WEBVTT 1 00:00:02.200 --> 00:00:05.360 Welcome back to Pastor Rick's Daily Hope, And if you're 2 00:00:05.400 --> 00:00:08.160 brand new with us, we're so glad that you found us. 3 00:00:08.400 --> 00:00:12.000 You know, every day we dive into Pastor Rick Warren's teaching, 4 00:00:12.359 --> 00:00:16.000 and today we're beginning a new series called Shape to 5 00:00:16.079 --> 00:00:19.879 make a Difference. Rick likes to use acrostics, and this 6 00:00:19.920 --> 00:00:25.120 one is called Shape Shape your spiritual gifts, your heart, 7 00:00:25.280 --> 00:00:30.239 your abilities, personality, and experiences. Rick uses that to talk 8 00:00:30.280 --> 00:00:33.479 about the way that God has wired you. And while 9 00:00:33.479 --> 00:00:36.679 it's good to know your shape, it's more important to 10 00:00:36.880 --> 00:00:39.560 use it to do the things that God has made 11 00:00:39.679 --> 00:00:43.200 you to do. So let's jump right in. Here's Pastor 12 00:00:43.320 --> 00:00:46.320 Rick with part one of a message called why God 13 00:00:46.439 --> 00:00:48.000 shaped you the way He did. 14 00:00:48.880 --> 00:00:52.719 Everything in this world God made, and nothing's a copy. 15 00:00:53.200 --> 00:00:56.520 Every tree is different, every plant is different, every animal 16 00:00:56.600 --> 00:00:59.719 is different. Certainly every human being is different. There's no 17 00:00:59.719 --> 00:01:02.520 boy like you in the entire world. And you don't 18 00:01:02.600 --> 00:01:06.599 have to realize that God has done almost creative overkill 19 00:01:06.920 --> 00:01:11.200 in that he never makes copies of anything. Even twins 20 00:01:11.239 --> 00:01:18.000 aren't exactly alike. That God makes everything an original. Now 21 00:01:18.040 --> 00:01:20.760 did you know that, for instance, in one cubic foot 22 00:01:20.799 --> 00:01:26.599 of snow, there are eighteen million snowflakes, and in those 23 00:01:26.640 --> 00:01:30.760 eighteen million snowflakes, not one of them is like any 24 00:01:30.879 --> 00:01:36.359 of the other eighteen million. That's creative overkill, Okay, God, 25 00:01:36.680 --> 00:01:40.719 nobody will ever even know that except a scientist. Every 26 00:01:40.959 --> 00:01:45.760 snowflake is different. Now, God could have made us all alike. 27 00:01:45.920 --> 00:01:48.680 He could have just had a conveyor belt mass produced 28 00:01:48.760 --> 00:01:52.159 human beings. Put us all on a belt, and we 29 00:01:52.239 --> 00:01:54.840 all look the same, talk the same, speak the same 30 00:01:55.120 --> 00:01:58.280 have the same color, have the same hair. And but 31 00:01:58.359 --> 00:02:02.799 God didn't want to do that. Why Because an original 32 00:02:02.959 --> 00:02:08.039 is always worth more than a copy. And you are 33 00:02:08.080 --> 00:02:11.800 worth far more as an original than you are as 34 00:02:11.840 --> 00:02:16.360 a copy of somebody else. And God says you are valuable. 35 00:02:16.840 --> 00:02:21.360 God created you, Jesus died for you. God's spirit lives 36 00:02:21.360 --> 00:02:24.759 in you. That's how much you matter to God. Now, 37 00:02:24.800 --> 00:02:29.919 the Bible is very clear that God specifically shapes every 38 00:02:30.240 --> 00:02:35.080 human being to his customized standards. And there's nobody like 39 00:02:35.159 --> 00:02:39.159 you in the entire world. You are unique. You're not 40 00:02:39.280 --> 00:02:43.159 one in a million, you're one in six billion. And 41 00:02:43.240 --> 00:02:46.039 God does this, as I said, because he wants everything 42 00:02:46.120 --> 00:02:49.039 to be an original. And he did this from the 43 00:02:49.159 --> 00:02:52.000 very first with the very first man, Adam and his 44 00:02:52.039 --> 00:02:54.800 wife Eve. They're on your outline if you'll pull it out. 45 00:02:54.840 --> 00:02:57.280 We're starting a new series and we're talking the night 46 00:02:57.319 --> 00:03:01.000 about why God shaped you the way he did. And 47 00:03:01.039 --> 00:03:04.759 in Genesis too, it says this God shaped man from 48 00:03:04.800 --> 00:03:08.639 the soil of the ground, and he blew the breath 49 00:03:08.639 --> 00:03:13.240 of life into his nostrils, and man became a living being. 50 00:03:13.400 --> 00:03:16.240 And I want you to circle the word shaped, because 51 00:03:16.240 --> 00:03:20.479 this word is found all through the Bible. God says 52 00:03:20.680 --> 00:03:25.800 that he customed shaped you, and there's nobody else shaped 53 00:03:26.199 --> 00:03:29.719 exactly like you. In fact, let's read the next verse together. 54 00:03:30.120 --> 00:03:33.879 You made my whole being. You formed me in my 55 00:03:34.000 --> 00:03:37.800 mother's body. I praise you because you made me in 56 00:03:37.840 --> 00:03:42.639 an amazing and wonderful way. You saw my bones being 57 00:03:42.759 --> 00:03:47.560 formed as I took shape in my mother's body when 58 00:03:47.599 --> 00:03:51.599 I was put together. There, you saw my body as 59 00:03:51.680 --> 00:03:55.599 it was formed. All the day's planned for me were 60 00:03:55.680 --> 00:03:59.960 written in your book before I was one day old. 61 00:04:00.599 --> 00:04:02.919 Now there's some verbs there I've underlined, but I think 62 00:04:02.919 --> 00:04:04.599 you ought to circle them because I want you to 63 00:04:04.639 --> 00:04:08.240 see what God did for you before you were even born. 64 00:04:09.199 --> 00:04:12.080 The Bible says you made me. Circle that word made 65 00:04:12.800 --> 00:04:16.279 you formed me in my mother's body, circle formed. You 66 00:04:16.480 --> 00:04:19.120 saw my bones being formed. In other words, inside your 67 00:04:19.120 --> 00:04:23.240 mother's womb. As I took shape, you shaped me where 68 00:04:23.279 --> 00:04:26.360 I was put together. God put you together. Circle that 69 00:04:27.160 --> 00:04:29.800 all the days were planned for me. God planned you 70 00:04:30.120 --> 00:04:33.480 every day of your life. He planned in advance before 71 00:04:33.600 --> 00:04:37.480 I was one day old. Now notice this, It says 72 00:04:38.000 --> 00:04:41.199 God made me, God formed me, God saw me, God 73 00:04:41.279 --> 00:04:44.600 shaped me, God put me together, and God planned every 74 00:04:44.680 --> 00:04:49.199 day of my life before I was even born. Now, friends, 75 00:04:49.839 --> 00:04:56.560 that is why abortion is wrong, because abortion short circuits 76 00:04:56.560 --> 00:05:00.639 a human being that God had planned for creation. And 77 00:05:00.680 --> 00:05:03.720 the Bible says all these things. He says, I formed you, 78 00:05:03.800 --> 00:05:07.120 I thought you up before you were even created or conceived. 79 00:05:08.480 --> 00:05:11.279 Now you've heard me say this many times. There are 80 00:05:11.360 --> 00:05:16.079 accidental parents, but there are no accidental children. You are 81 00:05:16.120 --> 00:05:20.279 not an accident. There are illegitimate parents, but there are 82 00:05:20.360 --> 00:05:25.240 no illegitimate children. Your parents may not have planned you, 83 00:05:25.879 --> 00:05:29.040 but God did. And it doesn't really matter whether your 84 00:05:29.079 --> 00:05:31.720 parents were good or bad or indifferent, or maybe you 85 00:05:31.800 --> 00:05:35.800 never even knew them, or maybe you were orphaned, or 86 00:05:35.800 --> 00:05:39.399 maybe your father mother your father died before you were born, 87 00:05:39.480 --> 00:05:42.240 or you lost your mother somehow and you really got 88 00:05:42.319 --> 00:05:45.240 to know them. It doesn't matter. Yes, it matters, but 89 00:05:45.279 --> 00:05:48.120 it doesn't matter in the fact that God chose them 90 00:05:48.120 --> 00:05:52.839 to be your parents. Why because God knew they had 91 00:05:52.959 --> 00:05:57.759 exactly the right DNA to create you. And God was 92 00:05:57.800 --> 00:06:02.519 more interested in creating you than he was in their 93 00:06:02.600 --> 00:06:06.600 parenting skills. Does that make sense? God was more interested 94 00:06:06.639 --> 00:06:09.680 in making you, and they had just the right DNA 95 00:06:09.959 --> 00:06:12.439 that any other two people on the planet wouldn't have 96 00:06:12.480 --> 00:06:15.279 had to create the way He wanted to create you. 97 00:06:16.360 --> 00:06:21.079 And you are not an accident. Now these truths. Look 98 00:06:21.079 --> 00:06:24.680 at the next verse. It says, your hands formed and 99 00:06:24.879 --> 00:06:27.839 shaped me. Did you know that you were hand made 100 00:06:27.920 --> 00:06:31.920 by God? Hand crafted? You're not an assembly line. God 101 00:06:32.040 --> 00:06:36.439 was intricately, intimately involved in the specifics of creating you. 102 00:06:37.800 --> 00:06:40.120 That What does it mean, Well, it means you're not 103 00:06:40.160 --> 00:06:44.319 an accident. It means that God chose every detail of 104 00:06:44.399 --> 00:06:48.360 your life, even the stuff you don't like, the stuff 105 00:06:48.399 --> 00:06:53.079 you consider weaknesses, and He chose it for you. And 106 00:06:53.240 --> 00:06:59.120 after God broke made you, he broke the mold and 107 00:06:59.160 --> 00:07:02.399 nobody ever else would be like you. And when you 108 00:07:02.439 --> 00:07:05.360 get to Heaven, God doesn't want you to be anybody else, 109 00:07:05.399 --> 00:07:09.000 he will say, why weren't you more like you? He 110 00:07:09.120 --> 00:07:13.319 broke the mold. And when when God made Adam, he 111 00:07:13.360 --> 00:07:15.319 broke the mold. When God made Eve, he broke the both. 112 00:07:15.519 --> 00:07:17.959 Adam looked at Eve and said, Honey, you're the only 113 00:07:18.000 --> 00:07:21.839 woman in the world for me. Of course, he was 114 00:07:21.879 --> 00:07:25.399 the only guy telling the truth. What the truth is. 115 00:07:25.439 --> 00:07:28.439 Nobody else will ever be exactly like you. You could 116 00:07:28.439 --> 00:07:30.199 go at him, you could go on around the world 117 00:07:30.240 --> 00:07:32.839 tour just like I did, and search the entire world. 118 00:07:33.000 --> 00:07:35.639 And you're never going to find anybody with your thumb print, 119 00:07:36.800 --> 00:07:41.439 with your footprint, with your voice print, with your EyePrint. 120 00:07:41.959 --> 00:07:45.040 You're never going to find anybody with the exact combination 121 00:07:45.240 --> 00:07:49.759 of your personality, with the exact combination of your experiences 122 00:07:49.800 --> 00:07:52.120 and all the things that God has given to make 123 00:07:52.199 --> 00:07:56.800 you you. You're unique. Now, why did God go to 124 00:07:56.879 --> 00:08:00.720 all that trouble? Well, as I said, because he wanted 125 00:08:00.759 --> 00:08:03.199 you to be original. If he had wanted you to 126 00:08:03.240 --> 00:08:08.519 be somebody else, he would have not made you. He 127 00:08:08.560 --> 00:08:12.959 would have made somebody else, But he wanted you. Now, 128 00:08:13.000 --> 00:08:16.839 the problem is this twofold. First, most people don't like 129 00:08:16.920 --> 00:08:20.079 the way they are. I've found that Most people in 130 00:08:20.079 --> 00:08:23.759 the world really don't accept themselves, and they're always going 131 00:08:23.839 --> 00:08:25.879 I wish I was taller, I wish I was smaller, 132 00:08:25.959 --> 00:08:27.839 I wish I was thinner. I wish I had red hair, 133 00:08:27.920 --> 00:08:29.759 brown hair, black hair. I wish I had a different 134 00:08:29.759 --> 00:08:31.560 skin color. I don't like my nose, I don't like 135 00:08:31.600 --> 00:08:34.039 my teeth, I don't like I wish I had more talent. 136 00:08:34.080 --> 00:08:35.840 Why couldn't I be like her? Why couldn't I be 137 00:08:36.039 --> 00:08:38.360 like him? And they don't really accept themselves, And they're 138 00:08:38.399 --> 00:08:44.039 always comparing and competing rather than accepting what God made 139 00:08:44.039 --> 00:08:48.320 them to be. And when you do that, it causes 140 00:08:48.399 --> 00:08:51.519 all kinds of problems in your life. Most people do 141 00:08:51.600 --> 00:08:55.799 not accept themselves, and as a result of that, they 142 00:08:55.879 --> 00:08:58.399 live frustrated lives. And the second thing to do is 143 00:08:58.440 --> 00:09:00.399 they try to be like somebody else. I said, well, 144 00:09:00.399 --> 00:09:02.960 I gotta wear shoes like her, and I gotta dress 145 00:09:03.120 --> 00:09:05.279 like him, and I gotta make as much money as 146 00:09:05.320 --> 00:09:07.320 he did, and I gotta do what she did, and 147 00:09:07.320 --> 00:09:09.759 I got to please my parents and all these different things. 148 00:09:10.159 --> 00:09:13.279 And most people start off as originals and end up 149 00:09:13.279 --> 00:09:17.519 as carbon copies. Now, let me just be real honest 150 00:09:17.519 --> 00:09:20.120 with you. If you're not gonna be you. We don't 151 00:09:20.120 --> 00:09:24.080 need you here on earth because there's somebody else already 152 00:09:24.240 --> 00:09:29.039 taking that spot. If you're here, it means God says 153 00:09:29.200 --> 00:09:32.480 you have something to contribute that Rick Warren can't, or 154 00:09:32.559 --> 00:09:36.320 you can't, or anybody else can't contribute. Only you can 155 00:09:36.399 --> 00:09:40.240 be you. Only you can be you, And God says 156 00:09:40.360 --> 00:09:44.879 I made you, I shaped you, I designed you. Now, 157 00:09:44.919 --> 00:09:48.000 about twenty years ago, I came up with a little 158 00:09:48.000 --> 00:09:54.120 acrosstick called shape shape to talk about the five things 159 00:09:54.320 --> 00:09:57.440 that make you you. But your shape has so much 160 00:09:57.480 --> 00:09:59.559 by the way, when I say shape in orangetin, I 161 00:09:59.600 --> 00:10:02.559 have to remind this is not a fitness or weight 162 00:10:02.639 --> 00:10:06.399 loss program. Okay, oh they're talking about shape. It's saddle back. 163 00:10:07.679 --> 00:10:07.720 No. 164 00:10:08.360 --> 00:10:13.600 My shape is the way God wired you for your life. 165 00:10:13.759 --> 00:10:18.480 And every area of your life is influenced by the 166 00:10:18.480 --> 00:10:22.720 way you're shaped. You don't even realize it, but all 167 00:10:22.759 --> 00:10:24.840 of the things that God put in you to make 168 00:10:24.919 --> 00:10:29.279 you you influences every single area of your life. I 169 00:10:29.360 --> 00:10:33.639 just jotted down a few areas. For instance, the way 170 00:10:33.679 --> 00:10:38.240 you are shaped determines what classes you should focus on 171 00:10:38.360 --> 00:10:43.480 in school and which ones you should avoid. Some of you, 172 00:10:43.559 --> 00:10:45.120 it would have been a big help to know your 173 00:10:45.159 --> 00:10:48.320 shape before you went to college, because we wasted a 174 00:10:48.320 --> 00:10:51.000 lot of time in college and classes that didn't really matter. 175 00:10:51.519 --> 00:10:54.320 If I want to give a testimony on that, Yeah, okay, 176 00:10:54.360 --> 00:10:58.559 all right. Your shape determines what kind of friends you 177 00:10:58.559 --> 00:11:00.799 should have. We're going to talk about some of these 178 00:11:01.120 --> 00:11:04.440 in this series in the next few weeks. Your shape 179 00:11:04.480 --> 00:11:07.440 determines the type of person you should marry, and the 180 00:11:07.440 --> 00:11:10.600 more you understand about you, the more likely you're going 181 00:11:10.679 --> 00:11:14.679 to choose the right person for marriage. Your shape determines 182 00:11:14.720 --> 00:11:18.519 the temptations you're most likely gonna be tempted by and 183 00:11:18.559 --> 00:11:20.519 that you need to be prepared for. There's some things 184 00:11:20.519 --> 00:11:23.360 that tempt me that won't tempt you. There's some things 185 00:11:23.399 --> 00:11:25.159 that tempt you that won't tempt me. What Because the 186 00:11:25.159 --> 00:11:31.200 way we're shaped, your shape determines why certain things frust 187 00:11:31.279 --> 00:11:35.120 you straight you more than they do your wife or 188 00:11:35.159 --> 00:11:40.080 your husband, because you're shaped differently. Your shape determines the 189 00:11:40.159 --> 00:11:44.279 best career that's fit for you, your best career fit. Your 190 00:11:44.320 --> 00:11:47.559 shape determines the best work environment for you, the best 191 00:11:47.600 --> 00:11:50.440 ministry for you. Your shape determines where you are bound to 192 00:11:50.519 --> 00:11:54.120 fail in life and where you are bound to succeed 193 00:11:54.240 --> 00:11:56.600 in life, and in the week's say, we're going to 194 00:11:56.639 --> 00:11:58.879 look at many of these. Now I'm telling you that 195 00:11:58.919 --> 00:12:02.279 the series we're starting may be the most important series 196 00:12:02.320 --> 00:12:05.480 I've done since we did Forty Days of Purpose, because 197 00:12:05.519 --> 00:12:08.720 you have to know your shape in order for you 198 00:12:08.840 --> 00:12:12.039 to be all God wants you to be. When you 199 00:12:12.240 --> 00:12:16.159 know what God made you to do, it reduces your stress, 200 00:12:17.000 --> 00:12:22.159 It increases your satisfaction, It raises your self esteem, it 201 00:12:22.240 --> 00:12:25.759 increases the odds of your success. And when you are 202 00:12:26.080 --> 00:12:29.399 working in the area of your shape, then you're going 203 00:12:29.440 --> 00:12:31.360 to go, Wow, that's me. It's what I was made 204 00:12:31.360 --> 00:12:34.840 to do. It's fulfilling, and it's fruitful. In other words, 205 00:12:34.919 --> 00:12:39.200 you succeed at it and you're satisfied by it. Now, 206 00:12:39.200 --> 00:12:42.000 I'll be real honest with you in the next six weeks. 207 00:12:42.000 --> 00:12:43.919 This week, in the next week, some of you, as 208 00:12:43.919 --> 00:12:46.000 we go through this series are going to realize I'm 209 00:12:46.000 --> 00:12:49.360 in the wrong job, and I'm going to be honest. 210 00:12:49.399 --> 00:12:51.600 As your passions say, then you need to change it. 211 00:12:52.039 --> 00:12:54.320 I don't care how much money you're making. Life is 212 00:12:54.440 --> 00:12:56.919 too short to waste it on a job you're not 213 00:12:57.039 --> 00:13:01.320 shaped for. So there may be changes that have to 214 00:13:01.360 --> 00:13:04.960 take place in your life. Now tonight, as we start 215 00:13:05.000 --> 00:13:08.679 this series, we're gonna just ask three questions, what is 216 00:13:08.759 --> 00:13:11.480 my shape? Many of you already know this, or what 217 00:13:11.720 --> 00:13:14.519 is shape? Then we're gonna look at why does it matter? 218 00:13:15.320 --> 00:13:17.320 And then we're going to look at what should I 219 00:13:17.519 --> 00:13:20.679 what should I do about it? My first steps? Now, 220 00:13:21.080 --> 00:13:23.639 I came up with this acrostic about as I said 221 00:13:23.639 --> 00:13:26.440 about twenty years ago. But I thought, as we do 222 00:13:26.519 --> 00:13:29.360 this first point, that we'd have Eric Reeve's pastor, Eric 223 00:13:29.480 --> 00:13:31.679 come and talk to us about shape. Would you give 224 00:13:31.759 --> 00:13:32.600 him a warm welcome? 225 00:13:36.240 --> 00:13:39.600 All right? So what does this word shape mean? It's 226 00:13:39.639 --> 00:13:43.840 really your design. You were designed by God to make 227 00:13:43.879 --> 00:13:47.320 a difference for God, and the Bible teaches us in 228 00:13:47.360 --> 00:13:50.360 Ephesians two ten that when God looks at you and I, 229 00:13:50.960 --> 00:13:55.399 he says we are masterpieces. Now there's probably days in 230 00:13:55.440 --> 00:13:57.799 your life like mine, you don't feel like a masterpiece. 231 00:13:58.399 --> 00:14:02.600 But God says we are masterpieces, and we were made 232 00:14:02.960 --> 00:14:07.440 to make a difference for him, a kingdom difference. So 233 00:14:07.480 --> 00:14:10.519 how do you figure out the difference you were designed 234 00:14:10.519 --> 00:14:13.399 to make? You start with your design, and that's what 235 00:14:13.440 --> 00:14:15.600 we're going to do and over these next few weeks. 236 00:14:15.639 --> 00:14:19.879 As we look at the word shape shape, the S 237 00:14:20.039 --> 00:14:26.320 in shape stands for spiritual gifts. Now, the Bible teaches 238 00:14:26.399 --> 00:14:28.799 us that many things happen to us when we accept 239 00:14:28.879 --> 00:14:31.759 Jesus Christ as our Lord and savior. And one of 240 00:14:31.840 --> 00:14:36.480 the things that happens is we receive spiritual gifts. But 241 00:14:36.679 --> 00:14:40.200 like any gift, you have to take the time to 242 00:14:40.360 --> 00:14:43.799 unwrap it. And when you unwrap it, then you can 243 00:14:43.840 --> 00:14:46.320 put it to use. And so as we journey through 244 00:14:46.360 --> 00:14:50.000 these weeks together, we're going to help you unwrap your 245 00:14:50.159 --> 00:14:53.679 spiritual gifts. There's over twenty listed in the New Testament, 246 00:14:53.879 --> 00:14:56.440 and each and every one of us is gifted by 247 00:14:56.519 --> 00:15:01.159 God for his glory, not for ourselves, but for his glory. 248 00:15:01.399 --> 00:15:04.200 And we want to help you understand what are you 249 00:15:04.360 --> 00:15:09.320 gifted to do? The H in shape stands for heart. 250 00:15:10.279 --> 00:15:12.519 You might want to write the word next to that passion. 251 00:15:13.679 --> 00:15:17.639 What are you excited about? As Rick likes to say, 252 00:15:17.639 --> 00:15:20.559 what's the quiver in your liver? What is the thing 253 00:15:20.600 --> 00:15:23.279 that gets you up in the morning, What turns your crank? 254 00:15:23.720 --> 00:15:27.440 There are certain things you are so passionate about, and 255 00:15:27.480 --> 00:15:30.399 there's certain things you're not. Reminds me of a time, 256 00:15:30.440 --> 00:15:32.679 about thirteen years ago, my wife and I, who are 257 00:15:32.720 --> 00:15:35.480 just members of the church at that time, decided that 258 00:15:35.559 --> 00:15:38.159 I was going to serve one weekend in the nursery. 259 00:15:38.360 --> 00:15:40.879 We didn't have children at that time, so I'm thinking, okay, 260 00:15:41.039 --> 00:15:43.600 I can go do something in the nursery. And so 261 00:15:43.720 --> 00:15:46.720 I show up and the lady as I'm getting taught 262 00:15:46.720 --> 00:15:48.879 what to do that day, she says, Eric, your job 263 00:15:49.200 --> 00:15:52.559 is to be the transporter. It's like, okay, she says, 264 00:15:52.559 --> 00:15:54.679 when the babies come in, I'm going to hand the 265 00:15:54.720 --> 00:15:56.799 baby to you, and You're going to take the baby 266 00:15:56.840 --> 00:15:59.600 over to these wonderful people over here that are going 267 00:15:59.639 --> 00:16:01.679 to pray for the baby and care for the baby 268 00:16:01.759 --> 00:16:04.399 and feed the baby and change the baby, all those things. 269 00:16:04.440 --> 00:16:08.159 I'm thinking, I can do this. So first baby comes 270 00:16:08.159 --> 00:16:10.279 to the door, having like one of those half doors. 271 00:16:10.639 --> 00:16:12.919 The mom hands the baby over. I'm so excited because 272 00:16:12.960 --> 00:16:15.799 it's a boy and he's not crying. So I'm thinking, okay, 273 00:16:16.600 --> 00:16:19.159 So I grab the baby from this lady and as 274 00:16:19.200 --> 00:16:22.600 I turn, I'm looking at him out like this, and 275 00:16:22.639 --> 00:16:26.240 his head starts to go into his shoulders and. 276 00:16:26.240 --> 00:16:29.639 He's looking at me like, dude, you don't have a clue, 277 00:16:29.720 --> 00:16:32.039 and I really didn't because I had never held a 278 00:16:32.039 --> 00:16:35.360 baby before. And so as I turned and went to 279 00:16:35.480 --> 00:16:39.000 hand him to this wonderful lady that was ready to accept. 280 00:16:38.600 --> 00:16:43.120 This baby, he started to drip and I'm thinking, oh, no, 281 00:16:43.240 --> 00:16:46.080 pampers did not come through. I'm getting rid of this baby. 282 00:16:46.080 --> 00:16:48.159 So I hand the baby over to the lady, thinking 283 00:16:48.399 --> 00:16:51.240 it's time to get the next baby. I turn around 284 00:16:51.279 --> 00:16:57.039 and I'm meeted with the lady. Eric, maybe you should 285 00:16:57.039 --> 00:17:00.440 just greet the people at the door. Okay, now I'm 286 00:17:00.440 --> 00:17:04.680 a greeter, but you know what, friends, As I think 287 00:17:04.720 --> 00:17:09.559 about that moment, there were people in that room that 288 00:17:09.920 --> 00:17:14.119 loved being with the babies. They're probably steal over in 289 00:17:14.160 --> 00:17:18.319 the nursery today, Amen, because they have a passion to 290 00:17:18.440 --> 00:17:21.839 work with little children babies. Where did they get that 291 00:17:21.880 --> 00:17:27.559 passion from God? So my question to you is what 292 00:17:27.640 --> 00:17:31.319 are you passionate about? And we want to help you 293 00:17:31.880 --> 00:17:35.680 unlock that passion for God's glory as we travel through 294 00:17:35.680 --> 00:17:39.240 this series so spiritual gifts. The AH is for heart, 295 00:17:39.279 --> 00:17:45.960 the A is for abilities. What natural abilities has God 296 00:17:46.000 --> 00:17:50.680 given you? You have certain abilities five six, seven hundred 297 00:17:50.680 --> 00:17:52.759 of them, and we want to help you kind of 298 00:17:52.880 --> 00:17:55.039 raise the ones up to the top so you can 299 00:17:55.119 --> 00:17:59.519 claim them and use them for God's glory in significant 300 00:17:59.519 --> 00:18:05.279 ways as we help you define your specific purpose in life. 301 00:18:05.440 --> 00:18:05.599 Now. 302 00:18:05.640 --> 00:18:12.599 The P in the word shape stands for personality. This 303 00:18:12.640 --> 00:18:15.960 is where we look to answer the question how has 304 00:18:16.039 --> 00:18:21.240 God wired me? We all navigate life differently. Some of 305 00:18:21.319 --> 00:18:24.880 us in this room are very competitive, and some of 306 00:18:24.960 --> 00:18:29.000 us are very cooperative. Some of us are extroverts and 307 00:18:29.039 --> 00:18:32.480 some of us are introverts. Some of us are self expressive, 308 00:18:32.559 --> 00:18:36.079 while others of us would be self controlled. Some of 309 00:18:36.160 --> 00:18:41.039 us in the room just love variety, while others in 310 00:18:41.079 --> 00:18:45.359 this room would just love to be around routine. And 311 00:18:45.400 --> 00:18:47.480 then God takes a man and a woman in a 312 00:18:47.480 --> 00:18:50.839 marriage and sticks routine and variety together. It's like his 313 00:18:50.960 --> 00:18:54.680 little joke or something. I'm just kidding. It only happens 314 00:18:54.680 --> 00:18:58.640 in my marriage. I know that. So, but how has 315 00:18:58.680 --> 00:19:04.319 God wired you? Don't try to be an extrovert. If 316 00:19:04.359 --> 00:19:07.279 God made you an introvert, just be the best introvert 317 00:19:07.400 --> 00:19:09.240 you can for the glory of God. 318 00:19:10.160 --> 00:19:12.880 The E in the word shape. 319 00:19:13.240 --> 00:19:19.720 Stands for experiences. Experiences. We have all kinds of experiences 320 00:19:19.759 --> 00:19:22.519 in our lives, and you know what, it doesn't matter 321 00:19:22.559 --> 00:19:25.240 if you were raised in the Beaver Cleaver household or 322 00:19:25.279 --> 00:19:29.960 the monsters. God can use it all he can, and 323 00:19:30.000 --> 00:19:35.359 he wants to the positive and the painful. You know, 324 00:19:35.440 --> 00:19:38.559 for years I didn't want to let anybody know about 325 00:19:38.599 --> 00:19:42.440 certain experiences in my life because I thought no way 326 00:19:42.519 --> 00:19:45.920 could God use this. But I finally came to the 327 00:19:45.960 --> 00:19:49.880 moment of letting people know and letting God just take 328 00:19:49.920 --> 00:19:52.720 this pain from my past because I was raised by 329 00:19:52.759 --> 00:19:56.640 a very abusive alcoholic father and for years I just 330 00:19:56.960 --> 00:19:59.960 hid from it. But when I let it go God, 331 00:20:00.000 --> 00:20:03.400 I had brought a flood of people into my life, 332 00:20:03.480 --> 00:20:06.759 and you know what, they wanted to talk because they 333 00:20:06.960 --> 00:20:11.839 too were abused by alcoholic parents. And as we sat 334 00:20:11.920 --> 00:20:15.039 at Starbucks and looked eye to eye, we knew that 335 00:20:15.119 --> 00:20:17.559 we'd been through something and we could pray for one another. 336 00:20:18.920 --> 00:20:22.799 What's the experience in your past that maybe you just 337 00:20:22.920 --> 00:20:26.640 keep wanting to hold back? But God is going to 338 00:20:26.759 --> 00:20:30.400 challenge you in this series to let it come out. 339 00:20:30.440 --> 00:20:32.000 For his glory. 340 00:20:32.160 --> 00:20:36.160 For his glory, because friends, the bottom line is this, 341 00:20:37.519 --> 00:20:42.359 you were made by God to make a difference for God. 342 00:20:42.680 --> 00:20:46.480 So as we start this series, jump in with both 343 00:20:46.519 --> 00:20:50.240 feet and do whatever it takes. And my challenge to 344 00:20:50.279 --> 00:20:55.039 you is give yourselves permission to see yourselves as the 345 00:20:55.079 --> 00:21:00.839 masterpiece you were created to be great. Ready. 346 00:21:06.920 --> 00:21:09.960 So these five things that Eric just talked about, spiritual gifts, 347 00:21:09.960 --> 00:21:13.680 heart abilities, personality experiences. These are the five things that 348 00:21:13.799 --> 00:21:17.920 make you you. And in that combination of spiritual gifts 349 00:21:17.960 --> 00:21:21.720 that you have heart passion interests. Why do you think 350 00:21:21.720 --> 00:21:24.400 you have those interests? God gave them to you. You're 351 00:21:24.480 --> 00:21:28.119 interested in golf or sports, or hunting, or sewing, or 352 00:21:28.240 --> 00:21:30.599 art or music or a million other things. Where do 353 00:21:30.640 --> 00:21:32.920 you think you got that interest? You got it from God. 354 00:21:33.519 --> 00:21:36.200 God wired it into your system because he wanted us 355 00:21:36.200 --> 00:21:38.480 all to do different things. If we all like to 356 00:21:38.519 --> 00:21:40.519 do the same thing, there'd be a lot left undone 357 00:21:40.519 --> 00:21:43.920 in the world. So God gives you these five things. 358 00:21:43.960 --> 00:21:46.920 You're unique and you're special and nobody's going to be 359 00:21:47.039 --> 00:21:49.400 like you. And if you don't be you, there's going 360 00:21:49.440 --> 00:21:54.440 to be a whole missing in history. 361 00:21:58.240 --> 00:22:01.799 What a great and timely message today. Let's end our 362 00:22:01.839 --> 00:22:04.279 show with a closing thought from pastor Rick. 363 00:22:04.640 --> 00:22:06.799 When you give your time and your energy and your 364 00:22:06.839 --> 00:22:09.480 talent and finances to God, even when you don't have 365 00:22:09.559 --> 00:22:13.200 a lot of these things. God takes notice, and it 366 00:22:13.279 --> 00:22:16.559 is pleasing to him. That's because you're showing him that 367 00:22:16.599 --> 00:22:18.759 you can be trusted with the things he gives you, 368 00:22:19.559 --> 00:22:23.960 and that you're developing one of his most important characteristics, generosity. 369 00:22:24.640 --> 00:22:27.680 God is infinitely generous, and he's pleased when you're generous too. 370 00:22:28.319 --> 00:22:30.400 When God gives you something like a talent or an 371 00:22:30.440 --> 00:22:34.680 ability or money that is to be considered a trust. 372 00:22:35.519 --> 00:22:38.039 It means that God trusts you to use it for 373 00:22:38.160 --> 00:22:41.799 good and for God. When we use what God has 374 00:22:41.799 --> 00:22:45.000 given us to help others, we show our faith in God. 375 00:22:45.400 --> 00:22:48.160 The Bible says, now it is required that those who've 376 00:22:48.160 --> 00:22:52.240 been given a trust must prove faithful. That's First Corinthians, 377 00:22:52.319 --> 00:22:56.240 chapter four, verse two. The size of what you have 378 00:22:56.319 --> 00:22:59.400 to give isn't important. What God is watching is what 379 00:22:59.480 --> 00:23:02.400 you do with what He's given to you. He doesn't 380 00:23:02.480 --> 00:23:05.119 give you time or talent or money for your own benefit. 381 00:23:05.400 --> 00:23:08.920 He gives them to us for the benefit of others. Now, 382 00:23:09.000 --> 00:23:11.279 of course, it's easy to be generous when you have 383 00:23:11.319 --> 00:23:14.920 a lot to give, but faithful people are generous even 384 00:23:14.960 --> 00:23:19.039 when their resources are in short supply. Because being generous 385 00:23:19.480 --> 00:23:22.680 even when you don't think you can be generous is 386 00:23:22.720 --> 00:23:25.680 a step of faith giving even when I don't have. 387 00:23:25.759 --> 00:23:29.480 It causes me to trust God helps me to become 388 00:23:29.559 --> 00:23:33.000 more faithful, and that pleases God when he sees that 389 00:23:33.039 --> 00:23:35.680 you're going to trust Him even when you don't understand 390 00:23:35.759 --> 00:23:38.480 how it will all work out. Now, here's the thing 391 00:23:38.480 --> 00:23:41.640 to remember. When I do all that God tells me 392 00:23:41.680 --> 00:23:46.200 to do, he does what I can't do. If you 393 00:23:46.240 --> 00:23:48.440 don't use the gifts that God has given you to 394 00:23:48.480 --> 00:23:51.920 help others, then we're all missing out, and that includes 395 00:23:51.960 --> 00:23:56.279 you because you were shaped to serve others. Now we 396 00:23:56.359 --> 00:23:59.640 have a choice. We can live our lives for ourselves 397 00:24:00.000 --> 00:24:02.279 where we can live our lives for something bigger than ourselves. 398 00:24:03.240 --> 00:24:05.839 Generosity is one of the ways that God pulls us 399 00:24:05.960 --> 00:24:09.359 out of our selfishness and into His bigger plan for 400 00:24:09.400 --> 00:24:14.160 our lives. I guarantee you, because God guarantees it that 401 00:24:14.240 --> 00:24:19.000