1 00:00:00,400 --> 00:00:03,400 May you please be upstanding as we welcome Pastor Chris to come 2 00:00:03,400 --> 00:00:05,800 and give us the Word. Let's stand up and encourage 3 00:00:05,800 --> 00:00:07,920 Pastor Chris to give us the Word. 4 00:00:12,880 --> 00:00:15,280 Actually, it's not me speaking today, it's someone very special 5 00:00:15,280 --> 00:00:16,560 that I'd love to introduce to you. 6 00:00:16,560 --> 00:00:20,840 God's house do have a seat. And this is this is Susie. 7 00:00:20,840 --> 00:00:22,200 Actually, just give her a Clapper. 8 00:00:22,200 --> 00:00:24,520 She's coming forward. Let's celebrate Susie. 9 00:00:28,360 --> 00:00:31,320 I'm excited God's house to be able to introduce you to Susie. 10 00:00:31,320 --> 00:00:35,080 She's someone who has a a real passion for Africa, spent lots 11 00:00:35,080 --> 00:00:39,920 of time in Uganda, S South Africa, sister lives in Tanzania 12 00:00:39,960 --> 00:00:41,160 and probably some other countries. 13 00:00:41,160 --> 00:00:42,440 Kenya. Is there a Kenya connection? 14 00:00:43,680 --> 00:00:46,200 Oh, granny's in Kenya. OK, was in Kenya. 15 00:00:46,840 --> 00:00:50,720 So this is Susie. And Pastor Fatima also asked me 16 00:00:50,720 --> 00:00:54,920 to mention that Susie's a doctor and AGP and she started a 17 00:00:54,920 --> 00:00:59,520 charity, an organisation called Papaya, which is which stands 18 00:00:59,520 --> 00:01:03,160 for Parents Against Phone Addiction in Young Adults, Young 19 00:01:03,160 --> 00:01:06,280 Adolescents. And it's a wonderful charity, 20 00:01:06,280 --> 00:01:09,320 national reach now quite a big impact across the country. 21 00:01:09,680 --> 00:01:12,280 She's written a book which we really recommend. 22 00:01:12,400 --> 00:01:15,600 And Pastor Fatima was asking if there's a way that you guys can 23 00:01:15,600 --> 00:01:17,760 have copies and we've got quite a good stock at Hope Chapel. 24 00:01:18,040 --> 00:01:22,480 So yeah, just want to commend Susie to you in many ways as and 25 00:01:22,480 --> 00:01:24,240 she's going to share an encouragement with us now. 26 00:01:25,320 --> 00:01:28,760 Oh, thank you very much. It's great to be with you here 27 00:01:28,760 --> 00:01:30,920 today. And we're just going to think 28 00:01:31,160 --> 00:01:35,480 about thankfulness and how important our perspective is on 29 00:01:35,480 --> 00:01:38,040 thankfulness. So to start with, I think the 30 00:01:38,040 --> 00:01:40,920 kids have been amazing. But I actually was going to 31 00:01:40,920 --> 00:01:45,240 start by reading the children a story, but I think it's quite 32 00:01:45,240 --> 00:01:47,720 relevant to the the grown-ups too. 33 00:01:47,960 --> 00:01:49,600 So should we go on to the next of some pictures? 34 00:01:49,600 --> 00:01:50,280 Yes. Brilliant. 35 00:01:50,280 --> 00:01:54,280 You might know this one. A little old lady lived all by 36 00:01:54,280 --> 00:01:58,080 herself, with a table and chairs and a jug on the shelf. 37 00:01:58,480 --> 00:02:01,800 A wise old man heard her grumble and grouse. 38 00:02:02,120 --> 00:02:06,480 There's not enough room in my house, wise old man. 39 00:02:06,480 --> 00:02:10,240 Won't you help me, please? My house is a squash and a 40 00:02:10,240 --> 00:02:14,280 squeeze. Take in your hen, said the wise 41 00:02:14,280 --> 00:02:16,720 old man. Take in my hen. 42 00:02:16,840 --> 00:02:20,080 What a curious plan. Well, the hen laid an egg on the 43 00:02:20,080 --> 00:02:24,040 far side rug and flapped around the room, knocking over the jug. 44 00:02:24,520 --> 00:02:26,840 The little old lady cried. What shall I do? 45 00:02:26,960 --> 00:02:29,920 It was perfect for one and it's tiny for two. 46 00:02:30,160 --> 00:02:33,360 My nose has a tickle and there's no room to sneeze. 47 00:02:33,520 --> 00:02:35,920 My house is a squash and a squeeze. 48 00:02:36,280 --> 00:02:39,680 And she said, Wise old man, won't you help me, please? 49 00:02:39,920 --> 00:02:42,320 My house is a squash and a squeeze. 50 00:02:42,680 --> 00:02:45,080 Take in your goat, said the wise old man. 51 00:02:45,480 --> 00:02:48,400 Taking my goat. What a curious plan. 52 00:02:48,560 --> 00:02:52,000 Or the goat chewed the curtains and trogged on the egg and sat 53 00:02:52,000 --> 00:02:56,040 down and nibbled the table leg. The little old lady cried Glory 54 00:02:56,040 --> 00:02:58,440 Bee. It was tiny for two and it's 55 00:02:58,440 --> 00:03:01,160 titty for three. The henpeck's a goat and the 56 00:03:01,160 --> 00:03:04,160 goat's got fleas. My house is a squash and a 57 00:03:04,160 --> 00:03:07,720 squeeze, she said. Wise old man, won't you play 58 00:03:07,720 --> 00:03:10,600 with me, please? My house is a squash and a 59 00:03:10,600 --> 00:03:14,840 squeeze will it glows on to say the little old lady cried, 60 00:03:14,840 --> 00:03:17,560 Heavens alive. It was teeny for four and it's 61 00:03:17,560 --> 00:03:20,440 wincey for five. I'm tearing my hair out, I'm 62 00:03:20,440 --> 00:03:23,160 down on my knees. My house is a squash and a 63 00:03:23,160 --> 00:03:26,720 squeeze, she said. Wise old man, won't you help me, 64 00:03:26,720 --> 00:03:29,080 please? My house is a squash and a 65 00:03:29,080 --> 00:03:32,920 squeeze. Take them all out, said the wise 66 00:03:32,920 --> 00:03:35,280 old man. But then I'll be back when I 67 00:03:35,280 --> 00:03:38,440 first began. So she opened the window and out 68 00:03:38,440 --> 00:03:40,320 through the hen. That's better. 69 00:03:40,320 --> 00:03:43,600 At least I can sneeze again. She shooed out the goat and she 70 00:03:43,600 --> 00:03:47,400 shoved out the pig. My house is beginning to feel 71 00:03:47,400 --> 00:03:49,720 pretty big. She huffed and she puffed and 72 00:03:49,720 --> 00:03:52,280 she pushed out the cow. Just look at my house. 73 00:03:52,400 --> 00:03:56,440 It's a normal enormous now. Thank you, old man, for the work 74 00:03:56,440 --> 00:03:58,880 you have done. It was weenie for five. 75 00:03:58,960 --> 00:04:00,680 It's gigantic. For one. 76 00:04:00,920 --> 00:04:03,600 There's no need to grumble. There's no need to grouse. 77 00:04:03,880 --> 00:04:08,080 There's plenty of room in my house and now she's full of 78 00:04:08,080 --> 00:04:12,160 frolics and fiddledy dees. It isn't a squash and it isn't a 79 00:04:12,160 --> 00:04:14,840 squeeze. Yes, she's full of frocks and 80 00:04:14,840 --> 00:04:17,839 fiddledy Dee. So it isn't a squash and it 81 00:04:17,839 --> 00:04:20,519 isn't a squeeze. So today I think we're going to 82 00:04:20,519 --> 00:04:24,240 look through the eyes of a children's storybook to really 83 00:04:24,240 --> 00:04:28,840 focus on thankfulness and our perspective that actually the 84 00:04:28,840 --> 00:04:33,520 lens with which we choose to see our situation is so key. 85 00:04:33,800 --> 00:04:36,960 Because actually the little old lady, her house didn't change 86 00:04:36,960 --> 00:04:39,880 size at all, did it? It was exactly the same house. 87 00:04:40,200 --> 00:04:43,920 But through changing her perspective on it, she actually 88 00:04:43,920 --> 00:04:47,360 was able to be thankful. Or, you know, this is the 89 00:04:47,360 --> 00:04:50,920 classic, is your cup half empty or half full? 90 00:04:51,040 --> 00:04:54,880 It's the same cup, isn't it? But I want to stay here today in 91 00:04:55,040 --> 00:04:57,640 Jesus name. Our cup is actually full. 92 00:04:58,040 --> 00:05:01,720 None of us have 1/2 empty cup. Our cup is full. 93 00:05:02,080 --> 00:05:06,080 So our perspective is the difference between joy and 94 00:05:06,080 --> 00:05:11,200 sorrow, gratitude and UN ungratefulness, forgiveness and 95 00:05:11,200 --> 00:05:13,960 unforgiveness. And our perspective can even 96 00:05:13,960 --> 00:05:16,800 make the difference between faith and unbelief. 97 00:05:17,680 --> 00:05:21,080 And why is it some people can navigate challenges with a 98 00:05:21,080 --> 00:05:26,160 smile, whilst others are flawed by seemingly small events? 99 00:05:26,600 --> 00:05:29,880 And I would just want to say, I often think it's down to the 100 00:05:29,880 --> 00:05:33,720 lens or the perspective with which we see things. 101 00:05:34,200 --> 00:05:35,720 So. So today we're going to focus on 102 00:05:35,720 --> 00:05:40,000 thankfulness and why our perspective is so important. 103 00:05:40,240 --> 00:05:42,720 Now what I love, we've already done this this morning. 104 00:05:43,560 --> 00:05:45,520 Fatima has already LED us in being thankful. 105 00:05:45,520 --> 00:05:48,160 But we're going to do it again because we can never do it 106 00:05:48,160 --> 00:05:50,440 enough. Let's take a moment to think 107 00:05:50,440 --> 00:05:52,720 about what we have to be thankful for. 108 00:05:53,040 --> 00:05:57,160 The birth of Jesus. The wonder of a servant king who 109 00:05:57,160 --> 00:06:02,640 was born and saved the world. God's miraculous intervention to 110 00:06:02,640 --> 00:06:05,720 save mankind by sending his own Son. 111 00:06:06,520 --> 00:06:09,480 God's gift of grace. We've heard about that just in 112 00:06:09,480 --> 00:06:11,800 the birthday of an 18 year old girl here. 113 00:06:12,040 --> 00:06:14,240 God's gift of grace to each one of us. 114 00:06:14,440 --> 00:06:18,240 His unconditional love for us, His kindness, His mercy, His 115 00:06:18,240 --> 00:06:22,240 forgiveness, His death on the cross so that each one of us may 116 00:06:22,240 --> 00:06:26,760 be forgiven, That on the cross sin was defeated once and for 117 00:06:26,760 --> 00:06:30,000 all. Jesus is healing, a miraculous 118 00:06:30,000 --> 00:06:33,760 power in our in our lives, His provision of our needs. 119 00:06:33,760 --> 00:06:35,920 We've heard that in the testimonies for today. 120 00:06:36,160 --> 00:06:40,840 He provides for us. We are intimately alone and 121 00:06:40,840 --> 00:06:45,000 loved by God. We have the scripture, the truth 122 00:06:45,000 --> 00:06:48,040 to live by. We are forgiven. 123 00:06:48,280 --> 00:06:51,640 And in that we have the truth that we can forgive others and 124 00:06:51,640 --> 00:06:55,680 the freedom to forgive others, that God's Kingdom is upside 125 00:06:55,680 --> 00:06:58,800 down In his Kingdom, all are welcome. 126 00:07:00,120 --> 00:07:03,240 We know the truth and the freedom, and we find life in 127 00:07:03,240 --> 00:07:05,400 him. So that's just a few. 128 00:07:05,400 --> 00:07:07,480 And actually, I want us to keep going. 129 00:07:07,480 --> 00:07:10,720 I know we've done this already, but let's just shout out a few 130 00:07:10,720 --> 00:07:13,640 more truths of the Kingdom of God that we're thankful for, 131 00:07:13,640 --> 00:07:16,000 because in that we change our perspective. 132 00:07:16,000 --> 00:07:19,520 Let's just have one or two more thankfulness shouted out things 133 00:07:19,520 --> 00:07:23,760 that we're thankful for today. The Holy Spirit, I missed that 134 00:07:23,760 --> 00:07:25,160 one out. I'm so glad you're here. 135 00:07:25,320 --> 00:07:27,720 We have the Holy Spirit that we're thankful for. 136 00:07:27,920 --> 00:07:31,080 Let's have some more things that we're thankful for in Christ 137 00:07:33,200 --> 00:07:36,600 healing, God's healing power that is readily available for 138 00:07:36,600 --> 00:07:42,760 each one of us. Salvation, that in Christ we are 139 00:07:42,760 --> 00:07:46,520 saved. So amazing. 140 00:07:46,520 --> 00:07:49,040 I just want us to focus. And I love the fact that this 141 00:07:49,040 --> 00:07:52,600 has been building this morning, that we have an attitude of 142 00:07:52,600 --> 00:07:55,440 gratitude. Our mindsets and thoughts are 143 00:07:55,440 --> 00:07:57,760 fixed on Jesus. And I hope, you know, I'm 144 00:07:57,760 --> 00:08:00,960 feeling better from being in this place of worship and 145 00:08:00,960 --> 00:08:04,880 spending, you know, this amazing time thanking God, this service 146 00:08:04,880 --> 00:08:07,240 of Thanksgiving. And we're already there. 147 00:08:07,560 --> 00:08:11,000 And I think as Christians, we are inherently thankful. 148 00:08:11,400 --> 00:08:14,800 I really believe this. Think about it, all the things 149 00:08:14,800 --> 00:08:17,440 that we have to be thankful for, to be grateful for. 150 00:08:18,200 --> 00:08:22,560 And if we strip back everything to our salvation and what God's 151 00:08:22,560 --> 00:08:26,760 done for us, I really think if we're just focusing on the cross 152 00:08:26,760 --> 00:08:30,240 and on Jesus and on his birth and resurrection, our 153 00:08:30,440 --> 00:08:34,280 overwhelming emotion, all that we have actually is 154 00:08:34,280 --> 00:08:37,120 thankfulness. Think about that. 155 00:08:37,120 --> 00:08:40,720 If you take away everything else, what are we left with when 156 00:08:40,720 --> 00:08:43,640 we focus on the cross? It's thankfulness. 157 00:08:44,440 --> 00:08:48,360 But I think for some of us, life can get in the way. 158 00:08:49,080 --> 00:08:52,120 What is it that stops us waking up in the morning just 159 00:08:52,120 --> 00:08:55,720 proclaiming that good news with that heart of thankfulness? 160 00:08:56,040 --> 00:09:00,080 Because I feel like I should be skipping down the street 161 00:09:00,280 --> 00:09:03,240 praising Jesus. But why is it that I find it 162 00:09:03,240 --> 00:09:06,160 hard sometimes that I'm bogged down in the morning, that that's 163 00:09:06,160 --> 00:09:09,840 not the attitude that I wake up with, and that but I love the 164 00:09:09,840 --> 00:09:12,840 fact that it grows when we're in God's presence. 165 00:09:14,160 --> 00:09:18,760 And as Christians, I'm, I think I'm gonna just for myself say 166 00:09:18,760 --> 00:09:22,520 that I don't always walk in the thankfulness that I should. 167 00:09:22,840 --> 00:09:26,200 I'm not going to call anyone else out, but I think in me, I 168 00:09:26,200 --> 00:09:29,600 have blocks to my thankfulness. And I want us to think about, 169 00:09:29,600 --> 00:09:33,040 I'm going to talk about 3 blocks to our thankfulness today that 170 00:09:33,040 --> 00:09:36,800 if any of them resonate and we can shift them away, then I 171 00:09:36,800 --> 00:09:39,320 think our attitude of gratitude can comes back. 172 00:09:39,880 --> 00:09:42,720 So one, we're just going to think about comparison. 173 00:09:43,120 --> 00:09:47,040 So we live in a world where actually everyone else seems to 174 00:09:47,040 --> 00:09:50,640 have so much. We can see everyone else's lives 175 00:09:50,640 --> 00:09:53,200 on social media, can't we? We know what people have for 176 00:09:53,200 --> 00:09:56,560 breakfast, where they go on holiday, What Car they're 177 00:09:56,560 --> 00:09:58,680 driving, what their kids are wearing. 178 00:09:59,200 --> 00:10:03,040 And I think sometimes this means we're less able to be happy with 179 00:10:03,040 --> 00:10:06,440 our own lives. And because of the fall, we are 180 00:10:06,440 --> 00:10:08,840 drawn to compare ourselves to other people. 181 00:10:09,280 --> 00:10:12,520 And it means that if we look at our lives through the lens of 182 00:10:12,520 --> 00:10:16,080 other people, it's much harder to be thankful for what we've 183 00:10:16,080 --> 00:10:18,920 got. And this is where the charity I 184 00:10:19,160 --> 00:10:22,080 I run, Papaya, is actually a secular charity. 185 00:10:22,320 --> 00:10:26,440 But I believe we're bringing the good news to young people as we 186 00:10:26,440 --> 00:10:30,240 teach them not to view their lives through the perspective of 187 00:10:30,240 --> 00:10:34,440 social media, but to believe that they're enough as they are. 188 00:10:34,800 --> 00:10:37,800 Because social media has meant that we are. 189 00:10:38,360 --> 00:10:40,520 We're just drawn to compare ourselves. 190 00:10:40,840 --> 00:10:45,160 And actually that's so unhealthy when we think about comparison 191 00:10:45,440 --> 00:10:49,720 because you can see 1000 other people's lives and all that 192 00:10:49,720 --> 00:10:52,000 they're doing. And actually it can make you 193 00:10:52,000 --> 00:10:56,840 feel less happy with yourself because comparison is the the 194 00:10:56,840 --> 00:11:02,520 thief of joy. The truth is in Jesus we are 195 00:11:02,520 --> 00:11:05,840 enough and in Jesus we have enough. 196 00:11:07,440 --> 00:11:11,680 In Jesus we are enough and in Jesus we have enough. 197 00:11:11,920 --> 00:11:15,200 There will always be someone who has more than you, that's more 198 00:11:15,200 --> 00:11:18,440 successful, that seems their life seems to be going better, 199 00:11:18,440 --> 00:11:22,840 that's healthier, that has more money, but the challenge is in 200 00:11:22,920 --> 00:11:25,120 Jesus. Can we focus on that? 201 00:11:25,120 --> 00:11:29,600 We're chosen, called, loved, forgiven, that we have the gift 202 00:11:29,600 --> 00:11:33,640 of the Holy Spirit, and that actually, if we're going through 203 00:11:33,640 --> 00:11:37,360 a hard time, I would say often that means we're in alignment 204 00:11:37,360 --> 00:11:41,280 with His Kingdom because we're called to pick up our cross and 205 00:11:41,280 --> 00:11:43,440 follow Him. So I think going through 206 00:11:43,440 --> 00:11:46,880 hardship does not mean we're out of alignment sometimes. 207 00:11:46,880 --> 00:11:49,400 Again, it's about the perspective with which we see 208 00:11:49,400 --> 00:11:52,400 it. I'm going to now mention the 209 00:11:52,400 --> 00:11:55,560 cares of the world as the second thing that can block us from our 210 00:11:55,560 --> 00:11:58,600 thankfulness. Now our cares are very, very 211 00:11:58,600 --> 00:12:01,560 real. Many of us struggle with many 212 00:12:01,560 --> 00:12:04,760 things in life. If you're a young person here, 213 00:12:04,920 --> 00:12:08,200 you might have exams to worry about, friendships, worried 214 00:12:08,200 --> 00:12:11,760 about the future, school where you're going to go to school, so 215 00:12:11,760 --> 00:12:14,200 many things that can be a care and a worry. 216 00:12:14,600 --> 00:12:17,720 If you're a little bit older like me, you might be worried 217 00:12:17,720 --> 00:12:21,480 about your finances, your job, paying the bills, elderly 218 00:12:21,480 --> 00:12:25,000 relatives, your Children's Health, friends, family, your 219 00:12:25,000 --> 00:12:28,080 own health. There are so many cares that can 220 00:12:28,080 --> 00:12:32,720 come up and war it worry us and rob us of our thankfulness. 221 00:12:33,400 --> 00:12:37,440 But if we remember the parable of the sower, that seed was sown 222 00:12:37,440 --> 00:12:39,480 and was beginning to grow up beautifully. 223 00:12:40,000 --> 00:12:43,520 But the worries of this life, the deceitfulness of 224 00:12:43,800 --> 00:12:48,480 deceitfulness of wealth and the desire for wealth all came in 225 00:12:48,760 --> 00:12:50,920 and choked that plant from growing. 226 00:12:51,520 --> 00:12:54,880 And this can happen so subtly. The thing about our cares and 227 00:12:54,880 --> 00:12:58,400 worry is that I think often we don't even notice them. 228 00:12:58,800 --> 00:13:02,680 I have loads of patients who just tell me I'm a warrior, I 229 00:13:02,680 --> 00:13:06,840 worry, my family worry. It's just natural to worry, and 230 00:13:06,840 --> 00:13:11,880 on some levels it is. But that worry can rob us of 231 00:13:11,880 --> 00:13:15,840 being thankful. And the the silent killer is 232 00:13:15,840 --> 00:13:20,400 that it chokes so silently that worry just kind of creeps in and 233 00:13:20,400 --> 00:13:23,560 stops us being thankful. I've got lots of patients who 234 00:13:23,560 --> 00:13:27,800 have health anxiety, so they're completely fit and well and 235 00:13:27,800 --> 00:13:31,560 actually they spend their whole time worrying about an illness 236 00:13:31,560 --> 00:13:35,560 that they actually have. And my job is just to often look 237 00:13:35,560 --> 00:13:40,160 them in the eye and to call out the worry and say actually, you 238 00:13:40,160 --> 00:13:44,560 know, you are well, but it's the worry making you ill, not an 239 00:13:44,560 --> 00:13:47,040 illness you don't have. Because. 240 00:13:47,040 --> 00:13:51,640 And actually, we all need to recognise where worry can creep 241 00:13:51,640 --> 00:13:54,360 in and rob us of our thankfulness. 242 00:13:55,360 --> 00:13:58,680 Now the final CI want to look at before we can think about how we 243 00:13:58,680 --> 00:14:02,840 can walk out into the fullness of thankfulness is is criticism. 244 00:14:03,320 --> 00:14:06,520 Because criticism again, it can rob our thankfulness. 245 00:14:07,040 --> 00:14:09,520 Now, there's always something that could be better. 246 00:14:09,680 --> 00:14:12,200 You can definitely walk out of here today and say, oh, the 247 00:14:12,200 --> 00:14:14,480 talk, the talk could have been better. 248 00:14:15,160 --> 00:14:17,600 Or you might walk. You might think, Oh, my kids 249 00:14:17,840 --> 00:14:21,400 could have been better behaved. You know, there's always things 250 00:14:21,400 --> 00:14:25,600 in life that can be better. We lived as a family in South 251 00:14:25,600 --> 00:14:30,040 Africa for seven months. And when we, my husband had been 252 00:14:30,040 --> 00:14:32,840 out to visit, we were living in an Iris community. 253 00:14:33,160 --> 00:14:35,440 And he said all Suzy, he said, you're gonna love it. 254 00:14:35,680 --> 00:14:39,280 They've got a luxury. They've got a luxury VIP cabin 255 00:14:39,680 --> 00:14:41,920 that they've said you can, we can have as a family. 256 00:14:42,160 --> 00:14:45,960 So I went out thinking we're fine, we've got the luxury 257 00:14:45,960 --> 00:14:48,360 cabin. And then we got there late one 258 00:14:48,360 --> 00:14:52,520 night, they said, here's where you're going to live for the 259 00:14:52,520 --> 00:14:55,840 next seven months. And you know, without sounding 260 00:14:55,840 --> 00:14:58,760 too critical, it, it wasn't the luxury cabin. 261 00:14:58,960 --> 00:15:03,000 It was this tiny little shoebox. And from my shoebox, I could 262 00:15:03,000 --> 00:15:07,320 look out on the luxury cabin, which was empty. 263 00:15:08,200 --> 00:15:10,280 Yeah. But God, every morning spoke to 264 00:15:10,280 --> 00:15:14,960 me about being thankful for the roof we had over our heads and 265 00:15:14,960 --> 00:15:16,440 the house that we were living in. 266 00:15:16,720 --> 00:15:21,200 And actually, we weren't learnt so much as a family by sharing 267 00:15:21,360 --> 00:15:23,160 and inhabiting this space together. 268 00:15:23,560 --> 00:15:26,840 And God taught me so much about not coveting my neighbour's 269 00:15:26,840 --> 00:15:34,800 cabin, but on the wall of our cabin, our beautiful cabin that 270 00:15:34,800 --> 00:15:38,080 was our home for seven months and we have very fond memories 271 00:15:38,080 --> 00:15:42,360 of, there was a sign. And it said life doesn't have to 272 00:15:42,360 --> 00:15:46,520 be perfect to be beautiful. And I just think that's so 273 00:15:46,520 --> 00:15:49,360 powerful when we're thinking about how we can not be critical 274 00:15:49,600 --> 00:15:52,800 or complain. Life doesn't have to be perfect 275 00:15:52,800 --> 00:15:55,840 to be beautiful. And actually, I think it's so 276 00:15:55,840 --> 00:15:58,880 powerful when we hold that as a truth. 277 00:15:59,280 --> 00:16:03,200 Things don't have to be perfect. And actually, if we want to be 278 00:16:03,200 --> 00:16:07,000 happy, accepting that life isn't perfect is really powerful. 279 00:16:07,360 --> 00:16:10,680 Because often I'm not allowed. I won't use the less happy 280 00:16:10,680 --> 00:16:12,680 people I know. I don't want to use the word 281 00:16:12,680 --> 00:16:16,680 grumpy, but often the thing that marks them is that complaining 282 00:16:16,680 --> 00:16:19,600 isn't it and criticism. And actually it doesn't make 283 00:16:19,600 --> 00:16:22,120 that person happier if they're complaining all the time or 284 00:16:22,120 --> 00:16:25,080 criticising. And it doesn't make the person 285 00:16:25,080 --> 00:16:28,360 on the receiving end happier easier either, either. 286 00:16:28,760 --> 00:16:33,040 So criticism, it's not benign. It has real power. 287 00:16:33,680 --> 00:16:37,200 And we can take so much for granted in what we have in our 288 00:16:37,200 --> 00:16:39,640 lives. I had the privilege of visiting 289 00:16:39,640 --> 00:16:42,160 my sister who we mentioned who lives in Tanzania. 290 00:16:42,600 --> 00:16:46,240 But when we were there, we we actually got caught up in some 291 00:16:46,240 --> 00:16:49,920 really nasty political unrest. So instead of being on holiday, 292 00:16:50,080 --> 00:16:53,760 we had to hide in her house and we could hear bombs going off 293 00:16:54,040 --> 00:16:55,960 and gunfire. And then we had to like make a 294 00:16:55,960 --> 00:17:00,080 dash to the airport an amazing, amazingly, our plane was one of 295 00:17:00,080 --> 00:17:02,400 the only ones leaving Tanzania at the time. 296 00:17:02,680 --> 00:17:08,319 So we were able to leave safely. But actually, even that two or 297 00:17:08,319 --> 00:17:12,000 three days of experiencing political unrest has just made 298 00:17:12,000 --> 00:17:16,680 me take stock of how grateful I am that actually we live in a 299 00:17:16,680 --> 00:17:20,359 largely really peaceful country and that we have so much to be 300 00:17:20,359 --> 00:17:24,240 grateful for when we're here. And I, we can all get into the 301 00:17:24,240 --> 00:17:27,760 habit of criticising our country and the things that don't work 302 00:17:27,760 --> 00:17:30,400 as well as they should. But actually, if we can be 303 00:17:30,400 --> 00:17:34,320 thankful, we would all feel so much happier. 304 00:17:34,760 --> 00:17:38,760 So I now need, I need 4 volunteers to look at 305 00:17:38,760 --> 00:17:40,960 practically how we can change our perspective. 306 00:17:41,200 --> 00:17:44,040 I need someone to hold the cross for me who's going to come and 307 00:17:44,040 --> 00:17:46,240 be my cross carrier. Yep, come up, let's have the 308 00:17:46,240 --> 00:17:50,240 cross. So this, when we focus on the 309 00:17:50,240 --> 00:17:54,560 cross, when we put it at the forefront, we have that attitude 310 00:17:54,560 --> 00:17:57,840 of gratitude. Now I need three people to come 311 00:17:57,840 --> 00:18:02,120 and carry up the three CS that can block our perspective. 312 00:18:02,520 --> 00:18:05,120 I need 3 volunteers. You have to be quite strong. 313 00:18:05,120 --> 00:18:06,200 I've got some proper. Yeah. 314 00:18:06,200 --> 00:18:08,040 Come up. Got some rocks for you. 315 00:18:08,040 --> 00:18:09,600 Yeah, Come up. I need one more. 316 00:18:10,400 --> 00:18:11,720 Yeah. You just need to not drop. 317 00:18:11,720 --> 00:18:13,440 Yeah. At the back as long as you have 318 00:18:14,040 --> 00:18:18,200 Now what I want you to do. If you imagine the three CS, 319 00:18:18,200 --> 00:18:24,160 we've got comparison. I want you to block the cross 320 00:18:24,160 --> 00:18:27,000 with the comparison. We've got cares and worries, and 321 00:18:27,000 --> 00:18:31,920 I need one more person and we've got criticism. 322 00:18:32,040 --> 00:18:34,480 So these are all little blocks from the garden this morning. 323 00:18:34,680 --> 00:18:36,680 And can you see that when we put them? 324 00:18:36,720 --> 00:18:39,000 Yeah. In front of the cross, we just 325 00:18:39,000 --> 00:18:43,520 lose sight of Jesus. But what happens when there are 326 00:18:43,520 --> 00:18:45,720 all these rocks? I want you to come behind the 327 00:18:45,720 --> 00:18:46,920 cross. Yeah. 328 00:18:47,280 --> 00:18:49,080 What? Or no further behind. 329 00:18:49,080 --> 00:18:52,080 Let's go right behind. Yeah, right behind. 330 00:18:52,080 --> 00:18:56,160 So we haven't, they haven't necessarily completely gone 331 00:18:56,160 --> 00:18:59,360 away, although let's put them, let's completely hide them. 332 00:18:59,760 --> 00:19:04,800 Because actually, if we change our perspective, if we reposture 333 00:19:04,800 --> 00:19:08,600 ourselves towards thankfulness and put them behind Jesus, put 334 00:19:08,600 --> 00:19:12,360 them behind the cross, we've actually got an amazing antidote 335 00:19:12,360 --> 00:19:15,160 and the thankfulness that we've all walked in today. 336 00:19:15,160 --> 00:19:18,920 We can walk in every day of our lives because every day actually 337 00:19:18,920 --> 00:19:20,880 should be a Thanksgiving Sunday, shouldn't it? 338 00:19:20,880 --> 00:19:24,040 Let's challenge ourselves to have that attitude of gratitude 339 00:19:24,040 --> 00:19:27,240 we've had this morning, every single day when we wake up, what 340 00:19:27,240 --> 00:19:29,840 are we thankful for? But right, thank you very much. 341 00:19:29,840 --> 00:19:31,040 You can sit back down. I don't. 342 00:19:32,640 --> 00:19:39,210 Want to let me? Just hide these away. 343 00:19:40,600 --> 00:19:43,400 So just to finish, I'm going to give you just my favourite verse 344 00:19:43,400 --> 00:19:47,840 in Scripture, which is I think the practical outworking of 345 00:19:48,160 --> 00:19:51,520 those 3C's, Philippians 4, six to seven. 346 00:19:51,960 --> 00:19:57,360 Don't worry about anything. Instead, pray about everything. 347 00:19:57,760 --> 00:20:01,520 Tell God what you need and thank Him for what He's already done. 348 00:20:02,120 --> 00:20:07,080 Then you will experience God's peace, which exceeds everything 349 00:20:07,360 --> 00:20:11,200 and anything you can understand. His peace will guard your heart 350 00:20:11,240 --> 00:20:13,000 and your minds as you live in Him. 351 00:20:13,440 --> 00:20:18,480 So just as we finish, don't worry about anything, God, that 352 00:20:18,480 --> 00:20:22,760 He is with us in our cares, our comparison, and our criticism, 353 00:20:22,840 --> 00:20:26,920 all of those things are actually rooted in worry or fear that we 354 00:20:26,920 --> 00:20:29,120 don't have enough or we won't have enough. 355 00:20:29,600 --> 00:20:31,680 But let's follow the biblical principle. 356 00:20:31,680 --> 00:20:33,440 Let's not worry about these things. 357 00:20:33,680 --> 00:20:38,360 Let's give them to Jesus. Let's pray about everything. 358 00:20:38,880 --> 00:20:41,560 So actually let's take those worries and burdens to the 359 00:20:41,560 --> 00:20:46,000 cross. Tell God what you need and thank 360 00:20:46,000 --> 00:20:49,600 Him for what He's already done. Now what I love is it says tell 361 00:20:49,600 --> 00:20:52,120 God what you need, not what you want. 362 00:20:52,600 --> 00:20:56,280 Tell Him what we need and actually thank Him. 363 00:20:56,280 --> 00:20:58,160 This is where thankfulness is the power. 364 00:20:58,160 --> 00:21:00,000 Thank Him for what he's already done. 365 00:21:00,000 --> 00:21:03,760 Remember His miraculous provision, His healing, the 366 00:21:03,760 --> 00:21:06,560 words of knowledge, the things He's done in your life. 367 00:21:07,040 --> 00:21:11,320 Do not let that worry silently rob you of your thankfulness, 368 00:21:11,480 --> 00:21:15,440 but instead, remember the times that God's come through for you. 369 00:21:15,920 --> 00:21:20,720 And don't let those worries and problems rob you of your 370 00:21:20,720 --> 00:21:25,760 thankfulness in Jesus. So let's refocus our perspective 371 00:21:26,120 --> 00:21:29,320 on the cross. Let's not let comparison, cares 372 00:21:29,320 --> 00:21:31,600 or criticisms block our thankfulness. 373 00:21:31,840 --> 00:21:36,320 And let's really, really every day, every morning, focus and 374 00:21:36,320 --> 00:21:40,400 remember on what he's done. And then we get to live the 375 00:21:40,400 --> 00:21:45,840 wonderful, beautiful, God filled exciting adventure with Jesus 376 00:21:45,840 --> 00:21:49,240 that he's called each one of us to that thank you and have a 377 00:21:49,240 --> 00:22:05,040 great Sunday. Thank you very much. 378 00:22:05,040 --> 00:22:10,480 Shall we clip our hands and appreciate the gift of God in 379 00:22:10,480 --> 00:22:14,800 our sister and Doc, Thank you very much. 380 00:22:15,400 --> 00:22:20,240 I'm sure all of us. There's one of the Seas you can 381 00:22:20,240 --> 00:22:24,520 identify with there that you've done before in this month of 382 00:22:24,520 --> 00:22:27,520 December. Some even maybe this morning, 383 00:22:27,760 --> 00:22:30,400 one of them. Maybe it's a care. 384 00:22:30,760 --> 00:22:36,680 Maybe you've been worrying like a real warrior, worry of worry. 385 00:22:37,920 --> 00:22:40,520 Worry is borrowing tomorrow's problems, which will never 386 00:22:40,520 --> 00:22:43,800 happen. So we're going to pray. 387 00:22:43,840 --> 00:22:45,440 We've been told to post our hearts. 388 00:22:46,040 --> 00:22:49,760 These things are going to block the cross from us. 389 00:22:50,080 --> 00:22:53,920 And we don't want to finish the year without seeing the cross 390 00:22:54,240 --> 00:22:57,320 because there is a care there. So we are going to cast our 391 00:22:57,320 --> 00:23:01,200 burdens on Jesus and also a critical spirit. 392 00:23:02,040 --> 00:23:05,440 Some of us we are criticising. We always see what's wrong. 393 00:23:05,600 --> 00:23:07,360 If you enter a room, what's wrong? 394 00:23:07,600 --> 00:23:09,200 If you go to a place, what's wrong? 395 00:23:09,360 --> 00:23:12,680 You don't have an eye that sees what's right until you end up 396 00:23:12,680 --> 00:23:16,080 criticising even yourself, even yourself. 397 00:23:16,240 --> 00:23:19,040 I'm not good enough. I'm this, I'm that yourself talk 398 00:23:19,040 --> 00:23:22,480 even you don't realise I'm actually criticising myself now 399 00:23:22,640 --> 00:23:25,600 no longer somebody else. So we're just going to respond 400 00:23:25,600 --> 00:23:33,120 to this word to say, Lord, as we finish this year, we we repent 401 00:23:33,120 --> 00:23:36,920 where we've been worrying because you told us in Matthew 6 402 00:23:36,920 --> 00:23:40,000 not to worry about anything and we've been disobedience. 403 00:23:40,000 --> 00:23:43,200 Worry is disobedience. So we want to say, Lord, forgive 404 00:23:43,200 --> 00:23:46,960 me where I've been disobedient. Maybe I was worrying about my 405 00:23:46,960 --> 00:23:49,440 health as we've heard. Maybe I was worrying about my 406 00:23:49,440 --> 00:23:51,080 marriage. Maybe I was worrying about my 407 00:23:51,080 --> 00:23:54,960 children, my nation, Whatever we worried about, we just want to 408 00:23:54,960 --> 00:23:59,320 say to the Lord forgive us for that because there is no faith 409 00:23:59,320 --> 00:24:01,400 in worry and there is no faith in fear. 410 00:24:02,120 --> 00:24:05,320 And also if you you were criticising yourself or someone 411 00:24:05,320 --> 00:24:09,480 else. Let us ask God for that grace 412 00:24:09,480 --> 00:24:14,600 that you want me to see people through the eyes of love and let 413 00:24:14,600 --> 00:24:16,840 me be patient, give people room to grow. 414 00:24:16,840 --> 00:24:20,600 We are all a works in programme good. 415 00:24:20,600 --> 00:24:23,480 We are God's construction site is not finished with us. 416 00:24:23,960 --> 00:24:26,800 Therefore we have to be patient with those who are not who are 417 00:24:26,800 --> 00:24:30,040 not where we are yet. So we're going to ask God for 418 00:24:30,040 --> 00:24:34,480 the grace and we are going to ask God that we don't compare 419 00:24:34,560 --> 00:24:36,400 ourselves. Actually, I was reading this 420 00:24:36,400 --> 00:24:39,360 this week. The Bible calls it unwise. 421 00:24:39,480 --> 00:24:42,960 Another version say it's foolish foolishness to compare yourself 422 00:24:42,960 --> 00:24:46,040 with someone. So maybe some of us will unwise. 423 00:24:46,200 --> 00:24:48,000 We compared yourself with someone. 424 00:24:48,960 --> 00:24:52,160 Maybe you compared even your child with someone's child, even 425 00:24:52,160 --> 00:24:56,400 the two children or 3 some way. There's no way God will give us 426 00:24:56,400 --> 00:25:01,440 this word in our thankfulness day if we are not doing any of 427 00:25:01,440 --> 00:25:03,560 that. So maybe it's one of us. 428 00:25:03,680 --> 00:25:07,480 Maybe it's two of us. I can even see myself in this 429 00:25:07,480 --> 00:25:11,240 message. So I am repenting where I have 430 00:25:11,240 --> 00:25:15,240 had cares. So let's just respond so the 431 00:25:15,280 --> 00:25:18,840 enemy does not come and steal this word from us before we seal 432 00:25:18,840 --> 00:25:21,160 it in our hearts. So I'm going to just take time 433 00:25:21,160 --> 00:25:25,320 and say, Lord, you have spoken to me this word and my response 434 00:25:25,320 --> 00:25:29,240 to you is I'm turning around, you open my eyes. 435 00:25:29,240 --> 00:25:31,440 I don't want anything to block the cross. 436 00:25:31,800 --> 00:25:34,560 Maybe it's not even one of these three CS that is blocking the 437 00:25:34,560 --> 00:25:37,440 cross for you. It can be any other thing. 438 00:25:37,440 --> 00:25:42,160 Say Lord, whatever might be blocking me from seeing Jesus is 439 00:25:42,160 --> 00:25:45,320 he really is and seeing people through the eyes of Jesus. 440 00:25:45,680 --> 00:25:48,720 Lord, let it be removed in this heavies right here right now. 441 00:25:50,200 --> 00:25:51,600 So I'm just giving us a few minutes. 442 00:25:51,600 --> 00:25:57,960 You pray the anchor scripture we've been given Philippians 443 00:25:57,960 --> 00:26:01,520 467. Don't worry about anything. 444 00:26:02,360 --> 00:26:07,840 Instead, pray about everything. Tell God what you need and thank 445 00:26:07,840 --> 00:26:12,040 Him for all He has done. Then you will experience God's 446 00:26:12,040 --> 00:26:15,160 peace, which exceeds anything we can understand. 447 00:26:15,760 --> 00:26:20,040 His peace will guard your hearts and your minds as you live in 448 00:26:20,040 --> 00:26:32,040 Christ Jesus. Just pray your own prayer 449 00:26:32,040 --> 00:26:35,880 silently before your God. I just give us 2 minutes to do 450 00:26:35,880 --> 00:26:39,480 that still. God, what's your what's 451 00:26:39,480 --> 00:26:43,320 condition of your heart in light of the word you had?