WEBVTT 1 00:00:02.399 --> 00:00:07.960 This is Pastor Rick's Daily Hope, the Audio Broadcast ministry of Pastor Rick Warren. 2 00:00:08.199 --> 00:00:12.839 Today we continue with our series called Doing Business with God. In this 3 00:00:13.039 --> 00:00:17.320 series, Rick helps you understand why you work, what you should be working 4 00:00:17.440 --> 00:00:22.399 for, and how God can use you in your workplace. Right now, 5 00:00:22.519 --> 00:00:28.440 here's Pastor Rick with part one of a message called making Wise Decisions at Work. 6 00:00:28.559 --> 00:00:32.960 I invited each of you to send me questions during this series that we 7 00:00:33.000 --> 00:00:37.679 would try to answer, and the most common questions that came up from you 8 00:00:37.719 --> 00:00:41.880 were these, Number one, how do I know when to quit my job 9 00:00:45.600 --> 00:00:50.520 and find one that fits my shape? And number two second most common, 10 00:00:50.840 --> 00:00:53.439 I want to start my own business. I've always wanted to do that. 11 00:00:53.880 --> 00:00:58.439 How do I decide if I should? And the third most common, I'm 12 00:00:58.479 --> 00:01:03.439 married with kids? How do I know when to take a career risk when 13 00:01:03.520 --> 00:01:11.040 they go to college? Some of you are struggling with very difficult decisions, 14 00:01:11.200 --> 00:01:14.760 and I could see that in the questions that you turned in. You're unsure 15 00:01:14.799 --> 00:01:19.079 where to turn, and some of you are stuck in perfectionism, which creates 16 00:01:19.120 --> 00:01:23.200 procrastination. The Book of James tells us a double minded man a person who 17 00:01:23.280 --> 00:01:30.120 can't make up. His mind is unstable in all his ways. Fortunately, 18 00:01:30.879 --> 00:01:37.200 the wealthiest businessman who ever lived on the planet also wrote two books of the 19 00:01:37.239 --> 00:01:44.120 Bible, and he spread his wisdom about wealth and about work. They are 20 00:01:44.159 --> 00:01:49.040 called the Book of Ecclesiastes and the Book of Proverbs. Now we're going to 21 00:01:49.120 --> 00:01:56.519 look this weekend at all of a bunch of proverbs of Solomon's wisdom, particularly 22 00:01:56.599 --> 00:02:00.519 in the area of making wise decisions. Now to deal with it in relationship 23 00:02:00.560 --> 00:02:06.319 to work. But any kind of major decision, you have these eight steps 24 00:02:06.799 --> 00:02:09.120 work, these eight principles from Proverbs. Let's get right into it. What 25 00:02:09.199 --> 00:02:14.000 are the eight principles from Proverbs? On If I have a major decision to 26 00:02:14.080 --> 00:02:16.960 make and I don't know which way to turn, I can't figure out what 27 00:02:17.039 --> 00:02:21.120 to do? What am I supposed to do? Number One, the first 28 00:02:21.159 --> 00:02:25.800 thing you do is this check the Bible. Check the Bible. This is 29 00:02:25.800 --> 00:02:31.360 the principle of revelation, and that is before you do anything else, before 30 00:02:31.400 --> 00:02:35.960 you get anybody else's perspective on what you're going to do. You need to 31 00:02:36.000 --> 00:02:39.560 go to the Word, and you need to get God's perspective. Now, 32 00:02:39.800 --> 00:02:46.520 this book the Bible is literally filled with God's advice on work and on business. 33 00:02:47.120 --> 00:02:52.159 The Old Testament is the book of illustration, and the New Testament is 34 00:02:52.199 --> 00:02:57.520 the book of instruction. The Old Testament just illustrates everything that the New Testament 35 00:02:57.759 --> 00:03:00.520 teaches. So if you want to know the prince of success and the principles 36 00:03:00.520 --> 00:03:04.800 of work, and the principles of finance, you go to the Bible. 37 00:03:05.000 --> 00:03:07.240 And in the Old Testament you find all of these stories, like the story 38 00:03:07.240 --> 00:03:12.400 of Joseph, and the story of Daniel, and the story of David, 39 00:03:12.439 --> 00:03:16.000 and Abraham and Moses and all these other guys, and you can find principles 40 00:03:16.080 --> 00:03:22.039 illustrated in their lives. And then you go to the New Testament, particularly 41 00:03:22.120 --> 00:03:24.800 the Gospels and of course the Letters of Paul, but also in the Old 42 00:03:24.840 --> 00:03:31.199 Testament, the Book of Proverbs is a book of instruction that tells you examples 43 00:03:31.280 --> 00:03:37.439 and I mean proverbs of what God wants us to do with our lives. 44 00:03:38.639 --> 00:03:40.280 The point I want to make on this first point here is the Bible teaches 45 00:03:40.360 --> 00:03:45.599 very clearly, when in doubt read the Owner's Manual, that God gave us 46 00:03:45.639 --> 00:03:50.360 this manual for life, and the Bible says, your words are spirit and 47 00:03:50.400 --> 00:03:53.800 they are life. Now, notice what the Bible says Proverbs chapter two, 48 00:03:55.240 --> 00:04:02.639 it is the Lord who gives wisdom. From him comes knowledge and understanding. 49 00:04:03.759 --> 00:04:12.520 He provides help and protection for those who are righteous and honest. Then notice 50 00:04:12.560 --> 00:04:17.360 five benefits of checking the Bible in Matt circling wisdom, knowledge, understanding, 51 00:04:17.839 --> 00:04:21.720 help and protection. If I've got a major decision to make, those are 52 00:04:21.800 --> 00:04:26.720 five things I want. I want wisdom, I want knowledge, I want 53 00:04:26.839 --> 00:04:30.800 understanding, I want help, and i want protection. I want you to 54 00:04:30.839 --> 00:04:35.120 write this down on your outlining. Stop listening for a voice and start looking 55 00:04:35.240 --> 00:04:40.879 for a verse. That's what you need to do when you don't know what 56 00:04:40.920 --> 00:04:46.160 to do with your work or anything else. Stop listening for a voice and 57 00:04:46.240 --> 00:04:49.879 start looking for a verse. It's all there. God has already said it 58 00:04:49.920 --> 00:04:54.279 all. And a lot of guys are sitting out there trying to decide, 59 00:04:54.759 --> 00:04:57.439 men and women trying to decide what am I supposed to do with my work, 60 00:04:57.560 --> 00:05:00.240 and they're waiting for God to write it in the sky. I'm not 61 00:05:00.279 --> 00:05:02.160 going to write it in the sky. He's already written it in a book. 62 00:05:04.480 --> 00:05:06.360 And so don't go outside and sit and say, God, what do 63 00:05:06.399 --> 00:05:08.600 you want me to do? What do you want me to do? What 64 00:05:08.639 --> 00:05:12.639 do you want me to go? Read the word of God. God isn't 65 00:05:12.639 --> 00:05:16.279 going to write it in the sky. And this is truth, and it 66 00:05:16.360 --> 00:05:19.639 is eternal truth, which means it's always right. Now, let me ask 67 00:05:19.680 --> 00:05:24.920 you that's true, confession. How many of you have ever made a decision 68 00:05:25.399 --> 00:05:30.800 based on an impression that seemed right but it ended up being a disaster. 69 00:05:31.399 --> 00:05:35.439 Yeah, I would guess all of us would say that's true. The Bible 70 00:05:35.480 --> 00:05:39.680 says, there's a way that seems right on demand, but the ends thereof 71 00:05:39.839 --> 00:05:43.680 are the ways of death. The Bible says in Proverbs twenty eight, there 72 00:05:43.720 --> 00:05:49.160 on your outline, verse twenty six, a man is foolish, foolish to 73 00:05:49.240 --> 00:05:56.120 trust himself. But those who use God's wisdom, that's the Bible. Those 74 00:05:56.120 --> 00:06:00.759 who use God's wisdom are safe. In other words, I don't rely on 75 00:06:00.800 --> 00:06:03.480 an impression, because an impression most of the time is just an impression. 76 00:06:03.600 --> 00:06:12.759 Write this down. Feelings aren't facts. Feelings aren't facts. You may feel 77 00:06:12.759 --> 00:06:15.240 it, but it doesn't necessarily mean it's true. You might think this is 78 00:06:15.279 --> 00:06:17.040 a great time to start a business, or I have a great idea for 79 00:06:17.079 --> 00:06:21.639 a business and you have a feeling about it. But feelings aren't facts. 80 00:06:24.000 --> 00:06:27.639 They're just feelings, and feelings often lie, and if you get an impression, 81 00:06:27.680 --> 00:06:30.920 the odds are your fifty percent wrong. You need something far more reliable 82 00:06:31.120 --> 00:06:35.360 than feelings to base your life, your work, your career, your family, 83 00:06:35.399 --> 00:06:39.240 and everything else on. So the first question you want to ask is 84 00:06:39.279 --> 00:06:44.279 this, What does God say when I'm going to make a decision an irriny 85 00:06:44.319 --> 00:06:46.279 area of my life, A decision with my family, a decision with my 86 00:06:46.399 --> 00:06:50.279 kids, a decision with my work, a decision with my education, with 87 00:06:50.399 --> 00:06:57.800 my money, with anything. I want to ask first what does God say? 88 00:06:58.000 --> 00:07:03.120 And before you anything else, you get God's perspective. I don't know 89 00:07:03.160 --> 00:07:08.439 that I've ever told you this, but before I started Saddleback Church, I 90 00:07:08.519 --> 00:07:14.759 read through the Bible thirteen times. I wanted to fill my mind so much 91 00:07:15.040 --> 00:07:19.560 with what God's words said. I just spent time reading it over and over 92 00:07:19.600 --> 00:07:25.720 from cover. I read it thirteen times before I started this church because I 93 00:07:25.720 --> 00:07:30.439 want to know what does God say about leadership? What does God say about 94 00:07:30.480 --> 00:07:35.959 growing something? What does God say about building something new? About starting something 95 00:07:35.959 --> 00:07:41.040 from scratch? What does God say? And I filled my mind with the 96 00:07:41.040 --> 00:07:45.480 word of God. Check the Bible. That's the principle of revelation. Okay, 97 00:07:45.560 --> 00:07:51.120 number two, get the facts. That's step number two. Get the 98 00:07:51.199 --> 00:07:58.160 facts. And I'm talking about the facts on your particular situation. I mean, 99 00:07:58.199 --> 00:08:01.279 because you're not going to find the word donald's in the Bible, and 100 00:08:01.360 --> 00:08:03.759 so God's not going to tell you to start a McDonald's or a subway or 101 00:08:03.800 --> 00:08:07.959 something like that. How do I know what I'm supposed to do? This 102 00:08:07.959 --> 00:08:11.680 is the principle of information. And what you do here is you find out 103 00:08:11.879 --> 00:08:16.519 everything you can before you make the decision. This is called doing your due 104 00:08:16.560 --> 00:08:24.519 diligence. You study, you examine, you ask questions, you research, 105 00:08:24.199 --> 00:08:31.480 You get a realistic view of the situation before you make the decision to jump 106 00:08:31.519 --> 00:08:33.759 in on any decision. Let's say you're trying to think about should I start 107 00:08:33.799 --> 00:08:39.240 a new business? You need to study the situation first. I mean, 108 00:08:39.279 --> 00:08:41.559 so many people get a great idea, say, you know, I'm a 109 00:08:41.559 --> 00:08:46.440 good cook. I think I'll start a restaurant that's based on a feeling, 110 00:08:46.720 --> 00:08:52.000 okay, and a lot of people start businesses or get into jobs without checking 111 00:08:52.000 --> 00:08:56.399 first what's the job market like there? What's the current market is it needed? 112 00:08:56.440 --> 00:09:00.919 Without studying the customers? Do we need enough restaurant, you know, 113 00:09:01.080 --> 00:09:05.840 some whatever things like that. The Bible says in Proverbs thirteen sixteen, every 114 00:09:05.919 --> 00:09:11.960 prudent man acts out of knowledge, acts out of knowledge. Just go back 115 00:09:13.000 --> 00:09:16.679 that illustration of a of a restaurant. You know, over where I live, 116 00:09:16.120 --> 00:09:20.679 there's a there's a building that in the time that I've lived there, 117 00:09:20.159 --> 00:09:26.200 there have been six different restaurants in that building that have all failed. Now 118 00:09:26.000 --> 00:09:30.480 let's say you get an idea, I've got a great recipe for pizza. 119 00:09:30.519 --> 00:09:33.360 Well you may have, but I wouldn't suggest you do it in that building 120 00:09:35.720 --> 00:09:41.600 because obviously that's a bad location for a restaurant. And without and it's sure 121 00:09:41.840 --> 00:09:43.960 hubris, it's pride. Well, I can do what other people haven't done. 122 00:09:45.080 --> 00:09:48.600 Well, really, don't you think the first one, two, three, 123 00:09:48.639 --> 00:09:52.000 four, five, and six restaurants who were there first? I thought 124 00:09:52.240 --> 00:09:58.120 this one will work. They didn't study the market, they didn't study the 125 00:09:58.159 --> 00:10:03.080 customer, they didn't study this situation. They didn't get the facts. Proverbs 126 00:10:03.080 --> 00:10:07.559 thirteen sixteen. Every prudent man acts out of knowledge. Look at the next 127 00:10:07.600 --> 00:10:13.120 verse, Proverbs eighteen thirteen. How stupid to decide before knowing the facts. 128 00:10:15.320 --> 00:10:18.559 How stupid you know a lot of new businesses. The reason they fail is 129 00:10:18.600 --> 00:10:26.759 because of uninformed optimism. US Labor Department statistics say, of all new businesses, 130 00:10:26.039 --> 00:10:31.559 eighty percent of them fail within the first year, eighty percent of those 131 00:10:33.200 --> 00:10:37.080 twenty percent that goes on, eighty percent of those will fail by year five, 132 00:10:39.159 --> 00:10:41.559 and of those that go on, eighty percent of those will fail by 133 00:10:41.639 --> 00:10:48.440 year ten. Now there's only one style of business that actually has a eighty 134 00:10:48.519 --> 00:10:52.519 to ninety percent success rate. That's the business system franchise, which is those 135 00:10:52.840 --> 00:11:00.200 Blimpe's and Starbucks and McDonald's and Windys. And when you buy one of those 136 00:11:00.279 --> 00:11:05.799 businesses, you're not you don't buy Hamburger at Wendy's. You're buying a system 137 00:11:05.000 --> 00:11:11.679 that's almost goofproof. What does that say. It's saying that those people have 138 00:11:11.799 --> 00:11:15.840 done their research and they know what makes a business fail and what makes a 139 00:11:15.879 --> 00:11:18.759 business success. But a lot of people don't do that. They have uninformed 140 00:11:18.759 --> 00:11:20.960 optimists. I got a great idea, Therefore I'm going to go start a 141 00:11:22.000 --> 00:11:24.480 business. No, you shouldn't do that. By the way, a lot 142 00:11:24.519 --> 00:11:28.679 of people go into marriage that way too. But we love each other. 143 00:11:30.600 --> 00:11:35.120 What are you going to live on? We'll live on love that lasts about 144 00:11:35.120 --> 00:11:41.080 four days. Okay, you got to get the facts. Before I started 145 00:11:41.120 --> 00:11:46.759 Saddleback Church, I spent six months getting the facts. The first thing I 146 00:11:46.799 --> 00:11:54.039 did I read seventy two books on church growth. I read everything in print 147 00:11:54.320 --> 00:11:58.600 on church growth before I'd ever even moved to Orange County. And then I 148 00:11:58.639 --> 00:12:05.679 went and spent six months studying demographics and census statistics and discovered that during between 149 00:12:05.720 --> 00:12:11.000 nineteen seventy and nineteen eighty, that the Saddleback Valley was the fastest growing area 150 00:12:11.080 --> 00:12:15.919 in Orange County, and that Orange County between nineteen seventy nineteen eighty was the 151 00:12:15.960 --> 00:12:20.080 fastest growing county in America. I thought, Hm, they probably gonna need 152 00:12:20.080 --> 00:12:22.720 some new churches. A lot of people are moving in there. I didn't 153 00:12:22.720 --> 00:12:24.720 just go out and say, well, I like this city, so I'm 154 00:12:24.720 --> 00:12:28.440 going to go there. I did a place where I knew there was going 155 00:12:28.480 --> 00:12:33.279 to be a need, and I spent hours and hours studying census statistics and 156 00:12:33.679 --> 00:12:41.720 did demographic studies. Proverbs fourteen sixteen says this, sensible people are careful to 157 00:12:41.759 --> 00:12:48.080 stay out of trouble, but stupid people are careless and act too quickly. 158 00:12:50.360 --> 00:12:54.519 Circle the phrase act too quickly. This is one of the biggest mistakes we 159 00:12:54.600 --> 00:12:58.639 make in decision making. It's important to make the right decision, not a 160 00:12:58.679 --> 00:13:05.080 fast decision. A lot of times we're enamored with making a decision fast. 161 00:13:05.200 --> 00:13:07.120 We got to make it fast. We got to make it fast. We've 162 00:13:07.080 --> 00:13:09.159 got to make it fast. Let me tell you something. Pressure is never 163 00:13:09.360 --> 00:13:15.320 from God. I'll say it again. Pressure. If you feel pressured to 164 00:13:15.360 --> 00:13:20.240 make a decision, it's never from God. Zero, absolutely none from God. 165 00:13:20.360 --> 00:13:24.440 Why Because Jesus said, my yoke is easy and my burden is light. 166 00:13:24.879 --> 00:13:26.879 Come to me if you're tired and heavylight, and I will give you 167 00:13:26.960 --> 00:13:31.159 rest. God doesn't put more on you, more pressure on you. If 168 00:13:31.200 --> 00:13:35.480 you feel pressure, that's from you. It's from other people. It's from 169 00:13:35.519 --> 00:13:37.759 the devil, it's from culture, it could be from a lot of things. 170 00:13:37.759 --> 00:13:43.120 But it isn't from God. Anytime you feel pressured to make a decision, 171 00:13:43.320 --> 00:13:45.960 you should absolutely stop at that moment and say, wait a minute, 172 00:13:46.120 --> 00:13:50.840 why am I feeling pressure right now? And you need to ask yourself have 173 00:13:50.960 --> 00:13:56.080 I got all the facts? It's like these telemarketers that call you up and 174 00:13:56.120 --> 00:14:01.720 they say we want to sell you one thousand acres of prime property in Arizona 175 00:14:01.960 --> 00:14:05.360 for a ranch. You don't even have to see it, just send us 176 00:14:05.399 --> 00:14:09.279 the money and then you know. And they're going to pressure you to make 177 00:14:09.279 --> 00:14:11.879 a decision, or do pressure you to go on a cruise. No, 178 00:14:11.879 --> 00:14:16.480 no, any pressure like that is not of God. Sensible people are careful 179 00:14:16.559 --> 00:14:20.840 to stay out of trouble. Stupid people are careless and act too quickly. 180 00:14:22.000 --> 00:14:24.039 So the second question you want to ask, and you got to make a 181 00:14:24.080 --> 00:14:28.279 major decision, is this, what do I need to know? First? 182 00:14:28.320 --> 00:14:31.480 What has God said? Then? Second what do I need to know? 183 00:14:31.559 --> 00:14:37.159 And how do I find it? What do I need to know and how 184 00:14:37.159 --> 00:14:41.279 do I find it? And then whatever it takes you go do that. 185 00:14:41.559 --> 00:14:45.559 Maybe you need to take a seminar, go to a seminar, maybe you 186 00:14:45.639 --> 00:14:48.559 need to take a class, maybe you need to read a book. But 187 00:14:48.960 --> 00:14:52.279 you figure out what do I need to know and how do I find it? 188 00:14:52.039 --> 00:14:54.759 And this is exactly what I did before starting Saddled by well, I 189 00:14:54.840 --> 00:14:58.559 knew nothing about starting a church. I'd never started church. So I read 190 00:14:58.600 --> 00:15:03.480 everything I could, I studied all I could, I researched all I could, 191 00:15:03.720 --> 00:15:07.039 And I didn't just check the Bible. I got the facts about this 192 00:15:07.200 --> 00:15:11.559 area and about what it takes to grow at church. The third thing you 193 00:15:11.559 --> 00:15:16.799 do in the Bible, says and Solomon's eight Steps of Wisdom is ask for 194 00:15:16.960 --> 00:15:22.120 advice. Ask for advice. This is the third thing you need to do 195 00:15:22.159 --> 00:15:26.639 if you've got a major decision. See, we would rather pretend like we 196 00:15:26.759 --> 00:15:31.440 know it all and make a mistake, then admit we don't know it all 197 00:15:31.480 --> 00:15:37.799 and get the advice to actually work. You need to talk to people about 198 00:15:37.879 --> 00:15:41.679 your decision now, not just anybody. Don't just talk to your best friends, 199 00:15:41.679 --> 00:15:43.559 say what do you think? Oh? I think that's a great job. 200 00:15:43.200 --> 00:15:48.600 Now you need to talk to people who've made a similar decision. Let 201 00:15:48.639 --> 00:15:52.320 me say it again, talk to people who've made the decision you're about to 202 00:15:52.360 --> 00:15:56.639 make. I'm going to move somewhere. I'm going to leave this job and 203 00:15:56.679 --> 00:16:00.759 do this. I'm gonna go into con Well, you better talk to somebody 204 00:16:00.799 --> 00:16:06.720 who's in the consulting business that you're in before you do that. It's foolish 205 00:16:06.720 --> 00:16:10.039 to not do that. You talk to people who are going to who are 206 00:16:10.039 --> 00:16:14.360 already doing what you've been doing. And number two, you talk to people 207 00:16:14.919 --> 00:16:18.039 personal friends who know your shape. So I need you to just level with 208 00:16:18.080 --> 00:16:22.120 me. Tell me, am I really shaped to do this or not? 209 00:16:22.720 --> 00:16:26.120 Is this me? Or is it not me? Proverbs twenty verse eighteen. 210 00:16:26.200 --> 00:16:33.879 Let's read this aloud together. Plans succeed through good counsel. Don't go to 211 00:16:33.000 --> 00:16:40.639 war without the advice of others. Now, getting advice can prevent disaster. 212 00:16:40.759 --> 00:16:42.919 It can save you time, it can maximize energy. You know, people 213 00:16:42.960 --> 00:16:48.879 say, well, it's wise to learn from experience. That's true. It's 214 00:16:48.879 --> 00:16:52.200 wise to learn from experience. Some things you're only going to learn by your 215 00:16:52.200 --> 00:16:59.840 own experience. But it's wiser to learn from the experiences of others. Life 216 00:16:59.879 --> 00:17:03.160 is it's too short for you to make all the mistakes yourself. I don't 217 00:17:03.160 --> 00:17:08.880 have time to learn everything from experience, so I want to learn from your 218 00:17:08.960 --> 00:17:12.079 experience so I don't have to go through all the pain you went through to 219 00:17:12.160 --> 00:17:18.400 learn that. It's wiser to learn from the experiences of others. Life is 220 00:17:18.440 --> 00:17:22.720 too short to learn everything by trial and error. I remember one time, 221 00:17:22.720 --> 00:17:26.039 a number of years ago, Kay was out speaking somewhere and it was her 222 00:17:26.079 --> 00:17:29.279 birthday was coming up. When she got back and I said, what would 223 00:17:29.279 --> 00:17:32.759 you like? She said, I'd like a German chocolate cake for my birthday. 224 00:17:33.359 --> 00:17:36.279 So I thought, I'm going to make her a German chocolate cake, 225 00:17:37.720 --> 00:17:41.599 and I, you know, I didn't really realize that there were cake mixes 226 00:17:41.599 --> 00:17:45.960 for German chocolate cake. So I made it like from scratch, scratch, 227 00:17:45.559 --> 00:17:51.559 like no no mix, And it took me three and a half hours to 228 00:17:51.920 --> 00:17:55.960 make this cake. I called Marilyn, my neighbor, twice, for advice. 229 00:17:56.720 --> 00:18:00.359 Am I doing this right? And Marilyn said, yeah, you here's 230 00:18:00.359 --> 00:18:02.480 what you know. No, you don't put the eggs in at that point 231 00:18:02.480 --> 00:18:06.480 in here. And it would have been a disaster if I had tried to 232 00:18:06.519 --> 00:18:11.119 do it without advice. But because I called my neighbor Marylyn, who I'm 233 00:18:11.119 --> 00:18:15.559 sure had made many German Jacka cakes, she knew what to do. She 234 00:18:15.680 --> 00:18:18.559 told me and it came out and I was a big hero and I got 235 00:18:18.599 --> 00:18:26.440 a cookie. So you want to say, not just how do I what 236 00:18:26.480 --> 00:18:27.839 do I need to know and how to find it? You ask for advice. 237 00:18:29.440 --> 00:18:33.960 Proverbs fifteen, verse twenty two says this without advice, plans go wrong, 238 00:18:33.799 --> 00:18:38.839 but with many advisors they succeed. I did this when I started this 239 00:18:38.960 --> 00:18:42.279 church. You know. One of the things I did before I even came 240 00:18:42.279 --> 00:18:48.240 here, I personally wrote to every pastor who was already in the Saddleback Valley, 241 00:18:48.759 --> 00:18:52.240 and I asked them a series of questions, and I even gave him 242 00:18:52.240 --> 00:18:56.240 a self addressed reply card and had had them so they wouldn't have to spend 243 00:18:56.279 --> 00:18:59.960 a lot of time as already stamped and posted. And I asked every pastor 244 00:19:00.079 --> 00:19:03.680 who was already here before me about the area, what was what's your advice? 245 00:19:03.880 --> 00:19:07.680 What do you think about the community? And I was just listening to 246 00:19:07.720 --> 00:19:11.079 them. Why I'm getting advice from people who'd already done what I was about 247 00:19:11.079 --> 00:19:15.759 to do. Most people wouldn't do that. Most church planners wouldn't do that. 248 00:19:15.759 --> 00:19:18.720 They'd just go into an area and just start. They'd go, oh, 249 00:19:18.720 --> 00:19:22.160 that's a nice place. They didn't. I asked every pastor I got 250 00:19:22.200 --> 00:19:26.680 advice. And then when I got here in January one, nineteen eighty, 251 00:19:26.880 --> 00:19:30.759 for twelve weeks, all I did was walk door to door and talk to 252 00:19:30.799 --> 00:19:34.519 people, and I took a survey, you know this famous survey and now 253 00:19:34.559 --> 00:19:38.240 thousands and thousands of other churches have done it. And I'd walk up and 254 00:19:38.240 --> 00:19:41.279 i'd knock on a door and they'd open the door, and I said, 255 00:19:41.359 --> 00:19:45.559 Hi, my name is Rick Warren. I'm not here to sell you anything. 256 00:19:45.960 --> 00:19:48.839 I'm not here to invite you to anything. I'm not here to convert 257 00:19:48.880 --> 00:19:52.839 you. I'm just taking an opinion poll. There's no right or wrong answers, 258 00:19:52.880 --> 00:19:56.839 and it'll just take about ninety seconds. Can I ask you a couple 259 00:19:56.920 --> 00:20:00.720 questions? When I said that introduction, I didn't I have a single person 260 00:20:00.799 --> 00:20:03.680 who say no in twelve weeks. In twelve weeks and I had a little 261 00:20:03.680 --> 00:20:07.839 clipboard there and I said, first, are you an active member of a 262 00:20:07.839 --> 00:20:11.440 local church? And if they said yes, I said, God bless you, 263 00:20:11.599 --> 00:20:12.839 keep going. And I went to the next home. Because frankly, 264 00:20:12.880 --> 00:20:17.799 I wasn't interested in opinions of Christians. I said, I don't know. 265 00:20:18.039 --> 00:20:19.599 The goal isn't to get other people from other churches to come here. We 266 00:20:19.640 --> 00:20:22.519 want to go after people. We're going to build a church for the unchurched, 267 00:20:22.519 --> 00:20:26.400 people who've never been in church, people who hate church. And so 268 00:20:26.440 --> 00:20:30.759 when i'd find somebody say no, I don't like church, I don't go 269 00:20:30.759 --> 00:20:36.119 to church, I say, fantastic, that's just great. You're just the 270 00:20:36.200 --> 00:20:37.519 kind of person I want to talk to you. Let me ask you three 271 00:20:37.519 --> 00:20:41.039 more questions, what advice would you give to me? Is the pastor of 272 00:20:41.039 --> 00:20:45.799 a new church, he wants to benefit the community. How could I help 273 00:20:45.839 --> 00:20:48.240 you? And I would say, why do you think most people don't go 274 00:20:48.279 --> 00:20:52.079 to church? Now I could have said why don't you go to church? 275 00:20:52.119 --> 00:20:55.200 But that's an offensive question. I say, none of your business. But 276 00:20:55.279 --> 00:20:57.720 I said why do you think most people don't go to church? Nine times 277 00:20:57.720 --> 00:21:02.480 out of ten they give you their reason. And I wrote it down. 278 00:21:02.960 --> 00:21:04.680 And I say, if you were looking for church, what kind of things 279 00:21:04.720 --> 00:21:07.680 would you look for? And I wrote it down. I discovered not one 280 00:21:07.720 --> 00:21:15.400 person said I'm looking for a pipe organ, now one or choir robes. 281 00:21:15.440 --> 00:21:21.200 Nobody mentioned that one. And then say so what advice? And then how 282 00:21:21.200 --> 00:21:23.880 can I help you? And I just listen and I took notes and I 283 00:21:23.920 --> 00:21:27.079 did that for twelve weeks. What am I doing? I'm doing a market 284 00:21:27.119 --> 00:21:32.200 survey. That's what I was doing. I was getting the facts and I 285 00:21:32.279 --> 00:21:37.000 was asking for advice. The Bible says in Proverbs twenty four to six, 286 00:21:37.440 --> 00:21:41.279 the more advice you get, the more likely you are to win. And 287 00:21:41.400 --> 00:21:45.160 that means even if you have to pay for it. You want to get 288 00:21:45.720 --> 00:21:48.079 the advice of other people. But as I said, one of the reason 289 00:21:48.079 --> 00:21:51.039 why I want to like to ask their advice is we don't want to admit 290 00:21:51.079 --> 00:21:55.920 we don't know it. I have discovered. I've been around some really successful 291 00:21:55.920 --> 00:22:00.400 people, and I've discovered a couple of things. One the the most remarkable 292 00:22:00.400 --> 00:22:06.839 people I've met in my life don't think they're remarkable. It's people who are 293 00:22:07.119 --> 00:22:12.000 small thinkers that are hung up on themselves and think they're so great. Humility 294 00:22:12.400 --> 00:22:15.400 and wisdom go together, and when you get humility and wisdom, you get 295 00:22:15.440 --> 00:22:19.599 success. It's pride and Arroganceys, I think I know it all, and 296 00:22:19.640 --> 00:22:25.960 you barge ahead without asking for advice and getting the facts and checking the Bible. 297 00:22:26.839 --> 00:22:30.519 So here's what you want to ask rite this question now? Who could 298 00:22:30.519 --> 00:22:34.319 advise me? Who could advise me? Who has already gone where I want 299 00:22:34.319 --> 00:22:41.200 to go? In terms of health, in terms of children, in terms 300 00:22:41.319 --> 00:22:47.559 of business, in terms whatever you're dealing with. Who could advise me on 301 00:22:47.599 --> 00:22:56.799 this? Who's already been there? Thank you so much for listening to Pastor 302 00:22:56.920 --> 00:23:02.599 Rick's Daily Hope. We've got some great news to share with you. Very 303 00:23:02.759 --> 00:23:07.160 generous friends have given a ten thousand dollars matching grant to this ministry. That 304 00:23:07.279 --> 00:23:12.799 means every dollar you give right now to help Daily Hope share the transforming love 305 00:23:12.839 --> 00:23:18.839 of Jesus with people around the world will be matched up to ten thousand dollars. 306 00:23:19.160 --> 00:23:22.000 Here's rick to tell you more. You know, I just want to 307 00:23:22.000 --> 00:23:26.000 take a quick second to say thank you everybody. Because of your generosity, 308 00:23:26.240 --> 00:23:30.240 we're able to take the hope of Jesus Christ into places where there are no 309 00:23:30.359 --> 00:23:34.480 Bibles, no believers, and nobody of Christ, no churches at all. 310 00:23:34.680 --> 00:23:40.000 Now, as you pray about giving, I want to ask you to ask 311 00:23:40.039 --> 00:23:44.759 God about sending a gift that's the largest you're able to give, because at 312 00:23:44.759 --> 00:23:49.160 this point of the year, we have a donor who is offered to match 313 00:23:49.400 --> 00:23:53.240 your gift. That means what you give will be doubled. We get twice 314 00:23:53.599 --> 00:23:57.799 the bang for the buck, in other words, So please respond quickly and 315 00:23:57.839 --> 00:24:03.319 a give in such a way that we can maximize it through this matching gift. 316 00:24:03.720 --> 00:24:07.039 And I want to ask you this, would you pray for us at 317 00:24:07.119 --> 00:24:10.440 Daily Hope. Pray as we reach out to people around the globe with the 318 00:24:10.480 --> 00:24:14.839 hope that people will find Christ. By the thousands and tens of thousands and 319 00:24:14.960 --> 00:24:18.240 hundreds of thousands, so thank you for being a partner with me. To 320 00:24:18.279 --> 00:24:22.960 getting the message out, just go to pastorick dot com or text the word 321 00:24:22.039 --> 00:24:27.680 hope to eight hundred six hundred five thousand and four and have your gift matched 322 00:24:27.759 --> 00:24:33.519 up to ten thousand dollars. That's pastororik dot com or text the word hope 323 00:24:33.559 --> 00:24:40.039 to eight hundred six hundred five thousand and four. Today is the last day 324 00:24:40.119 --> 00:24:44.920 to have your gift matched by the ten thousand dollars grant, so please act 325 00:24:44.960 --> 00:24:48.720 now. Be sure to join us next time as we look into God's word 326 00:24:48.960 --> 00:24:55.400 for our daily hope. This program is sponsored by Pastor Rick's Daily Hope and 327 00:24:55.480 --> 00:25:02.079 your generous financial support.