1 00:00:00,100 --> 00:00:03,400 Um listen, we've been a reference the conference in a 2 00:00:03,408 --> 00:00:06,600 moment because that was amazing. But we have been on Sundays in a 3 00:00:06,800 --> 00:00:11,000 series called the suit. And as you guys know who have 4 00:00:11,000 --> 00:00:13,600 been here of late, I have been based on that on the wonderful 5 00:00:13,600 --> 00:00:16,400 book by aw Tozer called pursuing God. 6 00:00:16,400 --> 00:00:19,200 And I'm speaking to many of you, I know you've got and purchase 7 00:00:19,200 --> 00:00:21,600 that book or indeed you can download it for free, it's a 8 00:00:21,600 --> 00:00:23,900 PDF. It Was Written in 1946, all 9 00:00:23,900 --> 00:00:26,100 right? And I know some of you have 10 00:00:26,100 --> 00:00:28,700 bought some other books of aw Tozer, like the knowledge of 11 00:00:28,700 --> 00:00:31,800 God, which is another book I can Recommend and I've been look, we 12 00:00:31,800 --> 00:00:36,100 going through the chapters, hmm? And if you've missed any of 13 00:00:36,108 --> 00:00:39,300 those talk to, you can catch up on our YouTube channel. 14 00:00:39,300 --> 00:00:42,000 By the way, if you've got your phone here you go to our YouTube 15 00:00:42,000 --> 00:00:44,800 channel and hit that subscribe button and don't forget to hit 16 00:00:44,800 --> 00:00:46,500 that. Bell notification to get blah 17 00:00:46,500 --> 00:00:50,100 blah blah blah blah blah. I need more practice but yet 18 00:00:50,100 --> 00:00:52,100 Silo if you're online as well, you're clearly you may be on 19 00:00:52,100 --> 00:00:54,200 YouTube. Click on that subscribe button 20 00:00:54,200 --> 00:00:58,100 now, but you can catch up there or not what our app, on our app, 21 00:00:58,500 --> 00:01:01,400 you can download that as well. And of course, we had a break 22 00:01:01,400 --> 00:01:03,100 couple of weeks ago. We have the every generation 23 00:01:03,100 --> 00:01:07,200 service which was amazing. And then last week, we had the 24 00:01:07,200 --> 00:01:10,500 wonderful Steve Nicholson who was leading the conference and 25 00:01:10,500 --> 00:01:14,700 he spoke on the holy spirit in you which was I watch from home 26 00:01:15,400 --> 00:01:17,700 and it really was a fantastic talk. 27 00:01:17,700 --> 00:01:19,000 I can recommend that. As well. 28 00:01:19,500 --> 00:01:24,000 Now, rather than go to Chapter 3 of the pursuing God book, I'm 29 00:01:24,000 --> 00:01:28,400 going to take a slight deviation and add in my own chapter for 30 00:01:28,400 --> 00:01:31,700 reasons that will become clear later. 31 00:01:33,500 --> 00:01:37,600 And the reason for that is a bit really coming out some personal 32 00:01:37,600 --> 00:01:40,200 experience over the past couple of weeks, you know, I reference 33 00:01:40,200 --> 00:01:44,000 that I've been unwell which I have been, I have to say, I was 34 00:01:44,000 --> 00:01:48,200 really disappointed that after so many hard. 35 00:01:48,600 --> 00:01:50,800 Weeks and months of planning for this conference. 36 00:01:50,800 --> 00:01:54,500 When I was really excited to be there, I come down, Sick time 37 00:01:54,500 --> 00:01:57,200 and sucks, and I was really looking forward to and then I 38 00:01:57,208 --> 00:01:59,300 literally I'm in a couple of days before I started feeling 39 00:01:59,300 --> 00:02:01,200 I'm well, you know, those aches and pains, you know, maybe I 40 00:02:01,200 --> 00:02:03,400 should go to bed. I thought, maybe I'll be fine. 41 00:02:03,400 --> 00:02:07,600 And then yeah, that was better. And I was really upset, big 42 00:02:07,600 --> 00:02:10,699 gutted, quite frankly, and I thought, oh, well, my birthday 43 00:02:10,699 --> 00:02:13,200 is next Wednesday, which was just last Wednesday. 44 00:02:13,200 --> 00:02:16,700 I was my birthday. I thought, well, maybe maybe God 45 00:02:16,700 --> 00:02:18,300 has been gracious and getting out. 46 00:02:18,500 --> 00:02:21,300 The way so that I can have birthday because we had plans 47 00:02:21,300 --> 00:02:24,600 have, you know, that was my birthday, you know, and I'm 48 00:02:24,600 --> 00:02:28,400 close to now 250 than I was last year so we had something 49 00:02:28,400 --> 00:02:31,800 planned. But no come come, my birthday. 50 00:02:32,000 --> 00:02:34,200 I woke up. Steph was Ill in bed and Lucy 51 00:02:34,200 --> 00:02:37,900 was home, ill Ellie was and so I played Nurse on my birthday. 52 00:02:38,000 --> 00:02:40,700 Not feeling very well myself being on antibiotics. 53 00:02:41,000 --> 00:02:42,400 And there wasn't, there was an element. 54 00:02:42,400 --> 00:02:45,100 I've got to be honest. I was like, oh, this is rubbish. 55 00:02:46,200 --> 00:02:49,000 You know, there's me darling. Do you need anything? 56 00:02:50,600 --> 00:02:52,100 Eddie are you okay dialing? Hello. 57 00:02:52,100 --> 00:02:54,100 It's my flipping birthday for goodness sake. 58 00:02:55,100 --> 00:02:57,300 The steps that I'm really sorry that I can get out to get your 59 00:02:57,300 --> 00:02:59,400 presents because I was at the moment ever. 60 00:03:01,300 --> 00:03:04,500 And then we had other things going and I'll be honest with 61 00:03:04,500 --> 00:03:08,900 you, as the saying goes, you know, life can sometimes serve 62 00:03:08,900 --> 00:03:12,900 up lemons content. I've feeling very sorry for 63 00:03:12,900 --> 00:03:18,100 myself and it got me thinking about the talk this this week 64 00:03:18,400 --> 00:03:22,400 and in the subject of pursuing God and the question of how do 65 00:03:22,400 --> 00:03:26,900 we deal with lemons? That pause was a good poison 66 00:03:26,900 --> 00:03:28,800 them. How do you what do you do when 67 00:03:28,800 --> 00:03:31,500 life serves you lemons? Well, of course, there's two 68 00:03:31,500 --> 00:03:33,100 ways. The first way is a way that my 69 00:03:33,100 --> 00:03:35,000 great-uncle John dealt with lemon. 70 00:03:35,000 --> 00:03:40,800 So I have some family in North America and about late 90s. 71 00:03:40,900 --> 00:03:44,300 I did my a-levels and I went traveling around the u.s. and I 72 00:03:44,300 --> 00:03:48,400 went to visit my great-uncle, John in California and he lived 73 00:03:48,400 --> 00:03:52,200 in a place called Toluca Lake, which is right next to the 74 00:03:52,200 --> 00:03:54,000 Warner Brothers lot. There were filming friends the 75 00:03:54,000 --> 00:03:58,400 time and next to Universal, To and as and how about I was 18, 76 00:03:58,400 --> 00:04:00,400 19. It was just an amazing trip and 77 00:04:00,400 --> 00:04:02,700 I traveled around the u.s. for a few months anyway. 78 00:04:03,300 --> 00:04:06,300 My uncle was a bachelor and he lived a very he must be in his 79 00:04:06,300 --> 00:04:08,500 80s now but he lived an extraordinary life. 80 00:04:08,700 --> 00:04:12,600 He was an entrepreneur, he was a pilot, he survived a head on a 81 00:04:12,800 --> 00:04:16,600 plane crash was in in hospital for about a year and recovered 82 00:04:16,600 --> 00:04:20,700 from that. And he did, he had founded a 83 00:04:20,700 --> 00:04:23,500 watch company that in the eighties was bigger than Swatch 84 00:04:23,900 --> 00:04:27,100 and he would Regale me. I have all these Amazing Stories 85 00:04:27,100 --> 00:04:30,000 and as a, as a budding, entrepreneur, as I was back 86 00:04:30,000 --> 00:04:31,800 then, I would just listen to him thinking. 87 00:04:31,800 --> 00:04:34,900 Wow, this is what an amazing life and the time that he would 88 00:04:34,900 --> 00:04:36,900 date. So and so we'll go to so-and-so. 89 00:04:36,900 --> 00:04:39,900 Parties will have a penthouse in Chicago and, you know, it was 90 00:04:39,900 --> 00:04:42,700 like just the craziest thing, you know, he told me this story. 91 00:04:42,700 --> 00:04:45,500 Once this does have a point by the way, we'll get there. 92 00:04:45,500 --> 00:04:49,500 Eventually, he told me this story once about when he bought 93 00:04:49,500 --> 00:04:52,700 this Cadillac. And in fact at the time, he had 94 00:04:52,700 --> 00:04:55,600 a Cadillac as well as big Deville black thing beat Said, 95 00:04:55,600 --> 00:04:59,400 Mark in the seventies, I bought this Cadillac and it was an 96 00:04:59,408 --> 00:05:03,400 amazing car, but it had real problems, they said I called 97 00:05:03,400 --> 00:05:06,600 Cadillac up and said, listen, this is a problems with this car 98 00:05:06,800 --> 00:05:08,900 and they wouldn't deal with me deal with it. 99 00:05:08,900 --> 00:05:12,600 So, I decided to drive around with the Cadillac with a lemon 100 00:05:12,600 --> 00:05:16,500 in the back window with a big sign on the car saying, this car 101 00:05:16,500 --> 00:05:20,700 is a lemon. Now between my hazy recollection 102 00:05:20,700 --> 00:05:23,400 and his creative storytelling. I'm not sure how much truth got 103 00:05:23,400 --> 00:05:26,400 through on this story, but as they say, don't let facts get in 104 00:05:26,400 --> 00:05:28,800 the way of a good story, right? And it will serve its 105 00:05:28,800 --> 00:05:31,000 illustration purpose in the moment he said. 106 00:05:31,000 --> 00:05:33,100 And then what I did is, I rang them. 107 00:05:33,100 --> 00:05:35,400 And I said to Cadillac, listen, I'm dry. 108 00:05:35,400 --> 00:05:37,300 I've been driving around your car with a lemon. 109 00:05:37,300 --> 00:05:41,800 In the back saying, this car is a lemon, I've called The Press 110 00:05:42,300 --> 00:05:44,500 because next week, I'm going to blow the car up. 111 00:05:45,800 --> 00:05:48,900 So that everyone knows that Cadillacs make lemons. 112 00:05:49,700 --> 00:05:53,000 Now I can't remember what happened at the end of that 113 00:05:53,000 --> 00:05:55,700 story. I rather hope that what he said 114 00:05:55,700 --> 00:05:59,300 was and so I went and blew the Cadillac up, but I can't tell 115 00:05:59,300 --> 00:06:02,000 you that for sure. All I can tell you when the 116 00:06:02,000 --> 00:06:06,000 point of this story, other than to try and inject some humor 117 00:06:06,000 --> 00:06:11,400 into this talk, is that you can blow up lemons, if you wish that 118 00:06:11,400 --> 00:06:14,800 is one approach that you can complain and moan and try and 119 00:06:14,800 --> 00:06:18,200 blame it up. Up or the second way is as the 120 00:06:18,200 --> 00:06:22,800 saying goes, you can make lemonade well done. 121 00:06:23,600 --> 00:06:27,700 So there's me, you know, lying in my bed thinking. 122 00:06:27,700 --> 00:06:30,200 Well, I can either blow up and the genuinely the Lord brought 123 00:06:30,200 --> 00:06:33,000 the story of the Cadillac to mind because I was complaining a 124 00:06:33,000 --> 00:06:34,500 lot. And they'll and I felt like, 125 00:06:34,500 --> 00:06:37,200 well, I can either blow this up or I can try and make lemonade 126 00:06:37,200 --> 00:06:39,700 from this. And so, this talk is my version 127 00:06:39,700 --> 00:06:42,700 of lemonade from my bad experiences. 128 00:06:42,900 --> 00:06:45,000 I'm trying to make my experiences. 129 00:06:45,600 --> 00:06:48,500 If in some way but actually there's something interesting 130 00:06:48,500 --> 00:06:52,500 and important in this which is what do we do when life gives 131 00:06:52,500 --> 00:06:57,700 you lemons or more specifically, how do we pursue God when life 132 00:06:57,700 --> 00:07:01,900 sucks? And that's the name of this talk 133 00:07:02,500 --> 00:07:09,000 pursuing God, when life sucks. Or another version could be 134 00:07:09,000 --> 00:07:11,100 pursuing God, when life gives you lemons. 135 00:07:12,200 --> 00:07:16,200 And I think, Joel joking aside, there is a lot of importance in 136 00:07:16,200 --> 00:07:18,800 this title and lot of truth because it contains true, two 137 00:07:18,800 --> 00:07:21,000 truths. The first one is this, that we 138 00:07:21,000 --> 00:07:24,400 are called to pursue God. You know, whether life gives you 139 00:07:24,400 --> 00:07:29,900 juicy oranges at the man from Del Monte says, a perfect or 140 00:07:29,900 --> 00:07:34,100 lemons that are bitter and sour. We are called to pursue God. 141 00:07:34,900 --> 00:07:37,700 You see pursuing God isn't dependent. 142 00:07:38,300 --> 00:07:41,400 On the lemons or the oranges. If you get my drift, it's not 143 00:07:41,400 --> 00:07:45,800 dependent on how we feel in our circumstances pursuing, God is 144 00:07:45,800 --> 00:07:49,100 something we should be doing in spite of our circumstances and 145 00:07:49,100 --> 00:07:51,900 in all situations and I don't know about you. 146 00:07:51,900 --> 00:07:54,700 But when life is going well, somehow, that feels much easier, 147 00:07:54,700 --> 00:07:56,800 doesn't it? Although when life is going 148 00:07:56,800 --> 00:07:59,200 great, it has its own dangers. We can kind of forget, God 149 00:07:59,200 --> 00:08:02,800 somehow. But that leads me on to the 150 00:08:02,808 --> 00:08:05,500 second truth of this title when life sucks. 151 00:08:05,500 --> 00:08:09,200 I think that we need to be honest with ourselves life does 152 00:08:09,200 --> 00:08:10,300 stop sometimes. Isn't it? 153 00:08:12,300 --> 00:08:14,200 You know, life does give us lemons. 154 00:08:14,500 --> 00:08:18,000 I know that for some of you this morning you've experienced lost 155 00:08:18,000 --> 00:08:20,800 this week. Someone in our own staff team 156 00:08:20,800 --> 00:08:23,800 have lost her, father-in-law half the staff to him and not 157 00:08:23,800 --> 00:08:25,600 here because they got covid from the conference. 158 00:08:26,000 --> 00:08:28,500 This has been a tough week for many. 159 00:08:28,500 --> 00:08:32,700 I've heard stories, you know, and we need to be real about it 160 00:08:32,700 --> 00:08:34,900 as Christians. We can have this kind of this 161 00:08:34,900 --> 00:08:37,400 kind of feeling that everything's fine. 162 00:08:37,400 --> 00:08:41,299 When it you know it's not Jesus doesn't promise you a perfect. 163 00:08:41,299 --> 00:08:42,799 It life. In fact, he says you will have 164 00:08:42,799 --> 00:08:46,400 trials and tribulations, not the Great Tribulation, by the way, 165 00:08:46,800 --> 00:08:49,400 that's something separate. But he says, you will have 166 00:08:49,400 --> 00:08:53,600 troubles and so life does suck sometimes. 167 00:08:54,500 --> 00:08:57,900 And so the question for us, then is in that place. 168 00:08:59,700 --> 00:09:01,700 How do we pursue God? It? 169 00:09:01,700 --> 00:09:03,500 Why don't we? Because I was lying in my bed 170 00:09:03,500 --> 00:09:05,000 thinking. Well, you know, and I'll be 171 00:09:05,000 --> 00:09:06,600 honest with you, follow me on Instagram. 172 00:09:06,900 --> 00:09:08,800 I took it as an opportunity to go through some old photos and 173 00:09:08,808 --> 00:09:12,000 just post them up as like. I know Lord I should be on my 174 00:09:12,000 --> 00:09:15,100 knees praying for everyone in the conference right now, but I 175 00:09:15,100 --> 00:09:22,300 just can't be bothered. Listen, apologies. 176 00:09:23,200 --> 00:09:25,700 If you've got me on a pedestal, then this is the moment to put 177 00:09:25,700 --> 00:09:28,800 me down, okay? I am as human as everyone else. 178 00:09:29,100 --> 00:09:32,000 You'll be pleased to know but I'm being truthful and real with 179 00:09:32,000 --> 00:09:33,800 you guys. You know, there are these 180 00:09:33,800 --> 00:09:35,200 moments. We like not I just don't want to 181 00:09:35,200 --> 00:09:40,300 pray right now. In that place. 182 00:09:40,500 --> 00:09:42,000 Why don't we sometimes want to pursue God? 183 00:09:42,000 --> 00:09:44,200 We blame him for things, don't we? 184 00:09:44,300 --> 00:09:46,400 It's your fault. God, we think. 185 00:09:46,400 --> 00:09:48,800 What's the point? I've prayed so many times and 186 00:09:48,800 --> 00:09:52,100 I've been here before we just get tired. 187 00:09:53,600 --> 00:09:56,000 And so the question that I want to address this morning with 188 00:09:56,000 --> 00:09:59,300 what has been rather long introduction is, how do we 189 00:09:59,300 --> 00:10:03,000 pursue God when life sucks? And I think for many Christians, 190 00:10:03,000 --> 00:10:06,900 we've grown up in churches, which are best always look at 191 00:10:06,900 --> 00:10:09,600 the bright side and at work, Worse. 192 00:10:09,800 --> 00:10:13,300 Ignores it and says, well, if you're going through difficult 193 00:10:13,300 --> 00:10:19,900 times, because your faith isn't big enough, And because of that, 194 00:10:19,900 --> 00:10:24,800 those two things I don't think ice Christians know how to deal 195 00:10:25,000 --> 00:10:27,600 with lemons in our lives, in a healthy way. 196 00:10:28,500 --> 00:10:32,000 We don't know how to go to God when we've got lemons. 197 00:10:33,000 --> 00:10:36,100 But what we under need to understand is God has given us a 198 00:10:36,100 --> 00:10:39,500 way in which we can pursue him, when life sucks. 199 00:10:40,800 --> 00:10:45,200 And it is true. Lamenting it is the place of 200 00:10:45,200 --> 00:10:48,900 Lament. It is a Biblical way in which we 201 00:10:48,900 --> 00:10:52,600 can pursue God, when life sucks and that is what I want us to 202 00:10:52,600 --> 00:10:56,000 unpack this morning and, you know, lamenting is more than 203 00:10:56,000 --> 00:11:00,000 just expressing our sorrow and our grief healthy though, that 204 00:11:00,000 --> 00:11:03,800 is lamenting is, is more than just blowing a gasket and don't 205 00:11:03,800 --> 00:11:06,300 we all feel like doing that sometimes when it just feels 206 00:11:06,300 --> 00:11:11,400 like it's just too much. Lamenting is coming to and 207 00:11:11,400 --> 00:11:15,900 talking to God about our pain and our sorrow. 208 00:11:17,600 --> 00:11:22,100 And the men is, you see God's invitation to us to come to him 209 00:11:22,100 --> 00:11:26,100 with our staff? With the purpose of Allowing God 210 00:11:26,100 --> 00:11:31,300 to minister to us in that place and for us to have confidence in 211 00:11:31,300 --> 00:11:35,100 God for our lives. That is the objective of a 212 00:11:35,100 --> 00:11:38,600 Biblical lament. And I don't I haven't heard that 213 00:11:38,600 --> 00:11:43,100 many sermons on lamenting. But I think we do ourselves a 214 00:11:43,100 --> 00:11:45,500 disservice. If we don't understand the place 215 00:11:45,500 --> 00:11:50,200 of lament, when we hit those lemons in our lives because a 216 00:11:50,200 --> 00:11:53,800 lament isn't about blowing up the Cadillac. 217 00:11:54,700 --> 00:11:59,600 A lament is making lemonade and coming to God with it. 218 00:12:00,600 --> 00:12:02,900 And I would like us to read Psalm 13. 219 00:12:03,000 --> 00:12:06,300 And this is going to be our text for this morning and, you know, 220 00:12:06,300 --> 00:12:10,600 the Psalms are replete with laments and we're going to look 221 00:12:10,600 --> 00:12:14,200 at two things. First of all, what happens when 222 00:12:14,200 --> 00:12:17,500 we lament what happens to us as we go through the process? 223 00:12:17,800 --> 00:12:20,800 And the second part of the talk is going to be around, how do we 224 00:12:20,800 --> 00:12:22,600 lament? And we're going to look at for 225 00:12:23,300 --> 00:12:25,500 the model of lamenting that we're going to read together. 226 00:12:25,500 --> 00:12:29,800 So it's Psalm 13 will be on the screen and also be at home. 227 00:12:29,800 --> 00:12:32,500 If your watching this will be on your screen and this is a 228 00:12:32,508 --> 00:12:37,100 psalmist Psalm of David and that the title in my version ESV 229 00:12:37,100 --> 00:12:38,700 says, how long O Lord. Let me read it. 230 00:12:38,800 --> 00:12:42,100 How long O Lord? Will you forget me forever? 231 00:12:42,600 --> 00:12:45,800 How long will you hide your face from me? 232 00:12:46,300 --> 00:12:51,400 How long must I take counsel in my soul and have sorrow in my 233 00:12:51,400 --> 00:12:56,800 heart or the day? How long shall my enemy be 234 00:12:56,800 --> 00:13:02,600 exalted over me? Consider an answer me O Lord, my 235 00:13:02,600 --> 00:13:04,400 God. Light up my eyes. 236 00:13:04,400 --> 00:13:08,000 Lest I sleep, the sleep of death. 237 00:13:09,100 --> 00:13:11,700 Lest the enemy. Say, I have prevailed over him 238 00:13:11,800 --> 00:13:14,600 lest my foes Rejoice, because I am shaken. 239 00:13:15,700 --> 00:13:19,700 But I have trusted in your steadfast love, my heart shall 240 00:13:19,800 --> 00:13:26,200 rejoice in your salvation, I will sing to the Lord because he 241 00:13:26,200 --> 00:13:30,800 has dealt bountifully with me. That is a lament. 242 00:13:31,500 --> 00:13:34,200 And there are over 40 laments in the Psalms. 243 00:13:34,200 --> 00:13:37,200 And of course, as you may know, there is a whole book called 244 00:13:37,200 --> 00:13:39,400 Lamentations and the Old Testament. 245 00:13:40,100 --> 00:13:43,800 And so let's look at lamenting what happens when we lament in 246 00:13:43,800 --> 00:13:46,900 this way and as I said we're going to end with looking at how 247 00:13:46,900 --> 00:13:49,900 you are to lament. The first thing when we lament 248 00:13:50,200 --> 00:13:55,800 is that we recognize our humanness and gods godness, I 249 00:13:55,800 --> 00:13:57,200 couldn't come up with any other word. 250 00:13:58,300 --> 00:14:02,300 We recognize our humanness and God's goodness. 251 00:14:04,100 --> 00:14:06,900 When we experience life troubles, we can often times 252 00:14:06,900 --> 00:14:10,900 feel helpless, right? And I think there is a level of 253 00:14:10,900 --> 00:14:16,500 disorientation that comes in when life gives us lemons as if 254 00:14:16,500 --> 00:14:20,400 someone has pulled out the metaphorical rug from under our 255 00:14:20,400 --> 00:14:26,700 feet because what that rug gave us with was this notion that the 256 00:14:26,700 --> 00:14:28,800 wisdom that we have, is something that we have 257 00:14:28,800 --> 00:14:33,100 cultivated ourselves and that we can hold onto that the strength 258 00:14:33,100 --> 00:14:36,200 that we enjoy. Joy is something that is unique 259 00:14:36,200 --> 00:14:39,400 to us that we have somehow built up for ourselves and you see 260 00:14:39,500 --> 00:14:42,500 when Trouble Comes and we find ourselves. 261 00:14:43,100 --> 00:14:48,800 Excuse me, without all of that. the reality of the fact that we 262 00:14:48,800 --> 00:14:53,500 are, Created out of dust becomes very apparent. 263 00:14:54,400 --> 00:14:56,800 But it's in that place. You see that? 264 00:14:56,800 --> 00:15:00,100 The goddness? The bigness, the almighty Enos 265 00:15:00,100 --> 00:15:05,000 the omniscience, the omnipresence of God becomes more 266 00:15:05,000 --> 00:15:10,100 clear to us. You see the thing about troubles 267 00:15:10,300 --> 00:15:13,800 is that the way you make lemonade out of troubles, is 268 00:15:13,800 --> 00:15:16,400 that you respond in humility to God. 269 00:15:18,000 --> 00:15:23,300 The way you make lemonade out of your troubles is by saying you 270 00:15:23,300 --> 00:15:26,400 are the Creator and I am the created. 271 00:15:26,400 --> 00:15:28,900 Would you forgive me? Lord, for thinking that I am? 272 00:15:28,900 --> 00:15:32,900 God. There's nothing like troubles to 273 00:15:32,900 --> 00:15:38,600 put the truth of who we are. And who God is into sharp Focus. 274 00:15:39,800 --> 00:15:42,000 Number two. What happens when we lament is? 275 00:15:42,000 --> 00:15:47,700 We surrender to him? You see, because of the Fall, 276 00:15:48,400 --> 00:15:51,600 which was essentially was Pride to say, I want to be, like God, 277 00:15:51,600 --> 00:15:54,400 Adam and Eve that was the decision. 278 00:15:55,000 --> 00:15:59,100 We said we will take the place of God, and we will be like God 279 00:15:59,900 --> 00:16:06,200 and that that that lie that propensity to be like God as I 280 00:16:06,200 --> 00:16:09,600 referenced earlier, is something that we see around us and it's 281 00:16:09,600 --> 00:16:12,400 something that even though as Christians we become a new 282 00:16:12,400 --> 00:16:14,700 believer in Christ Jesus, we still have the flesh. 283 00:16:14,900 --> 00:16:18,500 Shhhh battling against us. Who does not want to surrender. 284 00:16:18,500 --> 00:16:21,800 To God lest we have to relinquish control. 285 00:16:23,000 --> 00:16:27,900 But you see it's in the place. Of lamenting that we come to a 286 00:16:27,908 --> 00:16:31,600 place of surrender. And we say, you know what, I let 287 00:16:31,600 --> 00:16:35,200 go, I'll be honest with you. I think, for me not being here 288 00:16:35,200 --> 00:16:38,900 at the conference, was a, when it was a very humbling 289 00:16:38,900 --> 00:16:43,100 opportunity for me, I wouldn't say that I necessarily thought 290 00:16:43,100 --> 00:16:46,700 that the conference couldn't go ahead without me, but I did 291 00:16:46,700 --> 00:16:48,800 think that, isn't it great? That the senior pastor can be at 292 00:16:48,808 --> 00:16:51,800 the conference and you might say, well that's fair enough 293 00:16:51,800 --> 00:16:55,300 Mark you know, and I wanted to be then not least two. 294 00:16:55,400 --> 00:16:59,000 To learn and to experience, you know, Steve's wisdom and all 295 00:16:59,000 --> 00:17:02,300 that kind of stuff, but the conference was amazing. 296 00:17:02,700 --> 00:17:06,300 And God turned up, even though I wasn't there, it's a healthy 297 00:17:06,300 --> 00:17:09,000 reminder. And sometimes when we make 298 00:17:09,000 --> 00:17:13,599 lemonade, we have to recognize We need to surrender and let go 299 00:17:13,599 --> 00:17:16,700 of everything. The church, I had, what I just 300 00:17:16,700 --> 00:17:17,900 let go of it. I felt so good. 301 00:17:17,900 --> 00:17:20,200 I felt guilty. I felt like I'd let the staff 302 00:17:20,200 --> 00:17:22,500 team down. I'm really sorry, guys. 303 00:17:22,500 --> 00:17:24,200 I was the one that said we should going to go and do this 304 00:17:24,300 --> 00:17:26,300 and I know we busted a gut to get it ready and I'm like, well 305 00:17:26,300 --> 00:17:28,600 I'm not here now. Of course, the truth is. 306 00:17:28,600 --> 00:17:30,600 It wasn't my fault when there's nothing I can do about it. 307 00:17:30,900 --> 00:17:32,500 But there was this sense of guilt that I care. 308 00:17:32,500 --> 00:17:35,500 And I said, you know, I've got to surrender God's bigger than 309 00:17:35,500 --> 00:17:37,900 all that. Number two, what happens? 310 00:17:37,900 --> 00:17:42,000 So we experience his love. You see, when you make lemonade 311 00:17:43,100 --> 00:17:48,700 And we recognize how big God is and therefore we then surrender 312 00:17:48,700 --> 00:17:52,300 to him, it is in that place of humility that he pours out his 313 00:17:52,300 --> 00:17:57,100 grace upon us and it is in that place that we can experience his 314 00:17:57,100 --> 00:18:00,000 tender mercy and his love. Now, it doesn't mean that you're 315 00:18:00,008 --> 00:18:01,800 going to be healed instantly necessarily. 316 00:18:01,900 --> 00:18:06,300 Well that does happen. It doesn't mean necessarily that 317 00:18:06,300 --> 00:18:08,900 all of a sudden, the troubles, the experience is the lemons 318 00:18:08,900 --> 00:18:11,600 disappear and God gives you loads of oranges. 319 00:18:12,300 --> 00:18:16,800 But it means that, in spite of the lemons, you feel in your 320 00:18:16,800 --> 00:18:21,000 heart, a peace, that comes from experience in the tender love 321 00:18:21,000 --> 00:18:27,500 and mercy of God. But you see that comes as we 322 00:18:27,500 --> 00:18:30,300 surrender to him and we allow him to minister. 323 00:18:30,300 --> 00:18:35,900 You see the momentum is an invitation from God for us to 324 00:18:35,900 --> 00:18:40,100 enter into his presence. And as we lament, it is an 325 00:18:40,100 --> 00:18:43,800 invitation from us to God, to minister to us. 326 00:18:46,100 --> 00:18:50,600 And you see, that's why lamenting is so important number 327 00:18:50,600 --> 00:18:56,200 for we desire him more. You see what happens. 328 00:18:56,200 --> 00:18:59,900 You see is as we experience his love and these are sequential. 329 00:19:00,400 --> 00:19:02,000 Listen I don't to be prescriptive. 330 00:19:02,000 --> 00:19:04,700 It doesn't have to necessarily in this order but I certainly in 331 00:19:04,700 --> 00:19:07,600 my experience I've seen a bit of a sequence is it when you 332 00:19:07,600 --> 00:19:12,800 experience his love, when you realize the humanness when you 333 00:19:12,800 --> 00:19:15,900 realize that the world around us is broken and we prayed earlier, 334 00:19:16,000 --> 00:19:18,800 didn't wait for the earthquakes, you know, we live in a broken 335 00:19:18,800 --> 00:19:23,900 world all of a sudden, the reality as a psalmist said is it 336 00:19:23,900 --> 00:19:29,100 Psalm 146 647 I desire. You more than life itself. 337 00:19:29,100 --> 00:19:32,700 Oh God. How could the psalm is get to 338 00:19:32,700 --> 00:19:36,600 that point because he had tasted the lemons of this world and he 339 00:19:36,600 --> 00:19:38,300 was still kicking the honey of God. 340 00:19:40,500 --> 00:19:43,500 And you see when you lament properly, when you deal with the 341 00:19:43,500 --> 00:19:49,000 lemons and make lemonade in a Biblical way, the fruit of it is 342 00:19:49,000 --> 00:19:55,600 that our heart starts pursuing God even more because you 343 00:19:55,600 --> 00:20:00,200 recognize that the only thing that is stable, the only thing 344 00:20:00,200 --> 00:20:03,200 that is good. The only thing that is loving is 345 00:20:03,200 --> 00:20:07,700 not a thing but a person in Jesus Christ and, you know, I 346 00:20:07,700 --> 00:20:12,000 often like reading Lamentations I often like reading Revelation 347 00:20:12,800 --> 00:20:15,300 that scripture where God says he will wipe away every tear 348 00:20:15,300 --> 00:20:19,700 because you know, we're here for butter a moment and then we're 349 00:20:19,700 --> 00:20:21,900 going to be in the presence of God for all eternity. 350 00:20:22,100 --> 00:20:25,500 And I got to be honest with you, there are days when I pray, 351 00:20:25,500 --> 00:20:29,700 Lord, just come now. Maybe you're not like that but I 352 00:20:29,700 --> 00:20:31,500 am. I've had it with this world. 353 00:20:31,500 --> 00:20:33,700 Lord, I'm tired of it. I'm sick of it. 354 00:20:33,900 --> 00:20:35,500 I don't want to turn the news on anymore. 355 00:20:35,700 --> 00:20:37,400 I don't want to hear any more bad stories. 356 00:20:37,600 --> 00:20:40,200 Would you just come now? Lord God because I'm flipping 357 00:20:40,200 --> 00:20:44,500 tired. And maybe you're in that place 358 00:20:44,500 --> 00:20:47,600 this morning, you like, you know what, I'm tired of it. 359 00:20:47,800 --> 00:20:50,800 It's too hard. Now I don't want to come across 360 00:20:50,800 --> 00:20:53,300 as being defeatist, that's not the point of this message 361 00:20:53,800 --> 00:20:56,200 because as we come out to later in the Lamentations, the 362 00:20:56,200 --> 00:20:59,300 objective of a lament and the endgame is not where you 363 00:20:59,300 --> 00:21:01,600 started, but the point I'm trying to make, I guess what I'm 364 00:21:01,608 --> 00:21:04,300 trying to do is rattle you a bit to get you to be honest with 365 00:21:04,300 --> 00:21:07,700 yourself. I'm trying to be self-disclosing 366 00:21:07,700 --> 00:21:11,600 so that you can deal with your stuff in a healthy way because I 367 00:21:11,600 --> 00:21:16,300 know we have been For those who grew up in churches there is 368 00:21:16,300 --> 00:21:19,800 that tendency as I said before, to deal with life troubles in a 369 00:21:19,800 --> 00:21:23,300 way where we gloss it over, and if we gloss it over then it will 370 00:21:23,300 --> 00:21:25,500 all be fine. And if you talk about the 371 00:21:25,500 --> 00:21:28,000 problems then people think well you just haven't prayed hard 372 00:21:28,000 --> 00:21:30,600 enough. I want to break you out of that 373 00:21:30,900 --> 00:21:33,400 by saying it's okay to say life sucks. 374 00:21:34,000 --> 00:21:36,800 It's okay. It's okay to say Lord I desire 375 00:21:36,800 --> 00:21:39,400 you more than life itself because the psalmist did it. 376 00:21:40,000 --> 00:21:43,200 It's okay to say you know what God you mean more to me than 377 00:21:43,200 --> 00:21:45,400 anything else? Now what Happens in that moment 378 00:21:45,400 --> 00:21:47,200 when you pursue God more than the world. 379 00:21:49,400 --> 00:21:51,400 All of a sudden the world's problems don't seem as big 380 00:21:51,400 --> 00:21:55,500 anymore. It's not that you say I don't 381 00:21:55,500 --> 00:21:57,200 want to live in this world. You just say, you know what? 382 00:21:57,200 --> 00:21:59,500 I can Rise Above This one I'm not of this world. 383 00:21:59,600 --> 00:22:03,400 I'm an ambassador of Christ. I'm called to be a holy people. 384 00:22:03,800 --> 00:22:06,100 I'm more than victorious in Christ Jesus because as Paul 385 00:22:06,100 --> 00:22:09,900 says I can't all of this stuff all these trials and troubles as 386 00:22:09,900 --> 00:22:12,900 nothing compared with the glory that's going to be revealed. 387 00:22:13,300 --> 00:22:17,800 You see, Paul was able to Malala meant healthily because he 388 00:22:17,800 --> 00:22:21,200 recognized where he was going and you see it as Christians if 389 00:22:21,200 --> 00:22:25,300 we recognize, where we are going and have in our view eternity 390 00:22:25,500 --> 00:22:29,800 and live in eternity, Then all of a sudden life troubles. 391 00:22:29,800 --> 00:22:32,500 When we get those lemons, we can make lemonade. 392 00:22:32,900 --> 00:22:35,100 Are you hearing me? Good. 393 00:22:35,400 --> 00:22:38,700 You still with me good stuff. I got one more on that one. 394 00:22:38,900 --> 00:22:41,200 I think I had five. Where are we up to? 395 00:22:41,600 --> 00:22:44,200 We desire him or number? We bring people to Jesus and we 396 00:22:44,200 --> 00:22:46,800 bring Jesus to people. You see, there's nothing like 397 00:22:47,800 --> 00:22:52,000 when you Lament. You look at other people through 398 00:22:52,200 --> 00:22:55,100 eyes of empathy. You know, I've experienced 399 00:22:55,100 --> 00:22:57,800 mental problems, mental health issues in the past. 400 00:22:58,000 --> 00:23:00,100 There have been many, many, many, many years ago. 401 00:23:00,100 --> 00:23:01,500 I find it difficult. Get our bed. 402 00:23:02,000 --> 00:23:04,700 I was on medication. I couldn't get myself out of it. 403 00:23:05,300 --> 00:23:08,800 And when I speak to people, I think prior to that, there was 404 00:23:08,800 --> 00:23:11,200 an element of me if I'm honest, which is like, just distract 405 00:23:11,200 --> 00:23:12,600 yourself out of it. Come on, it's fine. 406 00:23:12,900 --> 00:23:14,700 Mind over matter, you can sort this out. 407 00:23:15,100 --> 00:23:18,900 But I do, I do recognize that as God allowed me to go through 408 00:23:18,900 --> 00:23:22,100 that. I can pray and speak with people 409 00:23:22,100 --> 00:23:24,000 who have had mental health issues in a way in which I 410 00:23:24,008 --> 00:23:25,400 wouldn't have been able to had it. 411 00:23:25,400 --> 00:23:28,200 Not from be me being having those lemons. 412 00:23:29,400 --> 00:23:31,700 And you see in a place of lament, if you process it 413 00:23:31,700 --> 00:23:35,000 healthily all of a sudden you can bring Jesus to people. 414 00:23:35,600 --> 00:23:40,000 I've been there. I've been, I understand, you 415 00:23:40,000 --> 00:23:43,000 know, sometimes people just wanted to say, I understand and 416 00:23:43,000 --> 00:23:45,200 just listen without trying to solve their issues. 417 00:23:46,400 --> 00:23:48,000 All right. Oh man. 418 00:23:48,200 --> 00:23:52,700 Look at the time. Hmm, how do we limit? 419 00:23:52,700 --> 00:23:55,600 We where was I right? What happens when we lament we 420 00:23:55,600 --> 00:23:57,700 recognized our humanness and God's goodness. 421 00:23:58,100 --> 00:24:00,700 Number two we surrender to him. Number three weeks appearances, 422 00:24:00,700 --> 00:24:02,900 love number four, we desire him more. 423 00:24:03,000 --> 00:24:06,800 And number five, we bring Jesus to others that leads me on to 424 00:24:06,800 --> 00:24:10,200 the final part which is this. How do we therefore Lament? 425 00:24:11,200 --> 00:24:14,300 Mark, that sounds fantastic. I love that idea. 426 00:24:14,500 --> 00:24:20,800 I want to lament, right? Well, I know what you'll be 427 00:24:20,800 --> 00:24:25,600 doing this afternoon. Well, I meant in Sunday. 428 00:24:26,300 --> 00:24:32,500 Love it, right? Psalm 13 actually gives us 5. 429 00:24:34,100 --> 00:24:37,400 Ways in which we lament and actually this framework, if you 430 00:24:37,400 --> 00:24:39,000 look through this, I mean Psalm 10. 431 00:24:39,000 --> 00:24:42,000 So I'm 7, there's so many signs that have this exact same 432 00:24:42,000 --> 00:24:45,300 framework for a Biblical lament. Okay, you ready. 433 00:24:45,500 --> 00:24:47,800 Number one, you have to get real. 434 00:24:49,700 --> 00:24:52,100 Boom. Just going to drop a truth bomb. 435 00:24:53,600 --> 00:24:56,700 You have to be honest and say like it is now I am I can't even 436 00:24:56,700 --> 00:24:58,900 the Met most of the time because I'm not real with myself. 437 00:25:00,400 --> 00:25:01,500 Stuff. Like that's true. 438 00:25:01,500 --> 00:25:03,100 My darling. Now Steph is Health. 439 00:25:03,200 --> 00:25:05,200 Healthfully processes, her emotions. 440 00:25:05,700 --> 00:25:09,500 She can get real. A lot of the time you get really 441 00:25:09,500 --> 00:25:10,600 really real. Don't you darling? 442 00:25:12,000 --> 00:25:15,200 Me, I don't get really, really real because I just don't wanna 443 00:25:15,200 --> 00:25:17,400 deal with it. Quite frankly and I, you know, I 444 00:25:17,400 --> 00:25:19,600 just want to want to push it down as deep as I can because, 445 00:25:19,600 --> 00:25:20,900 of course, it's safe there, isn't it? 446 00:25:20,900 --> 00:25:24,300 No, it would just come up some other time when you least expect 447 00:25:24,300 --> 00:25:25,900 it. Thank you. 448 00:25:27,000 --> 00:25:29,500 So number one is be honest. And you know, let's be honest 449 00:25:29,500 --> 00:25:30,300 with it. It's okay. 450 00:25:30,300 --> 00:25:33,500 As Christians to say you're finding things difficult, it's 451 00:25:33,500 --> 00:25:35,100 okay. We won't think anything less of 452 00:25:35,100 --> 00:25:36,100 you. We won't think you're 453 00:25:36,100 --> 00:25:39,300 unchristian, okay? Jesus, in The Garden of 454 00:25:39,300 --> 00:25:43,100 Gethsemane. How real was Jesus, please. 455 00:25:43,100 --> 00:25:47,000 Would you take this card yet? Not my will, but yours, we need 456 00:25:47,000 --> 00:25:50,000 to get real and if you can't get real, you'll never be able to 457 00:25:50,000 --> 00:25:55,900 lament because like the lament about number two, turn to God. 458 00:25:56,100 --> 00:25:57,900 What did it say? Verse 1 in Psalm 13. 459 00:25:57,900 --> 00:26:06,800 How long O Lord How long O Lord. We have to turn to him in those 460 00:26:06,800 --> 00:26:11,100 moments of lemons and make a choice to call out to God. 461 00:26:14,600 --> 00:26:17,100 Make a decision to talk to God about the pain. 462 00:26:17,300 --> 00:26:21,700 Listen how long O Lord. Will you forget me forever in? 463 00:26:21,900 --> 00:26:22,900 How long? O Lord. 464 00:26:22,900 --> 00:26:26,100 Will you hide your face from me? How can I say that to God? 465 00:26:26,100 --> 00:26:29,000 Yes. Did you know that God wants you 466 00:26:29,000 --> 00:26:34,000 to be real with him? The point here when I lament is 467 00:26:34,000 --> 00:26:38,200 that the person lamenting chooses to talk to God about 468 00:26:38,200 --> 00:26:41,300 what is happening which leads me on to the second point is bring 469 00:26:41,300 --> 00:26:44,000 your complaint to God specifically verse 2. 470 00:26:44,100 --> 00:26:48,700 How long must I take counsel in my soul and have sorrow in my 471 00:26:48,700 --> 00:26:50,000 heart or the day? There you go. 472 00:26:50,800 --> 00:26:53,700 Be specific. How long O Lord do? 473 00:26:53,700 --> 00:26:57,400 I need to be lying here? Sick how long O Lord do, I need 474 00:26:57,400 --> 00:27:00,600 to be hearing about XYZ how long O Lord do. 475 00:27:00,600 --> 00:27:03,300 I need to suffer this? How long a Lord does my child 476 00:27:03,300 --> 00:27:08,000 need to go through this? And he goes on to say, the sum 477 00:27:08,000 --> 00:27:11,400 is, how long shall my enemy? Be exalted over after over me. 478 00:27:11,800 --> 00:27:14,700 Listen, this isn't about shouting to God about how 479 00:27:14,700 --> 00:27:21,600 rubbish news. This isn't about being angry for 480 00:27:21,600 --> 00:27:25,300 the sake of being angry. And that's it, a Biblical lament 481 00:27:25,300 --> 00:27:29,700 is bringing our pain, humbly and honesty. 482 00:27:29,900 --> 00:27:37,700 Honestly, to the Lord God Almighty It is this amazing. 483 00:27:37,700 --> 00:27:41,700 I feel like sometimes it's amazing tension which is we are 484 00:27:41,700 --> 00:27:45,800 invited into the very throne room of the king of the universe 485 00:27:45,900 --> 00:27:49,600 and yet he invites us on his to his lap as a father. 486 00:27:51,600 --> 00:27:54,800 Isn't that amazing? And I think sometimes we can 487 00:27:54,800 --> 00:27:58,500 earn our on an error because we just come to him as such a mates 488 00:27:58,500 --> 00:28:02,000 that we chat to him as if he's not the king Almighty or we come 489 00:28:02,000 --> 00:28:06,800 to him as the king Almighty with so much reverence That we feel 490 00:28:06,800 --> 00:28:10,200 like we can't be honest with him because he's not our father, but 491 00:28:10,200 --> 00:28:12,400 we need to come to him. Honestly, and humbly and say, 492 00:28:12,400 --> 00:28:14,100 Lord God, these are the problems. 493 00:28:14,100 --> 00:28:16,100 I'm experiencing. You need to hear this God. 494 00:28:18,500 --> 00:28:22,100 Number four. Ask for help. 495 00:28:22,900 --> 00:28:28,300 So you've got real. You've turned to God, you bring 496 00:28:28,300 --> 00:28:31,400 your brought your complaint. Now, you're turning your 497 00:28:31,400 --> 00:28:34,200 complaint to help assistance versary. 498 00:28:34,300 --> 00:28:39,200 Consider an answer me O Lord, my God, light up my eyes, lest I 499 00:28:39,200 --> 00:28:42,500 sleep, the sleep of death less my enemy so I prevailed over 500 00:28:42,500 --> 00:28:46,600 him. God wants to hear your specific 501 00:28:46,600 --> 00:28:49,900 request for help, you know, I one of my favorite Psalms that I 502 00:28:49,900 --> 00:28:52,900 often quote, when I'm in this problem in a problem is Come 503 00:28:52,900 --> 00:28:55,400 speedily to Me. O, Lord, the psalmist said that 504 00:28:55,400 --> 00:28:59,700 in Psalms 143 verse 7, Lord, would you come speedily and help 505 00:28:59,700 --> 00:29:03,000 me now? It is okay to be specific in 506 00:29:03,000 --> 00:29:11,500 your requests to God. you know, sorrow if we if we try and block 507 00:29:11,500 --> 00:29:18,200 the lemon To use that imagery. It can trap us in the place of 508 00:29:18,200 --> 00:29:23,900 hopelessness. if we don't choose to lament biblically and instead 509 00:29:23,900 --> 00:29:27,600 have a pity party and shout and Grumble at God and we never get 510 00:29:27,600 --> 00:29:32,700 to the place in humility asking for God after we've acknowledged 511 00:29:32,700 --> 00:29:37,700 to a years, Then what the fruit of that will be is that lemon 512 00:29:37,700 --> 00:29:42,000 would give you hopelessness, but you see biblical lamenting as 513 00:29:42,000 --> 00:29:45,500 you go through that, process of acknowledging God and ask him 514 00:29:45,500 --> 00:29:48,300 for help. Hope comes in that place. 515 00:29:48,300 --> 00:29:53,300 You see and you see the when you lament a fruit of lamenting is 516 00:29:53,300 --> 00:29:56,900 hope. And trust in God, the fruit of 517 00:29:56,900 --> 00:30:01,300 blowing up lemon is hopelessness and bitterness towards God you 518 00:30:01,300 --> 00:30:06,000 get the difference. PC, we need to lament biblically 519 00:30:06,400 --> 00:30:09,800 in order to get us from that place of hopelessness into a 520 00:30:09,808 --> 00:30:13,900 place of hope, because it says, in the scriptures, hope deferred 521 00:30:13,900 --> 00:30:17,500 makes the heart grow sick. Number five. 522 00:30:18,200 --> 00:30:20,400 And this is the endgame. This is all, I'd like to invite 523 00:30:20,400 --> 00:30:23,000 the band up. This is always a destination of 524 00:30:23,000 --> 00:30:24,200 lamenting. Are you ready? 525 00:30:26,000 --> 00:30:30,200 Choose to trust and praise. If you read all the laments in 526 00:30:30,200 --> 00:30:33,000 the Bible, they end with something like this first five 527 00:30:33,000 --> 00:30:38,000 and six but I have trusted in your steadfast. 528 00:30:38,000 --> 00:30:44,000 Love my heart, listen shall rejoice in your salvation. 529 00:30:45,300 --> 00:30:51,200 At the end of a process of Lent, lament you make a decision to 530 00:30:51,200 --> 00:30:54,400 praise God in spite of the circumstances. 531 00:30:55,700 --> 00:31:01,800 Now, if you try and Hotwire it and don't get real, If you try 532 00:31:01,800 --> 00:31:05,300 and Hotwire it and not reach out to God, if you try and Hotwire 533 00:31:05,300 --> 00:31:08,200 it. And not bring your complaint to 534 00:31:08,200 --> 00:31:09,500 God. If you try and Hotwire it and 535 00:31:09,500 --> 00:31:13,000 not trusting God and asked specifically and just go to 536 00:31:13,000 --> 00:31:16,500 praise all the time. What will happen over time is 537 00:31:16,500 --> 00:31:18,700 that you are just being mechanical in that and they'll 538 00:31:18,700 --> 00:31:23,200 be no heart connection with God. If you're in that place of Life, 539 00:31:23,200 --> 00:31:26,600 giving you lemons, we've got to praise God. 540 00:31:26,600 --> 00:31:29,000 But some of you need to go through the process of lament 541 00:31:29,000 --> 00:31:30,200 first. You understand. 542 00:31:31,500 --> 00:31:39,800 It's really important. Praising God isn't about putting 543 00:31:39,800 --> 00:31:43,900 a sticker or a plaster on it and ignoring the wound praising. 544 00:31:43,900 --> 00:31:47,800 God, there is a spiritual Dynamic happens when we sick 545 00:31:47,800 --> 00:31:50,300 seek God and put our trust in him. 546 00:31:50,500 --> 00:31:54,900 But for some of us, as we have been given many, many lemons, we 547 00:31:54,900 --> 00:31:58,400 need to go through that process of lamenting in order to be free 548 00:31:58,500 --> 00:32:01,800 to, praise God. Like us to stand. 549 00:32:00,900 --> 00:32:01,800 Like us to stand.