us. 541 00:34:41,040 --> 00:34:43,520 Let me kind of quickly kind of walk through this. 542 00:34:44,440 --> 00:34:47,360 If there's been a time and moment in your life to where you 543 00:34:47,360 --> 00:34:50,920 ask Jesus to forgive you of your sins based off of what He did 544 00:34:50,920 --> 00:34:54,560 for you on the cross, that you asked Him to take control of 545 00:34:54,560 --> 00:34:57,320 your life and you committed to following Him for the rest of 546 00:34:57,320 --> 00:35:01,480 your life, you were at that very moment you were saved. 547 00:35:01,920 --> 00:35:05,880 In other words, if 15 seconds after that moment of surrender 548 00:35:06,040 --> 00:35:09,280 you had died, you would have opened your eyes and seen Jesus 549 00:35:09,280 --> 00:35:12,520 face to face in heaven for all of eternity. 550 00:35:12,680 --> 00:35:18,520 That is secured. That is you, God having saved 551 00:35:18,520 --> 00:35:20,440 you. If you want the big theological 552 00:35:20,440 --> 00:35:24,800 word, for whatever reason, it's the word justification that if 553 00:35:24,800 --> 00:35:28,240 you've surrendered your life to Jesus, we have been justified 554 00:35:28,240 --> 00:35:30,960 before God. But not only have we been 555 00:35:30,960 --> 00:35:35,920 justified, and not only has God saved us, but God is saving us. 556 00:35:35,960 --> 00:35:40,600 You see, every single day that we walk with God, we spend time 557 00:35:40,600 --> 00:35:44,000 with God in prayer and in his word, and every single day that 558 00:35:44,000 --> 00:35:48,920 we walk with Jesus is another day that we're becoming more and 559 00:35:48,920 --> 00:35:52,080 more like Jesus. And becoming more and more like 560 00:35:52,160 --> 00:35:56,640 Jesus means that it's a new day for Jesus to kind of chip away 561 00:35:56,640 --> 00:35:59,720 and knock off the core of our main issue. 562 00:35:59,880 --> 00:36:01,800 Do you know what the core of our main issue is? 563 00:36:01,960 --> 00:36:05,800 It's us. So every day that I walk with 564 00:36:05,840 --> 00:36:08,800 Jesus is a new day that I'm becoming more like Jesus. 565 00:36:08,960 --> 00:36:12,160 And in that way, he is saving us. 566 00:36:12,280 --> 00:36:14,920 There's an old adage out there that says, listen, if you think 567 00:36:14,920 --> 00:36:17,040 I'm a jerk now, you should have met me five years ago. 568 00:36:18,320 --> 00:36:21,560 The big theological word there is sanctification. 569 00:36:21,720 --> 00:36:27,200 We are being sanctified and all of us need to continue being 570 00:36:27,200 --> 00:36:30,880 sanctified. You see, we have been saved and 571 00:36:30,880 --> 00:36:35,640 we are being saved. So never allow what's going on 572 00:36:35,640 --> 00:36:41,200 in your life right now to rob you of that future hope. 573 00:36:41,520 --> 00:36:46,240 What is that future hope is simply this. 574 00:36:46,920 --> 00:36:52,080 Go back to first Peter 17 to result in praise and glory and 575 00:36:52,080 --> 00:36:54,160 honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ. 576 00:36:55,200 --> 00:36:59,000 Right now, every single one of us, we worship Jesus. 577 00:36:59,000 --> 00:37:01,960 We love Jesus by faith, not by sight. 578 00:37:02,120 --> 00:37:05,120 There's not a single one of us that have seen Jesus face to 579 00:37:05,120 --> 00:37:08,960 face this past week. I was, I was sick, I was in bed 580 00:37:08,960 --> 00:37:13,360 for four days and after cough medicine and Nyquil, I think I 581 00:37:13,360 --> 00:37:19,960 may have seen something. It wasn't Jesus, it wasn't 582 00:37:19,960 --> 00:37:22,680 Jesus. None of us have seen Jesus with 583 00:37:22,680 --> 00:37:24,320 our own eyes. But one day we will. 584 00:37:25,080 --> 00:37:30,720 One day we will all see Jesus with our own eyes, face to face. 585 00:37:31,600 --> 00:37:36,160 And here is what I want so badly to be able to do. 586 00:37:36,720 --> 00:37:40,720 I want so badly to be able to when I see Jesus face to face, 587 00:37:41,440 --> 00:37:44,520 if I'm able to get any words out at all. 588 00:37:45,120 --> 00:37:49,840 Which is highly doubtful. I want to see Jesus face to face 589 00:37:49,840 --> 00:37:53,760 and to fall down at his feet and to say thank you, thank you, 590 00:37:53,760 --> 00:37:55,920 thank you. This is what you gave your life 591 00:37:55,920 --> 00:37:59,080 for. And anything good that ever came 592 00:37:59,120 --> 00:38:02,040 out of my life is all a result of you. 593 00:38:02,240 --> 00:38:07,760 It's never me, it's all you. All glory and honor and praise 594 00:38:08,080 --> 00:38:13,400 all go to you Jesus. And living with that end in mind 595 00:38:14,240 --> 00:38:19,080 helps me navigate whatever I may be going through today. 596 00:38:20,960 --> 00:38:23,440 So here's what I want to do as we close out. 597 00:38:23,440 --> 00:38:26,880 I want to turn it to the Super personal and I want to walk us 598 00:38:26,880 --> 00:38:30,760 through four key questions very, very quickly this morning. 599 00:38:30,880 --> 00:38:33,560 Here's the first one. I want you to wrestle with these 600 00:38:34,040 --> 00:38:36,600 this morning. I want you to continue wrestling 601 00:38:36,600 --> 00:38:39,600 with them this week. What or who has captured my 602 00:38:39,600 --> 00:38:43,920 attention? What is the object of your 603 00:38:43,920 --> 00:38:48,080 desire? What or who has captured your 604 00:38:48,080 --> 00:38:52,800 attention? It could be a future version of 605 00:38:52,800 --> 00:38:56,800 you. It could be a a relationship. 606 00:38:57,520 --> 00:39:00,200 It could be a a promotion or a title. 607 00:39:00,600 --> 00:39:02,680 It could be you in a different setting. 608 00:39:03,720 --> 00:39:07,040 Remember, what captures my attention eventually guides my 609 00:39:07,040 --> 00:39:10,920 steps. I can think of no better way to 610 00:39:10,920 --> 00:39:15,280 start off 2026 then asking Jesus. 611 00:39:15,360 --> 00:39:17,320 Jesus, would you recapture my attention? 612 00:39:17,920 --> 00:39:22,920 Would you put Holy Spirit blinders on me to where when I 613 00:39:22,920 --> 00:39:25,520 look straight ahead, I just see you. 614 00:39:25,520 --> 00:39:29,040 When I look to my left, to my right, I just see you. 615 00:39:30,040 --> 00:39:34,040 Because Jesus above everything else, I want you to guide my 616 00:39:34,040 --> 00:39:36,440 steps. Nobody else. 617 00:39:36,560 --> 00:39:39,880 Not myself, not a company, not a group of friends. 618 00:39:39,880 --> 00:39:42,600 I want you, Jesus, to guide my steps. 619 00:39:44,320 --> 00:39:47,560 But in order for that to happen, Jesus has to become the object 620 00:39:47,880 --> 00:39:50,560 of our attention, our affection, and our devotion. 621 00:39:51,120 --> 00:39:54,720 Second question, what or who is king over my life? 622 00:39:55,840 --> 00:39:57,560 What or who is king over my life? 623 00:39:57,960 --> 00:40:01,000 Here on a Sunday morning at church, it's easy to go, whoa, 624 00:40:01,000 --> 00:40:07,560 Jesus, I'm going to ask that we kind of look really, really deep 625 00:40:07,560 --> 00:40:09,920 within us. Be really, really honest with 626 00:40:09,920 --> 00:40:13,360 ourselves about ourselves. Who is ultimately, when push 627 00:40:13,360 --> 00:40:16,280 comes to shove, who's ultimately making the call in our life? 628 00:40:16,720 --> 00:40:21,560 Who has ultimate authority in our life when we want to go a 629 00:40:21,560 --> 00:40:23,960 certain way, when we want to make a certain decision or a 630 00:40:23,960 --> 00:40:27,520 choice, yet the Bible says something else. 631 00:40:28,360 --> 00:40:33,640 Do we allow the Bible to to win when we have somebody else in 632 00:40:33,640 --> 00:40:37,080 our life that that is pressuring us to go a certain way and to 633 00:40:37,080 --> 00:40:41,000 make a certain call? Yet that's different from what 634 00:40:41,000 --> 00:40:44,520 the Bible tells me. Do I allow the Bible to win? 635 00:40:45,920 --> 00:40:48,680 Who is sitting on the throne of my life? 636 00:40:48,680 --> 00:40:53,560 Who is the king of my life #3 in what ways have I allowed my 637 00:40:53,560 --> 00:40:56,880 trials to define me rather than refine me? 638 00:40:57,680 --> 00:41:00,320 That's a big one. In what ways have I allowed my 639 00:41:00,320 --> 00:41:02,400 trials, the things that I'm going through, the things that I 640 00:41:02,400 --> 00:41:06,760 have gone through to define me rather than refine me. 641 00:41:10,000 --> 00:41:12,880 There's a lot of times that I'm convinced and it's so easy for 642 00:41:12,880 --> 00:41:16,400 us to do. We get stuck in the trial, we 643 00:41:16,400 --> 00:41:20,240 get stuck in that trial and we allow that trial to define us. 644 00:41:22,000 --> 00:41:23,720 This is what's been taken away from me. 645 00:41:23,720 --> 00:41:26,400 This is what wasn't granted to me. 646 00:41:27,320 --> 00:41:29,000 This is the road that I've walked. 647 00:41:29,000 --> 00:41:32,880 This is the journey that I've gone down that that's that's a 648 00:41:32,880 --> 00:41:38,680 trial that has defined me. A trial that refunds me is God 649 00:41:38,680 --> 00:41:41,560 led me through that season and out of that season. 650 00:41:41,760 --> 00:41:43,640 I would never want to walk that road again. 651 00:41:43,640 --> 00:41:47,720 But out of that season I am so grateful because this is who He 652 00:41:47,720 --> 00:41:52,200 now has caused me to become. You see, the difference between 653 00:41:52,200 --> 00:41:56,000 define and refine is the difference between victim and 654 00:41:56,000 --> 00:41:59,600 victor. What trials have I allowed to 655 00:41:59,600 --> 00:42:03,240 define me rather than refine me and then last question for us 656 00:42:03,240 --> 00:42:05,720 this morning. What would it look like for me 657 00:42:06,080 --> 00:42:08,880 to let go and lean fully into the hope of Jesus. 658 00:42:09,840 --> 00:42:13,800 I am so 100% convinced that there are men, there are women, 659 00:42:13,800 --> 00:42:17,280 there are kids, there are students with us this morning in 660 00:42:17,280 --> 00:42:20,360 the room online called Riverbend home may be new to Riverbend 661 00:42:20,760 --> 00:42:27,520 that God has a calling on your life that that these 21 days are 662 00:42:27,520 --> 00:42:31,240 not about asking God, God, what do you want me to do? 663 00:42:31,360 --> 00:42:35,200 He's already made that clear. You know what God wants you to 664 00:42:35,200 --> 00:42:37,400 do. You're just scared and hesitant 665 00:42:37,400 --> 00:42:40,760 to do it. My hope and my prayer is though 666 00:42:40,760 --> 00:42:45,240 over these next 21 days, it would be OK God, I'm going to 667 00:42:45,240 --> 00:42:49,200 let go of my fear and my hesitation and I'm going to lean 668 00:42:49,200 --> 00:42:51,880 fully back into your hope through obedience. 669 00:42:52,120 --> 00:42:54,160 I'm going to follow you no matter what. 670 00:42:55,560 --> 00:42:59,000 What would it look like if you were to let go and to lean fully 671 00:42:59,000 --> 00:43:01,640 back into the hope of Jesus this morning? 672 00:43:02,480 --> 00:43:05,200 Here's what we're about to do. I'm going to pray over us. 673 00:43:06,200 --> 00:43:08,960 And this prayer after, after we pray, we're going to open up the 674 00:43:08,960 --> 00:43:11,960 front just for a time for us to come down and be able to pray 675 00:43:11,960 --> 00:43:14,160 together. Maybe you want to come down and 676 00:43:14,160 --> 00:43:16,880 pray on your own. Maybe you want to bring somebody 677 00:43:16,880 --> 00:43:19,120 with you, or maybe you want to pray with a pastor. 678 00:43:19,920 --> 00:43:23,960 Anything and everything will be an option for you, but we want 679 00:43:23,960 --> 00:43:29,960 to give you the opportunity to start 2026 in a mode of here I 680 00:43:29,960 --> 00:43:33,000 am God, do whatever you want to in my life. 681 00:43:33,520 --> 00:43:39,400 God, I love you and I trust you. What areas do you need to trust 682 00:43:39,400 --> 00:43:41,720 him in this morning? Let's pray. 683 00:43:41,960 --> 00:43:44,560 God, we thank you for your word. God, we thank you for your 684 00:43:44,560 --> 00:43:49,920 presence with us. God, we thank you that you call 685 00:43:49,920 --> 00:43:53,480 us to live by faith and and everything that that means. 686 00:43:54,280 --> 00:43:58,200 God how it reframes what we may be currently going through. 687 00:43:58,200 --> 00:44:01,800 God, I pray that you would remind us that the only way for 688 00:44:01,800 --> 00:44:04,920 real and true and lasting and genuine and authentic 689 00:44:04,920 --> 00:44:09,440 transformation to take place is by making you king of our life. 690 00:44:10,680 --> 00:44:13,040 God, if that's the step that we need to take this morning, God, 691 00:44:13,040 --> 00:44:18,360 I pray that we would come down and God that we would ask you to 692 00:44:18,360 --> 00:44:21,560 take your rightful position on the throne of our lives this 693 00:44:21,560 --> 00:44:24,200 morning. God, maybe this morning we need 694 00:44:24,200 --> 00:44:28,240 to be reminded that what lies ahead of us is much greater than 695 00:44:28,240 --> 00:44:32,640 what lies behind us. God, if there's an area of our 696 00:44:32,640 --> 00:44:36,840 life that you still need to save us from, that you're still, that 697 00:44:36,840 --> 00:44:40,360 you're still working on, God, we want to give those areas over to 698 00:44:40,360 --> 00:44:43,640 you and we want to give you full permission to go into the deep 699 00:44:43,640 --> 00:44:48,600 places of our souls and to do the deep work of your spirit. 700 00:44:49,240 --> 00:44:51,680 God, whatever you're calling us to God, I pray that we'll be 701 00:44:51,680 --> 00:44:56,320 faithful and obedient to respond to you, to surrender to you, and 702 00:44:56,320 --> 00:44:58,600 to trust you. And it's in Jesus name that we 703 00:44:58,600 --> 00:44:59,960 pray. Amen. 704 00:45:04,840 --> 00:45:07,840 Thank you for listening to Riverbend Church's podcast. 705 00:45:07,880 --> 00:45:11,200 To find out more about this message or Riverbend Church, 706 00:45:11,360 --> 00:45:14,560 connect with us online at Riverbend Church dot live.