WEBVTT 1 00:00:03.040 --> 00:00:07.120 This is Pastor Rick's Daily Hope, the Bible teaching ministry 2 00:00:07.160 --> 00:00:10.759 of Pastor Rick Warren. Today we begin a series called 3 00:00:10.839 --> 00:00:14.960 the Awesome Power of Vision. In these lessons, Pastor Rick 4 00:00:15.039 --> 00:00:18.280 shows us how to pursue the amazing vision God has 5 00:00:18.320 --> 00:00:20.719 for each of us so that we can see our 6 00:00:20.800 --> 00:00:24.879 future with faith and not fear. But first, do you 7 00:00:24.920 --> 00:00:28.480 ever feel like you've lost your spark your joy? In 8 00:00:28.679 --> 00:00:30.920 just a few moments, We're going to tell you about 9 00:00:30.920 --> 00:00:34.880 an exciting new resource that will deepen your relationship with 10 00:00:35.000 --> 00:00:38.520 God and restore your joy. You can take a sneak 11 00:00:38.560 --> 00:00:41.880 peek right now by going to Pastororick dot com while 12 00:00:41.880 --> 00:00:44.560 you listen, and if you want, you can just text 13 00:00:44.560 --> 00:00:48.479 the word Daily to eight hundred six hundred five thousand 14 00:00:48.520 --> 00:00:52.320 and four to find out more. Right now, here's Pastor 15 00:00:52.399 --> 00:00:55.560 Rick Warren with part one of a message called seeing 16 00:00:55.640 --> 00:00:58.000 your Future with Faith not Fear. 17 00:00:59.079 --> 00:01:03.039 I want to begin with a mini series on clarifying 18 00:01:03.119 --> 00:01:07.079 God's vision for your future. So I'm going to teach 19 00:01:07.079 --> 00:01:10.959 a short series on vision, the power of Vision. I 20 00:01:11.000 --> 00:01:13.200 want you to be able to say to God, I 21 00:01:13.319 --> 00:01:18.439 fulfilled the vision that you gave me for my life. 22 00:01:18.760 --> 00:01:20.159 You can't fulfill your. 23 00:01:20.040 --> 00:01:23.879 Life vision, of course, until first you see it and 24 00:01:23.920 --> 00:01:27.599 then you understand it. Proverbs twenty nine, verse eighteen says this, 25 00:01:28.079 --> 00:01:32.480 where there is no vision, the people perish. 26 00:01:32.799 --> 00:01:34.000 Now what does that mean? 27 00:01:34.599 --> 00:01:38.400 Well, there are at least three results of not having 28 00:01:38.400 --> 00:01:40.120 a vision for your life. I want you to write 29 00:01:40.159 --> 00:01:45.040 these down. An unclear vision leads to three things. It 30 00:01:45.159 --> 00:01:50.439 leads to indecision, it leads to division, and it leads 31 00:01:50.480 --> 00:01:55.000 to a collision. First, an unclear vision leads to indecision. 32 00:01:55.400 --> 00:01:57.400 Do you remember this verse from our study of James 33 00:01:57.439 --> 00:02:00.400 James Chapter one, verse eight double minded people? People can't 34 00:02:00.439 --> 00:02:03.079 make up their minds. They waver back and forth and 35 00:02:03.120 --> 00:02:06.480 everything they do. Without a vision for your future, you're 36 00:02:06.519 --> 00:02:10.639 just drifting. You wander, you ramble through life. You're not 37 00:02:10.719 --> 00:02:14.520 really living, You're just existing. You don't have any goal 38 00:02:14.719 --> 00:02:18.560 or purpose or plan or meaning. You just kind of 39 00:02:18.639 --> 00:02:21.360 let life happen to you. When you don't have a vision, 40 00:02:21.439 --> 00:02:24.520 you waste time and you missed opportunities. You don't make 41 00:02:24.560 --> 00:02:27.199 the most of what you've been given. And without a vision, 42 00:02:27.599 --> 00:02:31.120 you're a poor steward of life. End up just coasting 43 00:02:31.199 --> 00:02:33.319 and you're all and you know when you're coasting, you're 44 00:02:33.319 --> 00:02:40.680 always headed downhill, so it causes this indecision. Second, an 45 00:02:40.759 --> 00:02:43.199 unclear vision leads to division. 46 00:02:44.240 --> 00:02:44.680 Division. 47 00:02:44.840 --> 00:02:47.680 It causes people to go different directions, in different ways, 48 00:02:47.879 --> 00:02:50.759 to be divided on things. If you aren't sure where 49 00:02:50.800 --> 00:02:54.680 you're headed, don't expect anybody else to go with you, 50 00:02:55.840 --> 00:02:58.960 or to marry you, or to agree with you, or 51 00:02:59.000 --> 00:03:01.560 to partner with you, because everybody's just going to head 52 00:03:01.560 --> 00:03:03.400 off in a different direction because no one has a 53 00:03:03.400 --> 00:03:08.039 clear path. You know, this lack of clear vision is 54 00:03:08.199 --> 00:03:12.080 one of the causes of all the division in America 55 00:03:12.199 --> 00:03:16.120 right now. Here's an interesting verse from Proverbs twenty eight, 56 00:03:16.199 --> 00:03:19.479 verse two. In the message, it says this, when a 57 00:03:19.520 --> 00:03:22.400 country is in chaos, everybody has a. 58 00:03:22.319 --> 00:03:23.120 Plan to fix it. 59 00:03:23.840 --> 00:03:26.639 Okay, they're all going in different ways, different directions, division, 60 00:03:26.879 --> 00:03:30.000 but it takes a leader of real understanding to straighten 61 00:03:30.080 --> 00:03:34.400 things out. Vision is the answer to division. The third 62 00:03:34.439 --> 00:03:36.719 thing that happens when you don't have a clear vision 63 00:03:36.759 --> 00:03:37.479 for life. 64 00:03:37.439 --> 00:03:38.280 Is a collision. 65 00:03:39.000 --> 00:03:41.240 In other words, without a clear direction for your life, 66 00:03:41.280 --> 00:03:44.000 it is inevitable that at some point in your life 67 00:03:44.039 --> 00:03:47.000 you're going to crash into some kind of dead end. 68 00:03:48.039 --> 00:03:49.800 You know, for many people, when you think about it. 69 00:03:49.840 --> 00:03:52.000 I've met a lot of people. Life's just a series 70 00:03:52.039 --> 00:03:59.280 of collisions, relational collisions, confrontations of financial crashes, personal crisis. 71 00:03:59.319 --> 00:03:59.960 Just one afternoon. 72 00:04:00.360 --> 00:04:02.800 They go from one dead end relationship to the next, 73 00:04:03.159 --> 00:04:05.840 or from one dead end job to the next. Life's 74 00:04:05.919 --> 00:04:08.599 kind of like a bumper car ride. Just keep bumping 75 00:04:08.639 --> 00:04:12.599 into everybody else and you get hit from all sides. Now, 76 00:04:12.680 --> 00:04:17.319 the Bible warns us of the damage of not following 77 00:04:17.360 --> 00:04:21.600 God's vision for our lives. One Timothy one nineteen says this, 78 00:04:21.720 --> 00:04:26.000 and God's word translation. Some people have refused to let 79 00:04:26.000 --> 00:04:29.160 their faith guide their conscience, and their faith has been 80 00:04:29.199 --> 00:04:32.399 destroyed like a wrecked ship. 81 00:04:32.720 --> 00:04:33.920 That's a collision. 82 00:04:35.279 --> 00:04:38.920 On the other hand, having a vision for your future 83 00:04:39.360 --> 00:04:42.480 requires hard work. That's why a lot of people don't 84 00:04:42.519 --> 00:04:47.160 have one. It requires faith, It requires thinking, it requires 85 00:04:47.319 --> 00:04:49.920 prayer and seeking God, all the things we're going to 86 00:04:49.959 --> 00:04:52.720 talk about in this series. If you just make up 87 00:04:52.720 --> 00:04:55.199 a vision for your life, well that's no better than coasting. 88 00:04:56.199 --> 00:04:58.959 What you want is God's vision for your life, and 89 00:04:59.079 --> 00:05:04.360 that is the result of seeing things clearly, seeing with 90 00:05:04.439 --> 00:05:07.000 eyes of faith rather than eyes of fear. We're going 91 00:05:07.040 --> 00:05:10.120 to look at that today in just this introduction message. 92 00:05:10.480 --> 00:05:13.079 You know, in the Bible, Jesus has a lot to 93 00:05:13.079 --> 00:05:16.560 say about your vision, about how you see things, and 94 00:05:16.639 --> 00:05:20.360 about blindness. In fact, in the Bible, blindness is always 95 00:05:20.399 --> 00:05:23.959 a metaphor for having a closed mind. When he talks 96 00:05:23.959 --> 00:05:26.519 about people who are blind, he's talking about their minds 97 00:05:26.519 --> 00:05:29.399 are closed. They're not open to new ideas, They're not 98 00:05:29.439 --> 00:05:29.839 open to. 99 00:05:29.759 --> 00:05:31.480 What God wants to say. 100 00:05:31.720 --> 00:05:35.240 Matthew, Chapter six, Verse twenty two and twenty three is 101 00:05:35.279 --> 00:05:38.600 the verse we'll come back to in this series on vision, 102 00:05:38.839 --> 00:05:42.160 because Jesus said this, Listen closely look at this verse. 103 00:05:43.040 --> 00:05:47.519 Your eyes are the lamp of your body. And if 104 00:05:47.560 --> 00:05:51.560 your eyes are open and good, your whole body will 105 00:05:51.560 --> 00:05:53.360 be full of life light. 106 00:05:54.120 --> 00:05:56.360 But if your vision. 107 00:05:56.199 --> 00:05:58.879 Is bad, I just got new glasses. I've got good 108 00:05:58.959 --> 00:06:02.120 vision again. If your vision is bad, your whole life 109 00:06:02.120 --> 00:06:07.279 will be full of darkness. And he says, and he says, 110 00:06:07.399 --> 00:06:11.720 if the light that you think you have is really darkness, 111 00:06:12.399 --> 00:06:15.199 is the worst kind of darkness you can have. Now 112 00:06:15.319 --> 00:06:21.240 Jesus is saying that if you don't really see things clearly, correctly, truthfully, 113 00:06:22.199 --> 00:06:25.879 you may think you're living in the light, but you're not. 114 00:06:26.639 --> 00:06:30.000 You're really living in the darkness, and you're missing all 115 00:06:30.120 --> 00:06:33.600 the wonderful things that God has in store for you 116 00:06:34.360 --> 00:06:39.399 for your future because you just can't see it. Now, 117 00:06:39.480 --> 00:06:42.560 we've all heard the expression what you see is what 118 00:06:42.639 --> 00:06:46.680 you get, and in many ways, that's actually a biblical statement. 119 00:06:47.240 --> 00:06:49.759 We're going to look at the implications of that idea 120 00:06:50.079 --> 00:06:54.399 through many scripture verses during this series on vision. But 121 00:06:54.480 --> 00:06:57.759 what I want to do today is just introduce a 122 00:06:57.839 --> 00:07:01.160 series on God's vision for your future future. And I 123 00:07:01.199 --> 00:07:03.439 want us to go back to a story in the 124 00:07:03.480 --> 00:07:07.000 Old Testament that involves Moses and the Jewish slaves who 125 00:07:07.000 --> 00:07:09.680 had been freed by God from four hundred years of 126 00:07:10.040 --> 00:07:13.800 slavery in Egypt. Now here's the background of the story. 127 00:07:13.839 --> 00:07:16.439 We're going to look at numbers thirteen and numbers fourteen. 128 00:07:17.160 --> 00:07:20.759 Here's the background in the Book of Numbers. God had 129 00:07:20.839 --> 00:07:26.360 promised these freed slaves a homeland of their own, and 130 00:07:26.399 --> 00:07:29.399 he calls it the Promised Land. I'm going to set 131 00:07:29.439 --> 00:07:31.360 you free from Egypt, and I'm going to take you 132 00:07:31.439 --> 00:07:35.319 to the Promised Land. It represented their future, It represented 133 00:07:35.360 --> 00:07:38.360 their inheritance that God wanted them to enjoy. 134 00:07:38.879 --> 00:07:41.040 It would become the land of Israel. 135 00:07:44.160 --> 00:07:47.279 You're listening to Pastor Rick's Daily Hope. Rick will be 136 00:07:47.360 --> 00:07:50.199 back in just a moment with the rest of today's lesson. 137 00:07:50.560 --> 00:07:53.680 You can sign up for Pastor Rick's free email devotional 138 00:07:53.920 --> 00:07:58.040 at pastorick dot com. That's pastorick dot com. 139 00:07:58.319 --> 00:08:01.360 How do you feel spiritually right now now? Maybe you 140 00:08:01.439 --> 00:08:05.199 feel spiritually dry, like you're in a desert, or like 141 00:08:05.279 --> 00:08:09.399 you're just going through the motions. Maybe you've lost your spark, 142 00:08:09.800 --> 00:08:13.519 your joy. God knows how you feel right now. You 143 00:08:13.759 --> 00:08:18.000 are not alone. He knows. Even David and the Bible 144 00:08:18.040 --> 00:08:22.319 felt like that and Jeremiah twenty nine thirteen. God says 145 00:08:22.800 --> 00:08:25.560 you will seek Me and find Me when you seek 146 00:08:25.600 --> 00:08:29.240 Me with all your heart. When you seek God intentionally, 147 00:08:29.600 --> 00:08:32.480 it leads to a renewal of your relationship with Him. 148 00:08:32.879 --> 00:08:36.600 That's why Pastor Rick created a very special, brand new 149 00:08:36.639 --> 00:08:41.480 resource called Going Deeper with God, a personal renewal retreat, 150 00:08:41.879 --> 00:08:45.240 and it he'll personally leave you on a spiritual journey 151 00:08:45.399 --> 00:08:49.200 to help you seek God. Together, you and Maasta Rick 152 00:08:49.360 --> 00:08:52.600 will go through a series of audio lessons and after 153 00:08:52.639 --> 00:08:56.320 each session you'll take a little time to complete exercises 154 00:08:56.399 --> 00:08:59.440 in the Companion workbook. You can do this at home 155 00:08:59.519 --> 00:09:02.440 in short sessions, or you can get away for a 156 00:09:02.519 --> 00:09:05.799 day and do it in one sitting. Through this retreat, 157 00:09:06.000 --> 00:09:09.960 you'll experience a renewal of life within you. God will 158 00:09:10.000 --> 00:09:15.720 restore your joy. As he renews, refreshes, invigorates, and revives 159 00:09:15.759 --> 00:09:20.120 your spiritual life, You'll never be the same again. Will 160 00:09:20.200 --> 00:09:23.960 send you going deeper with God. A personal renewal retreat 161 00:09:24.080 --> 00:09:26.759 as our way of saying thanks when you give a 162 00:09:26.759 --> 00:09:29.840 gift today to help daily hope, share the hope of 163 00:09:30.000 --> 00:09:33.840 Jesus with a hurting world. Just call eight hundred and 164 00:09:33.919 --> 00:09:36.799 six hundred at five zero zero four or go to 165 00:09:36.840 --> 00:09:40.399 Pastorick dot com to get your copy of this great resource. 166 00:09:40.639 --> 00:09:43.559 That's eight hundred and six hundred five zero zero four 167 00:09:43.960 --> 00:09:47.559 or Pastorick dot com. 168 00:09:47.679 --> 00:09:49.559 Once again, here's Pastor Rick. 169 00:09:51.519 --> 00:09:54.799 Now after crossing the desert, they've gone through the Red Sea, 170 00:09:54.879 --> 00:09:57.879 crossing the desert, all these free slaves that come to 171 00:09:57.919 --> 00:10:01.559 the edge of the promised land. And so Moses chooses 172 00:10:01.720 --> 00:10:05.360 twelve representatives, one from each of the twelve tribes, to 173 00:10:05.480 --> 00:10:08.679 go ahead of everybody else and spy out the land. 174 00:10:09.080 --> 00:10:10.720 And he says, won't you go in, check it all 175 00:10:10.759 --> 00:10:14.440 out and return with the vision report? This is a 176 00:10:14.480 --> 00:10:18.399 fact finding mission. In other words, it's a vision trip, 177 00:10:19.000 --> 00:10:21.960 and Moses says, go into the new land that represents 178 00:10:22.000 --> 00:10:25.440 our future and find out everything you can. Find out 179 00:10:25.440 --> 00:10:28.360 what it's like, see everything you can see. Then come 180 00:10:28.360 --> 00:10:31.399 back and report to us on everything you have seen. 181 00:10:31.720 --> 00:10:35.440 This is a vision trip. Numbers thirteen, seventeen to twenty 182 00:10:35.440 --> 00:10:38.639 says this. Moses gave them men these instructions as he 183 00:10:38.759 --> 00:10:41.799 sent them out to explore the new land. Go northward 184 00:10:41.960 --> 00:10:45.039 through the Negev into the hill country and see what 185 00:10:45.159 --> 00:10:48.559 that land is like. And find out whether the people 186 00:10:48.600 --> 00:10:51.000 living there are strong or weak, few or many? What 187 00:10:51.120 --> 00:10:53.039 kind of land do they live in? Is it good 188 00:10:53.159 --> 00:10:56.360 or bad? Do the towns have walls? Are they unprotected? 189 00:10:56.559 --> 00:10:59.480 How's the soil? Is it fertile or poor? Are there 190 00:10:59.480 --> 00:11:04.360 mini trees? Enter the land boldly and bring back samples 191 00:11:04.679 --> 00:11:08.120 of the crops you see. If you're taking notes, circle 192 00:11:08.200 --> 00:11:11.840 that phrase you see now, why did Moses do this? 193 00:11:12.080 --> 00:11:14.120 Because Moses was a great leader. 194 00:11:14.720 --> 00:11:17.200 Why did he send these spies on a vision trip 195 00:11:17.240 --> 00:11:19.879 and ask for a report? Here's the reason. Listen to 196 00:11:19.879 --> 00:11:22.519 this if you're a leader. This is really important before 197 00:11:22.600 --> 00:11:25.679 people can succeed with the goal they have to see 198 00:11:25.720 --> 00:11:28.840 the goal. If you're a leader, you need to understand 199 00:11:28.840 --> 00:11:33.360 that we can only accomplish the impossible if we first see. 200 00:11:33.080 --> 00:11:34.799 It in our minds. 201 00:11:35.799 --> 00:11:39.039 Everything that's ever been accomplished in history started as an 202 00:11:39.039 --> 00:11:41.879 idea in somebody's mind. First, you have to imagine it. 203 00:11:42.159 --> 00:11:45.000 You have to see it. Sometimes you have to taste it, 204 00:11:45.080 --> 00:11:48.320 but you definitely have to visualize it. And that's why 205 00:11:48.360 --> 00:11:51.279 I'm going to teach you a new series on getting 206 00:11:51.320 --> 00:11:55.519 God's vision for your life now numbers chapter thirteen, verse 207 00:11:55.519 --> 00:11:58.799 twenty one, twenty three says this, So they sent spies in. 208 00:11:59.240 --> 00:12:02.279 They spied it out the land all the way from 209 00:12:02.320 --> 00:12:06.039 the wilderness up to Hebron, and there they saw circle 210 00:12:06.080 --> 00:12:10.000 that word. They saw the Almanites and the she Shites, 211 00:12:10.360 --> 00:12:14.360 and all the Tumites, all the families descended from Anak. Now, 212 00:12:14.399 --> 00:12:17.360 by the way, don't confuse these tribes with the termites 213 00:12:17.600 --> 00:12:20.840 and the parasites and the satellites and the stalactites. Those 214 00:12:20.879 --> 00:12:24.120 are different tribes completely. But it says what they came 215 00:12:24.240 --> 00:12:27.840 to Eskol. They cut down a cluster of grapes so 216 00:12:28.120 --> 00:12:30.600 large that it took two of them to carry it 217 00:12:30.639 --> 00:12:33.120 back on a pole. Can you imagine that a cluster 218 00:12:33.200 --> 00:12:36.000 of grapes. They also took samples of pomegranates and figs. 219 00:12:36.240 --> 00:12:41.159 This promised land was so fruitful and so incredibly prosperous. 220 00:12:42.159 --> 00:12:44.919 They're bringing back giant fruit. You know, I grew up 221 00:12:44.960 --> 00:12:48.679 in northern California, in the Redwoods and in the wine country, 222 00:12:48.919 --> 00:12:51.799 and as a kid, every season I cut grapes and 223 00:12:51.879 --> 00:12:54.960 vineyards at harvest. But I never saw a cluster grace 224 00:12:55.080 --> 00:12:56.799 so large that it took two men to carry it. 225 00:12:57.320 --> 00:13:02.240 This is supernatural. This is miracle growth. Prop numbers thirteen, 226 00:13:02.320 --> 00:13:05.320 twenty five, twenty six. Is this after seeing? There's the 227 00:13:05.360 --> 00:13:08.240 word seeing. This is a vision trip. After seeing the 228 00:13:08.320 --> 00:13:11.879 land for forty days, the men returned to Moses and 229 00:13:11.919 --> 00:13:16.039 Aaron and the people of Israel waiting at Kadesh in 230 00:13:16.120 --> 00:13:19.600 the wilderness of Parenne. They reported of the whole community 231 00:13:19.919 --> 00:13:23.120 what they had seen, and they showed them the fruit 232 00:13:23.240 --> 00:13:26.960 they had taken from the land. Now, all this sounds 233 00:13:27.000 --> 00:13:30.279 really promising, but there's problem, and it has to do 234 00:13:30.879 --> 00:13:33.960 with their vision. That's why we're sharing this story. Two 235 00:13:34.039 --> 00:13:36.799 of the spies, there were twelve spies. Two of the spies, 236 00:13:37.120 --> 00:13:42.080 Joshua and Caleb, looked at their future with eyes of faith. 237 00:13:42.840 --> 00:13:43.960 But the other ten of the. 238 00:13:43.960 --> 00:13:48.879 Twelve spies looked at their future with the eyes of fear. 239 00:13:49.759 --> 00:13:52.279 Are you looking at this new year with eyes of 240 00:13:52.320 --> 00:13:54.360 fear or with eyes of faith? 241 00:13:54.720 --> 00:13:56.200 Are you expecting more of the same? 242 00:13:56.519 --> 00:13:58.600 Are you expecting God to do something great in your 243 00:13:58.639 --> 00:14:02.879 life this new year? How you see this year will 244 00:14:02.919 --> 00:14:05.600 make all the difference in the world. And this story 245 00:14:05.639 --> 00:14:09.360 shows us what happens when your vision of the future 246 00:14:09.440 --> 00:14:14.039 is based on fear instead of faith. Okay, so let's 247 00:14:14.039 --> 00:14:17.080 get into this now. You know the story looking at 248 00:14:17.080 --> 00:14:20.840 the future with fear, which ten of the twelve spies did, 249 00:14:21.279 --> 00:14:25.919 causes all kinds of problems. In fact, this story illustrates 250 00:14:26.039 --> 00:14:29.600 oh five or so of the traps, maybe six that 251 00:14:30.360 --> 00:14:33.080 we fall into. Why don't you write these down? Here's 252 00:14:33.120 --> 00:14:35.559 what happens when you look at the new year, or 253 00:14:35.559 --> 00:14:38.960 you look at the future with fear instead of faith. 254 00:14:39.039 --> 00:14:43.759 Number one we learned from this story. I overemphasize the 255 00:14:43.879 --> 00:14:47.159 negative when I look at the future in fear. I 256 00:14:47.200 --> 00:14:51.120 overemphasize the negative in life Versus twenty seven to twenty eight. 257 00:14:51.320 --> 00:14:55.440 It says this was their report to Moses. We arrived 258 00:14:55.480 --> 00:14:58.399 in the land you sent us to to see, and 259 00:14:58.440 --> 00:15:01.600 it is indeed a magnificent kind, the land flowing with 260 00:15:01.639 --> 00:15:04.799 milk and honey. Here's some of the fruit as proof, 261 00:15:05.200 --> 00:15:08.120 but a circle the word butt, because now what you 262 00:15:08.120 --> 00:15:10.840 get the butt you're going to see with eyes of fear. 263 00:15:11.240 --> 00:15:15.480 Here's the conflicting information. But the people living there are powerful, 264 00:15:16.080 --> 00:15:19.440 and their cities and towns are fortified, and they're very large. 265 00:15:19.799 --> 00:15:24.320 And we also saw the Anakin, the descendants of Anak 266 00:15:24.879 --> 00:15:27.559 who lived in the desert. Now, the Anakin were of 267 00:15:27.559 --> 00:15:31.360 the tribe of Skywalker, and the forest was strong with them. 268 00:15:33.879 --> 00:15:36.480 If you believe that, I've got some land to sell 269 00:15:36.519 --> 00:15:36.840 you too. 270 00:15:37.399 --> 00:15:41.519 When you overemphasize the negative, it creates a lot more 271 00:15:41.559 --> 00:15:47.080 stress in your life when you're looking at everything with fear. Look, 272 00:15:47.120 --> 00:15:50.000 you worry that the glass is always half empty, instead 273 00:15:50.000 --> 00:15:52.559 of being happy and grateful, the glass is still half full. 274 00:15:53.840 --> 00:15:56.960 Look at what you have left, not what you've lost. Now, 275 00:15:57.000 --> 00:16:00.600 of course, life is filled with negatives. Everything is broken 276 00:16:00.639 --> 00:16:03.399 by sin on this earth. Not all news is positive. 277 00:16:04.039 --> 00:16:06.559 But you do have a choice in choosing what you're 278 00:16:06.639 --> 00:16:09.720 going to focus on, what you're going to emphasize, and 279 00:16:09.799 --> 00:16:13.960 that is going to directly affect your happiness in this 280 00:16:14.039 --> 00:16:18.480 new year. So the spies brought back conflicting news to 281 00:16:18.639 --> 00:16:23.320 the spies had eyes of faith and they gave positive news, okay, 282 00:16:23.559 --> 00:16:26.320 But ten of the spies had eyes of fear and 283 00:16:26.360 --> 00:16:30.759 they delivered negative news. By the way, I think that 284 00:16:30.879 --> 00:16:34.440 ratio in news is probably still true today. For every 285 00:16:34.480 --> 00:16:37.200 one positive news story, you're going to hear five negative 286 00:16:37.440 --> 00:16:41.240 news stories. And experts tells that negative news spends spreads 287 00:16:41.240 --> 00:16:45.159 about ten times faster on social media and positive news. 288 00:16:45.360 --> 00:16:49.240 So I focus on the negative when I'm looking with 289 00:16:49.320 --> 00:16:53.720 eyes of fear. Number two second trap, I pay too 290 00:16:53.799 --> 00:16:57.600 much attention to what other people are doing. I pay 291 00:16:57.679 --> 00:17:02.039 too much attention to what others are doing. Numbers thirteen 292 00:17:02.120 --> 00:17:05.960 twenty nine says this. They're focusing not on the beauty 293 00:17:06.039 --> 00:17:08.960 and the value of the land. They say the Malakites 294 00:17:09.000 --> 00:17:11.960 live in the Negativ and the Hittites and Jebisites and 295 00:17:12.000 --> 00:17:15.119 Amorites live in the hill country, and the Canaanites live 296 00:17:15.200 --> 00:17:17.680 near the sea and along the Jordan the Jordan River. 297 00:17:19.400 --> 00:17:21.680 What are they saying here? What's the point? It's a 298 00:17:21.759 --> 00:17:25.279 scarcity mentality. What they're saying is there won't be enough 299 00:17:25.359 --> 00:17:28.799 for us this year. All the good land is already 300 00:17:28.880 --> 00:17:32.599 taken by other tribes. There's really no room for us 301 00:17:32.880 --> 00:17:38.000 in this promised land. There aren't enough resources for everybody. Now, 302 00:17:38.000 --> 00:17:40.519 if you look at this new year with eyes of fear, 303 00:17:41.079 --> 00:17:44.799 you too are going to develop a scarcity mentality, which 304 00:17:44.839 --> 00:17:46.880 is going to create stress in your life, like there's 305 00:17:46.920 --> 00:17:47.519 not enough. 306 00:17:48.440 --> 00:17:51.119 And you say, all the good. 307 00:17:51.200 --> 00:17:54.440 Experiences are gone, all the good jobs are already taken, 308 00:17:54.920 --> 00:17:57.880 all the good houses already bought, all the good husbands 309 00:17:57.920 --> 00:18:04.039 are married. You're going to look around as a scarcity mentality. Now, 310 00:18:04.599 --> 00:18:06.519 you gotta look with the eyes of faith. Number three. 311 00:18:06.720 --> 00:18:09.519 Third trap that we see from this story when we 312 00:18:09.559 --> 00:18:13.319 look at the future with fear instead of faith. I understand, 313 00:18:13.559 --> 00:18:18.480 excuse me, I underestimate the abilities that God has given me. 314 00:18:19.559 --> 00:18:22.519 I underestimate the abilities God has given me when I 315 00:18:22.559 --> 00:18:25.559 look at the future with fear, because seeing life with 316 00:18:25.680 --> 00:18:30.000 eyes of fear causes you to bury your talents. You 317 00:18:30.079 --> 00:18:33.680 know that story that Jesus told Number thirteen thirty one. 318 00:18:33.920 --> 00:18:38.240 The men who had gone with Caleb said, we can't 319 00:18:38.279 --> 00:18:43.000 circle that. We can't we can't attack those people. They 320 00:18:43.039 --> 00:18:47.759 are stronger than we are. They're underestimating their own ability. 321 00:18:49.039 --> 00:18:52.119 Did you know that people who always say I can't 322 00:18:52.880 --> 00:18:56.200 and the people who always say I can are both right. 323 00:18:57.119 --> 00:18:57.440 Why? 324 00:18:57.680 --> 00:19:01.559 Because fear creates self fulfilling prophecies. You got a vision 325 00:19:01.599 --> 00:19:04.720 based on fear rather than faith. It's gonna limit you 326 00:19:04.960 --> 00:19:08.920 for your entire life. You're gonna miss opportunities, you're gonna 327 00:19:08.960 --> 00:19:11.880 waste talent that God has put inside you, and you're 328 00:19:11.920 --> 00:19:17.319 gonna set yourself up with self fulfilling and self defeating predictions. 329 00:19:18.720 --> 00:19:19.519 You know this happened. 330 00:19:19.599 --> 00:19:22.160 Job says in Job three twenty five he said, what 331 00:19:22.240 --> 00:19:26.519 I have always feared has happened to me, and what 332 00:19:26.599 --> 00:19:30.279 I have dreaded has now come to be. Let me 333 00:19:30.319 --> 00:19:33.000 ask you a very personal question. What are you setting 334 00:19:33.000 --> 00:19:37.720 yourself up for in this new year? What are you 335 00:19:37.839 --> 00:19:40.839 setting yourself up or in just with your attitude, how 336 00:19:40.880 --> 00:19:44.519 are you seeing yourself? Are you looking at your own 337 00:19:44.559 --> 00:19:50.880 abilities as I'm inadequate, I'm incapable. Are you looking at 338 00:19:50.920 --> 00:19:54.920 your life in faith or in fear? The spies with 339 00:19:55.160 --> 00:20:01.119 fear based vision saw themselves as inadequate two and thirty 340 00:20:01.119 --> 00:20:05.480 three They said, the land we explored devours those living 341 00:20:05.519 --> 00:20:09.599 in it? What a what a hyperbole? The land we 342 00:20:09.720 --> 00:20:12.079 explored devours those living in it. 343 00:20:12.599 --> 00:20:13.000 He says. 344 00:20:13.319 --> 00:20:16.759 All of the people we saw there are of great size. 345 00:20:17.480 --> 00:20:21.319 He says, we saw giants there. The Hebrew word is 346 00:20:21.440 --> 00:20:24.200 nephelim for a giant. By the way, the Hebrew are 347 00:20:24.279 --> 00:20:29.480 for handsomest, Pastor Rick, in Hebrew, we seemed like grasshoppers 348 00:20:29.559 --> 00:20:33.880 in our own eyes, and we looked the same to them. 349 00:20:34.079 --> 00:20:37.039 You see what they're saying. We see ourselves. 350 00:20:36.440 --> 00:20:41.039 As insects waiting to be devoured. That word devouring Hebrew 351 00:20:41.039 --> 00:20:43.799 actually means to eat up. They said, these people are 352 00:20:43.799 --> 00:20:44.839 going to eat our lunch. 353 00:20:52.160 --> 00:20:55.480 This is Pastor Rick's Daily Hope. We're so happy that 354 00:20:55.519 --> 00:20:58.480 you've chosen to study along with us today. If you'd 355 00:20:58.559 --> 00:21:02.400 like to receive rix free daily devotional, go to Pastorick 356 00:21:02.480 --> 00:21:05.240 dot com and sign up right now. Rick will be 357 00:21:05.319 --> 00:21:08.240 right back to close out our time today. But first, 358 00:21:08.599 --> 00:21:11.720 how do you feel spiritually right now? Maybe you feel 359 00:21:11.759 --> 00:21:15.160 spiritually dry, like you're in a desert, or like you're 360 00:21:15.200 --> 00:21:18.640 just going through the motions. Maybe you've lost your spark, 361 00:21:18.880 --> 00:21:22.359 your joy. God knows how you feel right now, and 362 00:21:22.400 --> 00:21:26.000 you're not alone. He knows. Even David and the Bible 363 00:21:26.079 --> 00:21:29.640 felt like that, and Jeremiah twenty nine thirteen. God says, 364 00:21:29.880 --> 00:21:32.799 you will seek me and find me when you seek 365 00:21:32.839 --> 00:21:36.319 Me with all your heart. When you seek God intentionally, 366 00:21:36.640 --> 00:21:39.839 it leads to a renewal of your relationship with him. 367 00:21:40.039 --> 00:21:43.359 And that's why Pastor Rick created a very special, brand 368 00:21:43.400 --> 00:21:48.920 new resource called Going Deeper with God, a personal renewal Retreat. 369 00:21:49.480 --> 00:21:52.000 Right now, here's Pastor Rick to tell you more. 370 00:21:52.440 --> 00:21:55.759 Let me ask you a very personal and serious question. 371 00:21:56.599 --> 00:22:02.079 Would you truly like to have a deeper relationship with God? 372 00:22:02.559 --> 00:22:06.599 Not a superficial one, a deep one Jeremiah twenty nine thirteen. 373 00:22:06.680 --> 00:22:09.079 God says this, you will seek me and find me 374 00:22:09.119 --> 00:22:12.960 when you seek for Me with all your heart. When 375 00:22:13.000 --> 00:22:17.240 you seek God intentionally, it leads to a renewal of 376 00:22:17.279 --> 00:22:20.160 your relationship with him. You're as close to God as 377 00:22:20.240 --> 00:22:22.599 you want to be, and if you want to be closer, 378 00:22:22.640 --> 00:22:26.680 it's up to you. That's why I created a Going 379 00:22:26.839 --> 00:22:32.359 Deeper with God Personal Renewal Retreat. Yeah, going Deeper with 380 00:22:32.440 --> 00:22:36.160 God Personal Renewal Retreat. It's retreat just meant for you 381 00:22:36.720 --> 00:22:38.720 where you can get alone with God and you can 382 00:22:38.720 --> 00:22:41.640 connect with Him in an intimate way that's going to 383 00:22:41.759 --> 00:22:46.680 refresh and renew and revitalize your relationship with God. It's 384 00:22:46.680 --> 00:22:48.680 going to give you a deeper understanding of His love, 385 00:22:49.640 --> 00:22:51.960 and it will also prepare you to be used by 386 00:22:51.960 --> 00:22:55.480 God in the days ahead. Now, as I lead you 387 00:22:55.599 --> 00:22:59.400 through this Going Deeper with God Retreat, my hope is 388 00:22:59.440 --> 00:23:03.839 that God will use it to completely revitalize and re 389 00:23:04.000 --> 00:23:07.920 energize your spiritual life. Together, we'll go through a series 390 00:23:08.000 --> 00:23:12.720 of audio lessons and after each session you'll just take 391 00:23:12.720 --> 00:23:14.880 a little bit of time to complete the exercises in 392 00:23:14.960 --> 00:23:18.599 the companion workbook that I've prepared for you. And you 393 00:23:18.680 --> 00:23:20.480 can do this. You can do it at home, you 394 00:23:20.480 --> 00:23:22.279 can do it at school. You can do it in 395 00:23:22.319 --> 00:23:24.960 short sessions, or you can get away for a whole 396 00:23:25.079 --> 00:23:29.160 day and do it all in one setting. My goal 397 00:23:29.559 --> 00:23:33.559 is to strengthen your relationship with God, deepen your commitment, 398 00:23:33.559 --> 00:23:38.160 and surrendered Him in affirm your commitment to live for 399 00:23:38.240 --> 00:23:42.279 His glory. You know, maybe you've never thought about this, 400 00:23:42.359 --> 00:23:44.000 but God's ready to go deeper with you. 401 00:23:44.200 --> 00:23:46.559