WEBVTT 1 00:00:03.080 --> 00:00:06.919 Pastor Rick Warren often says, you were made by God 2 00:00:07.200 --> 00:00:11.119 and for God, and until you understand that, life will 3 00:00:11.160 --> 00:00:16.120 never make sense. Welcome to Pastor Rick's Daily Hope Today. 4 00:00:16.399 --> 00:00:19.280 In our series called God's Vision for the Rest of 5 00:00:19.320 --> 00:00:22.480 your Life, Rick continues in his effort to help you 6 00:00:22.600 --> 00:00:26.679 discover the unique purpose and vision that the Lord has 7 00:00:26.719 --> 00:00:29.960 for your life. Now, in just a few moments, we're 8 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:31.760 going to tell you how to get a copy of 9 00:00:31.800 --> 00:00:35.719 the brand new Daily Hope twenty twenty one prayer Journal 10 00:00:36.000 --> 00:00:39.719 based on the theme God's Great Adventure for You, a 11 00:00:39.759 --> 00:00:42.840 great resource to help make your time in prayer the 12 00:00:42.880 --> 00:00:46.079 best it can be. Go to Pastorick dot com to 13 00:00:46.119 --> 00:00:49.640 find out more, or text the word daily to eight 14 00:00:49.719 --> 00:00:54.000 hundred six hundred five thousand and four. That's Pastorick dot 15 00:00:54.039 --> 00:00:57.759 com or the word daily to eight hundred six hundred 16 00:00:58.039 --> 00:01:02.079 five thousand and four. Right now, here's Pastor Rick Warren 17 00:01:02.200 --> 00:01:05.959 with part two of a message called learning to Live Wisely. 18 00:01:06.760 --> 00:01:10.439 The next verse Proverbs three sixteen to eighteen mentions seven 19 00:01:10.879 --> 00:01:13.560 major benefits of getting wisdom in your life. 20 00:01:14.599 --> 00:01:16.079 Notice this right circle them all. 21 00:01:16.400 --> 00:01:20.840 Wisdom offers you long life, that's the first one, as 22 00:01:20.959 --> 00:01:24.719 well as wealth, that's the sactly. Wealth is a mark 23 00:01:24.879 --> 00:01:27.560 of wisdom. You wise up. You use your money wise 24 00:01:28.439 --> 00:01:33.040 as well as wealth and honor. Circle honor. Wisdom can 25 00:01:33.120 --> 00:01:37.040 make your life pleasant. In other words, it's not as hard. 26 00:01:37.359 --> 00:01:39.920 If I make foolish decisions, life is hard. If I 27 00:01:39.959 --> 00:01:41.760 make wise decision, life is pleasant. 28 00:01:41.799 --> 00:01:42.439 It's easier. 29 00:01:43.200 --> 00:01:47.280 Says, wisdom can lead you safely through life. In other words, 30 00:01:47.400 --> 00:01:50.079 wisdom is a protection keeps you from making mistakes. 31 00:01:50.079 --> 00:01:50.719 You circle that. 32 00:01:51.359 --> 00:01:55.560 Those who become wise are happy. You want happiness. Get 33 00:01:55.599 --> 00:01:59.000 wise up. The wiser you get, the happier you'll be. 34 00:01:59.799 --> 00:02:05.280 Wisdom will give them life. In other words, true life. Now, friends, 35 00:02:05.400 --> 00:02:08.840 those seven benefits are so ridiculously over the top. If 36 00:02:08.840 --> 00:02:11.280 I didn't believe that was in the Bible, it sounds 37 00:02:11.319 --> 00:02:15.439 like an infomercial. I mean, if I held up a 38 00:02:15.439 --> 00:02:18.800 product and said, this product will give you a long life. 39 00:02:19.360 --> 00:02:22.120 It will make you wealthy, it will bring you honor. 40 00:02:22.479 --> 00:02:25.759 It will make your life pleasant and easier than before. 41 00:02:26.599 --> 00:02:29.439 It will lead you safely through the problems of your life. 42 00:02:29.520 --> 00:02:32.240 It will make you happy, and it will cause you 43 00:02:32.280 --> 00:02:33.639 to experience life it was. 44 00:02:33.599 --> 00:02:35.840 Meant to be lived. You've begun. 45 00:02:36.280 --> 00:02:40.360 I don't believe it it's unrealistic. But I didn't say this. 46 00:02:41.080 --> 00:02:44.759 God said it. God said it, and God is telling 47 00:02:44.800 --> 00:02:48.800 you the value of learning wisdom. This is why we're 48 00:02:48.800 --> 00:02:51.639 going to do the next six weeks. If you become 49 00:02:51.680 --> 00:02:55.400 more wise, these things will be true in your life. 50 00:02:55.560 --> 00:03:01.360 One more verse Proverbs four to twelve will stand in 51 00:03:01.400 --> 00:03:07.159 your way. If you walk wisely circle, nothing will stand 52 00:03:07.479 --> 00:03:09.879 In other words, you got your dream, you got your goal. 53 00:03:10.759 --> 00:03:13.080 Wisdom will show you how to get around all the barriers. 54 00:03:13.960 --> 00:03:17.639 Nothing will stand in your way, and you will not stumble. 55 00:03:17.879 --> 00:03:20.159 You're not going to make so many mistakes when you 56 00:03:20.280 --> 00:03:24.080 run if you are wise. Do you see how important 57 00:03:24.080 --> 00:03:27.960 wisdom is to your life? Do you understand why wisdom 58 00:03:27.960 --> 00:03:31.599 should be the number one goal of your life? Do 59 00:03:31.639 --> 00:03:34.520 you realize how it's worth the next six weeks of 60 00:03:34.560 --> 00:03:37.280 your life to hear it, read it, study it, memorize, 61 00:03:37.360 --> 00:03:43.360 meditate on it to learn how to live wisely. Now, 62 00:03:43.599 --> 00:03:48.879 Like everything else, wisdom is a choice. Happiness is a choice. 63 00:03:49.439 --> 00:03:53.520 Being close to God is a choice. Success is a 64 00:03:53.560 --> 00:03:55.599 series of making wise choices. 65 00:03:56.439 --> 00:04:00.400 Wisdom is a choice. You got to learn to be wise. 66 00:04:01.280 --> 00:04:02.599 And what I want to do is talk to you 67 00:04:02.639 --> 00:04:05.439 about what the Bible says are the five ways to 68 00:04:05.479 --> 00:04:09.479 build wisdom into your life. Bible is very specific that 69 00:04:09.560 --> 00:04:12.240 if you do certain things, then you make certain choices, 70 00:04:12.479 --> 00:04:15.960 you will become a wiser and wiser woman, you will 71 00:04:16.000 --> 00:04:20.120 become a wiser and wiser man. Well, if wisdom has 72 00:04:20.160 --> 00:04:24.240 so many benefits to my life, why don't we live 73 00:04:24.360 --> 00:04:25.240 more wisely? 74 00:04:26.120 --> 00:04:31.439 The answer is it's harder. It's harder. 75 00:04:31.800 --> 00:04:37.120 It's quite easy to make foolish decisions. It's quite difficult 76 00:04:37.360 --> 00:04:42.240 to make wise decisions. We are not by nature wise people. 77 00:04:43.000 --> 00:04:46.240 By nature, we do the dumb thing, we do the 78 00:04:46.279 --> 00:04:49.519 foolish thing, we do the easy thing. You don't come 79 00:04:49.560 --> 00:04:54.800 out of the womb automatically being wise. Wisdom has to 80 00:04:54.839 --> 00:04:59.600 be learned. And until you do the five things that 81 00:04:59.720 --> 00:05:03.120 cause you to learn wisdom, you're not going to learn wisdom. 82 00:05:04.000 --> 00:05:05.600 You can go to school for the rest of your 83 00:05:05.639 --> 00:05:09.079 life and not learn wisdom. You could read all kinds 84 00:05:09.120 --> 00:05:13.040 of books and not learn wisdom, because wisdom is seeing 85 00:05:13.120 --> 00:05:17.439 life from God's viewpoint. So you've got to make a 86 00:05:17.600 --> 00:05:21.920 choice to learn. The Bible says in Proverbs four, verse five, 87 00:05:24.199 --> 00:05:27.959 learn to be wise. Circle the word learn. You got 88 00:05:27.959 --> 00:05:34.160 to learn to be wise and develop good judgment. That's 89 00:05:34.199 --> 00:05:37.160 a choice. It's your choice. You don't have to learn, 90 00:05:37.399 --> 00:05:41.439 you don't have to develop, it's your choice. Recently, I 91 00:05:41.480 --> 00:05:44.120 got a letter said Pastor Rick, I regret that I 92 00:05:44.160 --> 00:05:48.120 didn't open my life to Jesus until very late in 93 00:05:48.160 --> 00:05:51.839 my adult life. I regret that so much, that I 94 00:05:51.920 --> 00:05:54.959 wasted so many years going in the wrong direction. I 95 00:05:55.000 --> 00:05:58.079 feel like I will never catch up. Well, you're wrong. 96 00:05:58.959 --> 00:06:01.199 You are never too old. 97 00:06:01.120 --> 00:06:02.560 To learn to be wise. 98 00:06:03.600 --> 00:06:08.079 If you're alive, if your heart's beating, if blood is 99 00:06:08.120 --> 00:06:11.240 pumping through your veins, then you can learn to be wise. 100 00:06:11.519 --> 00:06:14.879 You're also never too young to learn to be wise. 101 00:06:15.600 --> 00:06:21.959 Wisdom has absolutely nothing to do with your age. You 102 00:06:22.000 --> 00:06:26.439 can be old and a fool, you can be young 103 00:06:26.879 --> 00:06:30.680 and wise. Would you agree with me, It's possible to 104 00:06:30.720 --> 00:06:34.759 grow older without growing up. Everybody agree with that. Don't 105 00:06:34.759 --> 00:06:41.839 look at them. You can grow older without growing up. 106 00:06:42.079 --> 00:06:44.439 A lot of people grow old wisdom. You can be 107 00:06:44.600 --> 00:06:48.480 old and still be a spiritual baby. You're still walking 108 00:06:48.519 --> 00:06:51.360 around in spiritual diapers at ninety five years of age. 109 00:06:52.160 --> 00:06:54.920 Or you can be a young person and you can 110 00:06:54.959 --> 00:06:57.519 be full of a lot of wisdom because you're doing 111 00:06:57.560 --> 00:07:01.600 the things that make you wise. How do I learn 112 00:07:01.959 --> 00:07:02.759 to be wise? 113 00:07:03.439 --> 00:07:03.600 Well? 114 00:07:03.639 --> 00:07:05.639 The Bible says in the Book of Proverbs, you do 115 00:07:06.160 --> 00:07:10.079 five things, and just for fun, I decided to put 116 00:07:10.079 --> 00:07:15.160 these five things in acrosstic l EA r N. These 117 00:07:15.199 --> 00:07:18.439 are the five things you must learn to do in 118 00:07:18.639 --> 00:07:20.160 order to learn wisdom. 119 00:07:20.240 --> 00:07:22.839 Let's look at them. Number one, the first. 120 00:07:22.519 --> 00:07:24.680 Thing if I want to be wise is I must 121 00:07:24.720 --> 00:07:29.519 the l and learn stands for I must listen to 122 00:07:29.639 --> 00:07:30.279 God's word. 123 00:07:30.360 --> 00:07:32.639 Every day. 124 00:07:34.319 --> 00:07:37.480 You're listening to Pastor Rick's Daily Hope. Rick will be 125 00:07:37.560 --> 00:07:40.399 back in just a moment with the rest of today's lesson. 126 00:07:40.839 --> 00:07:43.560 If you've missed any part of today's teaching, you can 127 00:07:43.600 --> 00:07:50.040 listen online anytime at pastorick dot com. That's pastorick dot com. 128 00:07:50.079 --> 00:07:52.079 If you want to make your time in prayer the 129 00:07:52.120 --> 00:07:54.439 best it can be, then you're going to want to 130 00:07:54.480 --> 00:07:57.199 get a copy of the brand new twenty twenty one 131 00:07:57.480 --> 00:08:01.720 Daily Hope Prayer Journal. This year's theme, God's Great Adventure 132 00:08:01.759 --> 00:08:04.560 for You, will help you tap into God's power and 133 00:08:04.639 --> 00:08:08.560 presence when you learn how to pray with passion and purpose. 134 00:08:09.040 --> 00:08:13.040 Covered in soft vegan leather with full color pages, this 135 00:08:13.120 --> 00:08:17.439 prayer journal has sections to pray for specific people, and situations, 136 00:08:17.639 --> 00:08:20.959 as well as space to express your gratitude and personal 137 00:08:21.000 --> 00:08:25.240 prayer requests to God. Each page is beautifully designed and 138 00:08:25.319 --> 00:08:30.199 filled with inspiring Bible verses, photos, and artwork. The God's 139 00:08:30.319 --> 00:08:33.480 Great Adventure for You Prayer Journal is a spiritual growth 140 00:08:33.519 --> 00:08:37.000 tool designed to help you enjoy a vibrant prayer life, 141 00:08:37.200 --> 00:08:42.080 connect with God, and establish consistent daily prayer time. When 142 00:08:42.120 --> 00:08:44.480 you give a gift to help daily Hope take the 143 00:08:44.600 --> 00:08:48.320 certain Hope of Jesus to people around the world, we'll 144 00:08:48.320 --> 00:08:51.679 send you the all new twenty twenty one Daily Hope 145 00:08:51.679 --> 00:08:55.840 Prayer Journal to say thanks. Quantities are limited, so don't wait. 146 00:08:56.480 --> 00:08:59.200 You can give right now by going to Pastorick dot 147 00:08:59.200 --> 00:09:02.639 com or by calling eight hundred six hundred five zero 148 00:09:02.840 --> 00:09:06.000 zero four. We'll say thanks by sending you the brand 149 00:09:06.000 --> 00:09:09.720 new Daily Hope Prayer Journal. That's Pastorick dot com or 150 00:09:09.919 --> 00:09:12.960 call eight hundred six hundred five zero zero four. 151 00:09:13.159 --> 00:09:17.279 You're listening to Pastor Rick's Daily Hope once again. Here's 152 00:09:17.320 --> 00:09:18.519 Pastor Rick Warren. 153 00:09:21.200 --> 00:09:23.279 The first thing if I want to be wise is 154 00:09:23.360 --> 00:09:26.159 I must the l and learn stands for I must 155 00:09:26.679 --> 00:09:33.240 listen to God's word every day. I must listen to 156 00:09:33.399 --> 00:09:36.039 God's word every day. Now I just listen to the radio, 157 00:09:36.399 --> 00:09:39.159 I just listen to television. None just listen and read 158 00:09:39.159 --> 00:09:41.480 what's on the internet. I got to listen to God's 159 00:09:41.480 --> 00:09:45.440 word every day because that's where the wisdom comes from. 160 00:09:45.639 --> 00:09:48.919 Proverbs chapter one, verse seven says, this start with God. 161 00:09:50.360 --> 00:09:54.879 The first step, start with God. The first step in 162 00:09:55.039 --> 00:09:59.120 learning is bowing down to God. The Bible says, the 163 00:09:59.120 --> 00:10:02.799 fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom. Why 164 00:10:02.879 --> 00:10:05.759 because it comes from God. Let me show you the 165 00:10:05.759 --> 00:10:09.879 next verse Proverbs two, verse six. It is the Lord 166 00:10:10.120 --> 00:10:15.080 who gives wisdom. From him comes knowledge and direction. You 167 00:10:15.120 --> 00:10:17.399 don't get it from television. You don't get it from 168 00:10:17.440 --> 00:10:20.559 the internet. You don't get it from magazines. Wisdom comes 169 00:10:20.600 --> 00:10:24.320 from God. Question, how many of you believe everything you 170 00:10:24.399 --> 00:10:28.039 read in the newspaper? Of course, none of us do. 171 00:10:28.519 --> 00:10:31.279 How many of you believe everything you hear on the 172 00:10:31.360 --> 00:10:35.679 radio or watch on television? No, how many of you 173 00:10:35.720 --> 00:10:40.919 believe everything you read on the internet. You know, how 174 00:10:40.960 --> 00:10:44.159 many of you believe everything God says is true in 175 00:10:44.240 --> 00:10:44.759 his word? 176 00:10:46.240 --> 00:10:46.559 Question? 177 00:10:46.960 --> 00:10:49.519 Why do we spend more time reading and listening to 178 00:10:49.559 --> 00:10:53.480 what we don't believe and what we do? Tell me 179 00:10:53.519 --> 00:10:56.200 the logic of Alan. Okay, there are a lot of 180 00:10:56.200 --> 00:10:58.720 things in life you can read about. They don't build 181 00:10:58.720 --> 00:11:02.679 your wisdom, They just keep you pretty much about the same. 182 00:11:03.399 --> 00:11:05.480 You gotta start with the Word. 183 00:11:05.919 --> 00:11:06.039 Now. 184 00:11:06.080 --> 00:11:11.840 The Bible says this Proverbs fifteen, verse fourteen, A wise 185 00:11:11.879 --> 00:11:19.000 person is hungry, hungry for truth, while the fool feeds 186 00:11:19.120 --> 00:11:22.200 on trash. You gotta print that verse out and tape 187 00:11:22.240 --> 00:11:27.639 it to your television. You're gonna either feed on truth 188 00:11:27.919 --> 00:11:31.159 or you're gonna feed on trash. And whatever you fill 189 00:11:31.200 --> 00:11:33.559 your mind with is what's gonna come out, garbage in, 190 00:11:34.000 --> 00:11:37.519 garbage out. If you want to be wise, you gotta 191 00:11:37.559 --> 00:11:43.440 feed on truth every day, not feed on trash every day. Now, 192 00:11:43.519 --> 00:11:45.720 you remember a year ago when we did forty days 193 00:11:45.759 --> 00:11:48.000 in the Word, and I talked about there three kinds 194 00:11:48.000 --> 00:11:50.240 of things you can fill your mind with. You can 195 00:11:50.279 --> 00:11:53.159 fill your mind with poison. You can fill your mind 196 00:11:53.200 --> 00:11:55.759 with junk food, or you can fill your mind with 197 00:11:56.039 --> 00:11:56.679 health food. 198 00:11:57.039 --> 00:11:59.480 Three kinds of reading. Material or. 199 00:12:01.440 --> 00:12:05.320 Poison is stuff that poisons your system. It's bad for you, 200 00:12:05.480 --> 00:12:10.759 it takes you down. Pornography is poison. You know, we 201 00:12:10.840 --> 00:12:14.919 worry about air pollution, You should worry more about your mind. 202 00:12:15.000 --> 00:12:15.399 Pollution. 203 00:12:16.679 --> 00:12:19.039 What you allow in your mind is far more important 204 00:12:19.039 --> 00:12:22.000 than what you breathe. Because if this is a computer 205 00:12:22.080 --> 00:12:24.840 that runs your life. We worry about making sure my 206 00:12:24.919 --> 00:12:33.639 water is pure. I gotta have pure water. You should 207 00:12:33.720 --> 00:12:36.519 worry more about the pure content that goes in your mind. 208 00:12:36.720 --> 00:12:39.679 Some people are so open minded their brains fall out. 209 00:12:42.960 --> 00:12:45.440 You know, they let anything. It's like a railroad going 210 00:12:45.440 --> 00:12:48.039 through my mind and they say, you know, you know, 211 00:12:48.159 --> 00:12:50.279 they say, well, I can, I can watch that stuff. 212 00:12:50.360 --> 00:12:54.679 It just doesn't bother me anymore. That's the problem. You 213 00:12:54.679 --> 00:12:58.960 have become so desensitized to evil. It doesn't bother you anymore. 214 00:13:00.399 --> 00:13:02.080 You can watch your rape on a movie. 215 00:13:02.159 --> 00:13:03.159 It doesn't bother you. 216 00:13:04.480 --> 00:13:07.639 If that doesn't bother you, you got a problem. You 217 00:13:07.679 --> 00:13:11.519 have become desensitized to evil. If you can watch your 218 00:13:11.600 --> 00:13:15.159 rape and it doesn't bother you, And when you can 219 00:13:15.200 --> 00:13:22.240 watch stuff that is vulgar, profane, blasphemous, evil, vile, abusive, 220 00:13:22.480 --> 00:13:24.519 and it doesn't bother you and you can read it, 221 00:13:24.679 --> 00:13:28.919 you have a problem. You have become a fool. Wise 222 00:13:29.000 --> 00:13:33.039 people protect their mind. They put on the helmet of salvation. 223 00:13:33.320 --> 00:13:37.360 They don't just let anything into their mind that's poison. 224 00:13:37.480 --> 00:13:41.080 You keep it out now. The next category of stuff 225 00:13:41.120 --> 00:13:43.480 you can put in your mind is junk food. Junk 226 00:13:43.559 --> 00:13:46.320 food is neither good nor bad. It's just junk. And 227 00:13:46.320 --> 00:13:48.720 there's nothing wrong with junk food except that it has 228 00:13:48.840 --> 00:13:52.639 no nutritional value to it. And most of the stuff 229 00:13:52.639 --> 00:13:55.480 you see on TV, it's not evil, it's not bad. 230 00:13:55.600 --> 00:13:59.320 It's just junk food. It's what I call stuffing. And 231 00:13:59.360 --> 00:14:02.960 the problem stuffing is when you stuff yourself with stuffing, 232 00:14:03.200 --> 00:14:07.200 you have no hunger for truth. When you feed on trash, 233 00:14:07.679 --> 00:14:10.399 you're not hungry for truth. If you go watch the 234 00:14:10.559 --> 00:14:12.919 television for four hours, you don't want to go read 235 00:14:12.919 --> 00:14:17.279 the Bible because you're full. Your mind is full, and 236 00:14:17.360 --> 00:14:21.799 you filled up on empty calories. Stuff that doesn't help 237 00:14:21.879 --> 00:14:25.279 your body, it doesn't help your mind. A lot of 238 00:14:25.320 --> 00:14:28.720 things aren't necessarily wrong to watch or read. They're just 239 00:14:29.120 --> 00:14:32.360 not necessary, and so you have to do. The wise 240 00:14:32.440 --> 00:14:35.480 person says, I'm not gonna stuff my mind with stuffing. 241 00:14:36.440 --> 00:14:38.320 It's either good nor bad, but it's just do I 242 00:14:38.360 --> 00:14:39.200 really need to know this? 243 00:14:39.320 --> 00:14:40.759 Not really. 244 00:14:40.840 --> 00:14:43.320 You've stuffed your mind with stuffing, you have no hunger 245 00:14:43.360 --> 00:14:47.399 for truth. The wise person feeds on truth. That's brain food, 246 00:14:47.720 --> 00:14:53.000 that's soul food that's nutritional food. It makes you wiser, 247 00:14:53.720 --> 00:14:57.240 wiser in your relationships, wiser in your time, wiser in 248 00:14:57.279 --> 00:15:01.840 your money, wiser in your business, why your parenting, wiser 249 00:15:02.000 --> 00:15:05.919 in your marriage, and all these other areas because you're 250 00:15:05.919 --> 00:15:10.399 feeding on truth. So number one, if I want to learn, 251 00:15:10.519 --> 00:15:13.759 I've got to every day spend time connecting. 252 00:15:13.240 --> 00:15:13.759 To the truth. 253 00:15:13.799 --> 00:15:16.559 I've got to listen to God every day. We're gonna 254 00:15:16.559 --> 00:15:19.159 do that and develop that habit. Number two the e 255 00:15:19.519 --> 00:15:22.279 and learn how you learn to be wise. The E 256 00:15:22.600 --> 00:15:28.159 is enlist a friend or enlist friends who challenge me. 257 00:15:28.799 --> 00:15:30.879 If you're going to be wise, you got to get 258 00:15:30.879 --> 00:15:35.480 some wise people in your life. It's like that old phrase, 259 00:15:35.679 --> 00:15:38.039 if you run on to fly so or with the eagles, 260 00:15:38.200 --> 00:15:41.639 you can't run with the turkeys. You got to put 261 00:15:41.639 --> 00:15:45.200 some smart, wise, godly people in your life. And if 262 00:15:45.240 --> 00:15:46.960 you don't have any of those people in your life, 263 00:15:47.039 --> 00:15:48.840 you need to enlist them. 264 00:15:49.399 --> 00:15:50.399 You need to get a few. 265 00:15:50.480 --> 00:15:52.360 You don't need a lot of friends in life, you guys, 266 00:15:52.639 --> 00:15:54.519 you don't really need to be popular. You just need 267 00:15:54.559 --> 00:15:57.960 a few good friends. Friends that build you up, not 268 00:15:58.120 --> 00:16:02.159 tear you down, friends that are eyes not fools. If 269 00:16:02.200 --> 00:16:04.200 you hang around with fools. That's what you become. 270 00:16:05.399 --> 00:16:05.679 Now. 271 00:16:05.840 --> 00:16:10.039 We always grow in community, We always grow in connection. 272 00:16:10.120 --> 00:16:12.240 That's why we talk about small groups all the time. 273 00:16:13.120 --> 00:16:17.159 You cannot grow to spiritual maturity by yourself. Sorry, you 274 00:16:17.279 --> 00:16:20.960 just can't do it. You could go become a hermit 275 00:16:21.200 --> 00:16:23.120 or a monk and move to the top of a 276 00:16:23.159 --> 00:16:26.240 mountain and spend your life in silence and reading books, 277 00:16:26.440 --> 00:16:29.080 and you would not grow in wisdom. You can grow 278 00:16:29.080 --> 00:16:33.320 in knowledge, but you won't grow in wisdom. Why because 279 00:16:33.360 --> 00:16:37.559 wisdom is all about relationships. The Bible says, wisdom is 280 00:16:37.600 --> 00:16:41.480 all about love. The Bible says God is love. Wisdom 281 00:16:41.519 --> 00:16:44.120 shows up primarily in relationships. That's why a lot of 282 00:16:44.120 --> 00:16:47.399 people have great educational degrees and their marriages are falling apart. 283 00:16:47.519 --> 00:16:50.120 They're educated, but they're not wise. You look at the 284 00:16:50.159 --> 00:16:52.799 relationships of a person to see if they're wise or not. 285 00:16:54.679 --> 00:16:57.200 Let me just pause there for a minute. You look 286 00:16:57.240 --> 00:16:59.960 at a person's relationships to see if they're wise or 287 00:17:00.080 --> 00:17:02.600 or not. It's all about love. So if you don't 288 00:17:02.600 --> 00:17:06.039 have any relationships, then you don't have any love. And 289 00:17:06.079 --> 00:17:08.000 if you don't have any love in your life, you 290 00:17:08.200 --> 00:17:16.079 are not wise. Wisdom is about love and relationships. The 291 00:17:16.240 --> 00:17:19.440 quality of the rest of your life will largely be 292 00:17:19.559 --> 00:17:23.720 determined by the people you choose to keep close to you. 293 00:17:25.519 --> 00:17:26.759 The quality of. 294 00:17:26.680 --> 00:17:28.880 Your life for the rest of your life will be 295 00:17:29.000 --> 00:17:33.200 largely determined by the friends that you choose, the kind 296 00:17:33.200 --> 00:17:35.519 of friends you choose, and how close you keep them 297 00:17:35.559 --> 00:17:38.720 to you. If you build wise friendships in your life, 298 00:17:38.759 --> 00:17:43.119 you're gonna get wiser. So I need to enlist friends 299 00:17:43.160 --> 00:17:45.640 who challenge me. You need a group in your life. 300 00:17:45.720 --> 00:17:47.400 Look at what the Bible says here on the screen 301 00:17:47.599 --> 00:17:55.000 one crindin fifteen. Bad company corrupts good character. We know that, 302 00:17:55.000 --> 00:17:58.519 then just happen with teenagers. Happens with all this peer pressure. 303 00:17:58.759 --> 00:18:01.640 Bad company croups good care character. You need friends who 304 00:18:01.720 --> 00:18:03.759 build you up, not tear you down. You know, if 305 00:18:03.799 --> 00:18:05.680 I come over here at the edge of the stage 306 00:18:05.839 --> 00:18:08.960 and I'm trying to pull you up, and you're trying 307 00:18:08.960 --> 00:18:11.000 to pull me down, which is it easier to do 308 00:18:12.200 --> 00:18:15.039 h It's obvious it's always easier for somebody to pull 309 00:18:15.079 --> 00:18:17.519 you down for them to pull you up. You need 310 00:18:17.599 --> 00:18:20.599 to not have friends in your life who pull you down. 311 00:18:20.839 --> 00:18:25.759 People who pull you down are not your friends. They're 312 00:18:25.799 --> 00:18:29.759 not They're not your friends. If they're pulling you down, 313 00:18:29.920 --> 00:18:33.440 they're not your friends. Friends pull you up. And so 314 00:18:33.559 --> 00:18:35.880 you need to get wise people you need to get 315 00:18:35.920 --> 00:18:38.960 You need a small group. That's what you need. The 316 00:18:39.000 --> 00:18:45.000 Bible says this Proverbs thirteen twenty. Spend time with the whys, 317 00:18:46.240 --> 00:18:50.400 and you will become wise. But spend time with friends 318 00:18:50.599 --> 00:18:54.519 of fools. Be friends of fools will suffer. Do you 319 00:18:54.599 --> 00:18:57.920 have anybody in your life who is giving input for 320 00:18:58.039 --> 00:19:01.160 good for God in your life on a regular basis. 321 00:19:01.319 --> 00:19:04.319 That's called a small group, and you need to Like, Hey, 322 00:19:04.319 --> 00:19:05.559 you meet with them once a week. You don't need 323 00:19:05.559 --> 00:19:07.279 to meet with them every day, but once a week 324 00:19:07.400 --> 00:19:09.920 you get a small group of friends and they're building 325 00:19:09.920 --> 00:19:12.319 you up there encouraging you to do the right thing, 326 00:19:12.680 --> 00:19:14.799 not the wrong thing. If you don't have that, you're 327 00:19:14.839 --> 00:19:19.759 going to give up. So what I want you to do? Then, 328 00:19:19.839 --> 00:19:22.559 during the next six weeks, everybody in our church, I 329 00:19:22.599 --> 00:19:26.640 want you to get in a group. Now, how big 330 00:19:26.799 --> 00:19:30.519 is a group? I'm not talking ten people, I'm not 331 00:19:30.559 --> 00:19:33.480 talking to eight people. Actually, in a small group, small 332 00:19:33.599 --> 00:19:37.400 was better. All you need is three. If you only 333 00:19:37.400 --> 00:19:41.559 have two, that's a duo. That's not a group. That's 334 00:19:41.599 --> 00:19:45.240 a date that's what that is. Okay, maybe you won't 335 00:19:45.279 --> 00:19:45.759 go on a date. 336 00:19:45.799 --> 00:19:46.359 That's fine too. 337 00:19:46.440 --> 00:19:48.039 Go ahead, go on a date, but that's not your 338 00:19:48.079 --> 00:19:52.519 small group. Okay, and be sure make sure you're having 339 00:19:52.599 --> 00:19:55.680 personal devotions on your date. Okay, I'm just kidding. Just 340 00:19:57.079 --> 00:19:59.160 how do I need a group? Jesus said it like this, 341 00:20:00.160 --> 00:20:02.799 where two or three are gathered in my name, there 342 00:20:02.839 --> 00:20:05.480 am I in the midst of them. Now there's a 343 00:20:05.480 --> 00:20:09.200 third key if you want to learn wisdom. First, every 344 00:20:09.279 --> 00:20:11.400 day I listen to God for a very short time. 345 00:20:11.440 --> 00:20:13.640 I just read the Bible or listen to the Bible. 346 00:20:14.079 --> 00:20:14.480 Connect. 347 00:20:14.480 --> 00:20:17.160 That's the l Then I enlist some friends and get 348 00:20:17.200 --> 00:20:20.079 some wise people around me in my life for input 349 00:20:20.119 --> 00:20:24.400 that encourage me keep me going. The A stands for 350 00:20:24.920 --> 00:20:28.599 ask questions and accept correction. 351 00:20:31.359 --> 00:20:34.839 This is Pastor Rick's Daily Hope. We're so happy that 352 00:20:34.880 --> 00:20:38.079 you've chosen to study along with us today. If you'd 353 00:20:38.119 --> 00:20:41.519 like to receive rix free daily devotional, just go to 354 00:20:41.599 --> 00:20:45.039 Pastororick dot com and sign up right now. Rick will 355 00:20:45.039 --> 00:20:47.519 be back in a moment to close out our time today. 356 00:20:47.720 --> 00:20:50.400 But first, if you want to make your time in 357 00:20:50.480 --> 00:20:53.039 prayer the best it can be, then you're going to 358 00:20:53.079 --> 00:20:55.480 want to get a copy of the brand new twenty 359 00:20:55.640 --> 00:20:59.839 twenty one Daily Hope Prayer Journal. This year's theme, God 360 00:21:00.200 --> 00:21:03.640 Great Adventure for you will help you tap into God's 361 00:21:03.720 --> 00:21:06.680 power and presence when you learn how to pray with 362 00:21:06.839 --> 00:21:10.759 passion and purpose. Here's Pastor Rick to tell you more. 363 00:21:11.279 --> 00:21:13.480 Do you ever feel like your prayers get stuck in 364 00:21:13.519 --> 00:21:16.279 a rut? Would you like to know what God told 365 00:21:16.319 --> 00:21:17.960 me to do when my prayer life got stuck in 366 00:21:18.000 --> 00:21:19.960 a rut. It was a time when I just felt 367 00:21:20.000 --> 00:21:22.119 like I was praying the same thing over and over 368 00:21:22.160 --> 00:21:24.200 and over. In fact, I was beginning to wonder if 369 00:21:24.200 --> 00:21:27.720 God was even answering my prayers or even listening. Maybe 370 00:21:27.759 --> 00:21:29.720 you felt that way sometimes, or maybe you feel that 371 00:21:29.759 --> 00:21:32.960 way right now. So what did God tell me to do? Well, 372 00:21:33.039 --> 00:21:35.599 here's what he told me. It was such a powerful 373 00:21:35.640 --> 00:21:38.160 way to re energize my prayer life, and it was 374 00:21:38.200 --> 00:21:40.440 so simple that I want to pass it on to you. 375 00:21:41.079 --> 00:21:44.240 God told me to do this, he said, Rick. Start 376 00:21:44.279 --> 00:21:47.720 writing down what you're saying to me, and then I 377 00:21:47.759 --> 00:21:49.960 want you to write down what I say to you. 378 00:21:50.640 --> 00:21:53.559 Write down what you say to me, and then write 379 00:21:53.599 --> 00:21:56.319 down what I say to you. You see, It's really 380 00:21:56.359 --> 00:21:59.920 not that complicated. God just said I should start by 381 00:22:00.000 --> 00:22:03.200 by writing down what I'm feeling, and then I should 382 00:22:03.200 --> 00:22:06.359 write down what He tells me after I've read his word. 383 00:22:07.200 --> 00:22:11.000 It's really just a form of journaling, and spiritual journaling 384 00:22:11.480 --> 00:22:14.920 is a spiritual habit that will help your prayers stay 385 00:22:14.960 --> 00:22:18.559 fresh and effective. If you've never tried it, I'm begging 386 00:22:18.599 --> 00:22:21.119 you try this for a week or two and see 387 00:22:21.119 --> 00:22:26.039 if it doesn't reinvigorate your prayer life. Journaling has many 388 00:22:26.160 --> 00:22:29.519 many benefits to your spiritual life. It'll help you stay 389 00:22:29.559 --> 00:22:33.799 consistent in your prayers. It'll give you a permanent reminder 390 00:22:34.000 --> 00:22:36.400 of how God answers your prayers. Because you we've written 391 00:22:36.440 --> 00:22:39.720 him down. It shows how God is working in your life. 392 00:22:39.759 --> 00:22:42.200 You can go back and review it. It'll even help 393 00:22:42.240 --> 00:22:45.400 you worship God more and more as you speak to him. 394 00:22:45.559 --> 00:22:48.240 God speaks to people who care enough to write it down. 395 00:22:49.480 --> 00:22:52.440 So write down what God tells you. But you've got 396 00:22:52.480 --> 00:22:54.519 to have a place to do that now. I want 397 00:22:54.519 --> 00:22:56.920 to encourage you, and I want to help you take 398 00:22:56.960 --> 00:23:01.519 this simple step of learning this new spiritual happy in 399 00:23:01.599 --> 00:23:04.960 your prayers, of writing down your prayers and writing down 400 00:23:05.039 --> 00:23:07.359 your prayer request So what I did is I had 401 00:23:07.359 --> 00:23:11.839