WEBVTT 1 00:00:01.760 --> 00:00:05.400 Now, let me just say this to you. You can 2 00:00:05.440 --> 00:00:08.919 be expected to be tested in your success. Whatever level 3 00:00:08.919 --> 00:00:11.320 of success you have in life, God will test you. 4 00:00:11.679 --> 00:00:14.919 If you pass the test, you get more. If you don't, 5 00:00:15.320 --> 00:00:18.760 you get less. Jesus said it. It's taught all the 6 00:00:18.760 --> 00:00:24.559 way through Scripture A. Proverbs fourteen twenty one. You want 7 00:00:24.600 --> 00:00:26.960 to be happy, well, the Bible says this. If you 8 00:00:27.000 --> 00:00:30.120 want to be happy, be kind to the poor. It 9 00:00:30.199 --> 00:00:33.840 is a sin to despise anyone. You're walking down the street, 10 00:00:33.840 --> 00:00:35.759 you see a homeless person. They're sitting there hoping for 11 00:00:35.960 --> 00:00:39.039 a buck or something, and you just ignore them. It's 12 00:00:39.039 --> 00:00:42.240 a sin to despise anybody. If you want to be happy, 13 00:00:42.240 --> 00:00:44.320 be kind the poor. Look at this next verse, Proverbs 14 00:00:44.320 --> 00:00:48.679 fourteen thirty one. Whoever mistreats the poor insults their maker. 15 00:00:48.920 --> 00:00:52.320 God considers it a personal affront when you diss a 16 00:00:52.320 --> 00:00:56.079 homeless person. Whoever mistreats the poor. Let me go back 17 00:00:56.119 --> 00:00:59.560 that one. Whoever mistreats the poor insults the maker. But 18 00:00:59.600 --> 00:01:03.359 whoever is kind to the needy honors God. That's how 19 00:01:03.359 --> 00:01:05.799 you honor God. God says, you honor me when you 20 00:01:05.840 --> 00:01:09.840 honor the people I made Proverbs twenty one thirteen those 21 00:01:09.879 --> 00:01:12.319 who shut their ears to the cries of the poor 22 00:01:12.799 --> 00:01:17.719 will be ignored in their own time of need. This 23 00:01:17.760 --> 00:01:20.239 is what happens in small groups. When you care for 24 00:01:20.319 --> 00:01:22.480 other people in your small group in their need, they'll 25 00:01:22.519 --> 00:01:25.120 be there for you in your need. You're going to 26 00:01:25.159 --> 00:01:27.760 reput yourself you don't ever help anybody. Are you doing 27 00:01:27.840 --> 00:01:32.120 anything totally unselfish to help other people who couldn't possibly 28 00:01:32.200 --> 00:01:35.560 help you back? God says, that's like bank and goodwill 29 00:01:36.159 --> 00:01:38.120 in the bank of heaven. Let me show you another one. 30 00:01:38.159 --> 00:01:40.319 You want to be a leader Proverbs twenty nine fourteen. 31 00:01:40.719 --> 00:01:44.519 Love this in the message fair phrase. Leadership gains authority 32 00:01:44.560 --> 00:01:49.959 and respect when the voiceless poor are treated fairly. You 33 00:01:50.000 --> 00:01:52.239 want to be a leader in the community, leader at work, 34 00:01:52.879 --> 00:01:56.519 leader on a sports team, leader at school. Leadership and 35 00:01:56.519 --> 00:02:01.480 authority and respect comes when the voiceless poor are treated fairly. 36 00:02:02.599 --> 00:02:05.000 You know, most of you know this story that when 37 00:02:05.000 --> 00:02:07.439 I wrote the book Purpose Driven Life, it became a 38 00:02:07.560 --> 00:02:11.599 huge global success, far more than I could have ever imagined. 39 00:02:11.639 --> 00:02:13.479 It was the best selling book in the world for 40 00:02:13.560 --> 00:02:16.039 many years, like four or five years. It was number 41 00:02:16.039 --> 00:02:18.280 one in the New York Times for over three years. 42 00:02:19.159 --> 00:02:21.759 It's the most translated book in the world except for 43 00:02:21.800 --> 00:02:24.719 the Bible. It's in one hundred and thirty seven languages. 44 00:02:25.680 --> 00:02:30.120 And when that book became the best selling nonfiction hardback 45 00:02:30.199 --> 00:02:34.680 in American history, it brought in tons and tons of 46 00:02:34.759 --> 00:02:39.159 money to me. And it also brought in tons of 47 00:02:39.240 --> 00:02:42.599 tons of influence. And all of a sudden, I'm getting 48 00:02:42.639 --> 00:02:45.639 calls from people like Bill Gates and Jack Welch and 49 00:02:45.680 --> 00:02:47.680 the President of the United States and the head of 50 00:02:47.680 --> 00:02:49.919 the UN. And I'm getting asked to speak at Davos 51 00:02:49.919 --> 00:02:53.000 World Economic Forum and Ted and the UN and Congress. 52 00:02:53.039 --> 00:02:56.039 And I didn't want it to be this famous person, 53 00:02:56.280 --> 00:03:04.840 but the book kind of ruined that, you know. And 54 00:03:04.840 --> 00:03:08.680 and you know, all of a sudden enormous amounts of money, 55 00:03:09.039 --> 00:03:12.479 tens of millions of dollars start coming in, and all 56 00:03:12.479 --> 00:03:17.599 of a sudden enormous amount of notoriety or fame. And 57 00:03:17.639 --> 00:03:19.159 I you know, when you write a book in the 58 00:03:19.159 --> 00:03:22.120 first sense of the book is it's not about you, 59 00:03:23.719 --> 00:03:27.800 then you know the money is not for you and 60 00:03:27.840 --> 00:03:30.479 the fame is not for you. So I'm gonna go, Okay, lord, 61 00:03:30.719 --> 00:03:32.360 what am I Obviously I know this money is not 62 00:03:32.400 --> 00:03:34.080 for me. What do you want to do with it. 63 00:03:34.919 --> 00:03:36.439 I'll just give it away, But how do you want 64 00:03:36.479 --> 00:03:39.759 it to be given away? And you know, I'm a 65 00:03:39.759 --> 00:03:41.680 pretty simple guy. If I got a pair of jeans 66 00:03:41.680 --> 00:03:44.240 and a good T shirt, I'm happy. You know, I 67 00:03:44.520 --> 00:03:47.960 don't need a lot of bling. And so I began 68 00:03:48.039 --> 00:03:51.080 to pray through scripture, and God gave me two passages 69 00:03:51.120 --> 00:03:53.240 of scripture, one from the New Testament and what to 70 00:03:53.240 --> 00:03:55.120 do with the money, and one from the Old Testament 71 00:03:55.159 --> 00:03:58.000 on what to do with the The Fame of the 72 00:03:58.000 --> 00:04:02.560 Notoriety in First Corinthia. Paul says this, those who teach 73 00:04:02.639 --> 00:04:05.360 the Gospel should make a living by the Gospel. In 74 00:04:05.400 --> 00:04:07.800 other words, it's okay to pay your pastor, it's okay 75 00:04:07.800 --> 00:04:10.639 to pay a missionary, a priest, it's skate to pay 76 00:04:10.680 --> 00:04:14.039 people who serve God full time. That's fine, but Paul says, 77 00:04:14.120 --> 00:04:16.800 but I will not accept that right. I have the 78 00:04:16.879 --> 00:04:19.240 right to be paid for what I do. I will 79 00:04:19.240 --> 00:04:21.319 not accept that right because I want to serve the 80 00:04:21.360 --> 00:04:24.360 Gospel for free. So I'm a slave to no man. 81 00:04:25.680 --> 00:04:27.519 And when I read that, I thought, that's what I 82 00:04:27.560 --> 00:04:30.600 want to do. And so kay and I made five decisions, 83 00:04:30.639 --> 00:04:32.480 and what to do with the money. All of a sudden, 84 00:04:32.680 --> 00:04:35.600 unexpected success. What are we going to do with the success, 85 00:04:36.199 --> 00:04:38.839 money and fame. What are we going to do with it? Well, 86 00:04:38.839 --> 00:04:41.319 we're going to use it to serve the poor. We're 87 00:04:41.319 --> 00:04:43.959 going to use it to help other people. And so 88 00:04:44.000 --> 00:04:46.319 we made five decisions. First, we said, we're not going 89 00:04:46.399 --> 00:04:49.680 to spend the money on us. I still live in 90 00:04:49.720 --> 00:04:52.279 the same house I've lived in twenty five years. I 91 00:04:52.360 --> 00:04:55.959 drive a sixteen year old Ford truck. I bought my 92 00:04:56.040 --> 00:04:58.279 watch at Walmart. Actually this one was given to me. 93 00:04:59.079 --> 00:05:03.800 It keeps the same time. Is your rolex doesn't go 94 00:05:03.839 --> 00:05:07.680 any faster or any slower? Okay, you know I paid 95 00:05:07.680 --> 00:05:10.959 fifteen bucks for it. Okay, I don't need a whole 96 00:05:11.040 --> 00:05:14.399 lot of things because I don't need things to prove 97 00:05:14.480 --> 00:05:16.720 my worth. So I said, I'm not We're not going 98 00:05:16.759 --> 00:05:20.160 to change our lifestyle one bit. Second, I stopped taking 99 00:05:20.199 --> 00:05:23.759 a salary from the church in two thousand and two. Third, 100 00:05:24.040 --> 00:05:25.879 I added up all the church had paid me in 101 00:05:25.920 --> 00:05:27.600 the previous twenty two years. Many of you know this, 102 00:05:27.680 --> 00:05:30.879 and I gave it all back. So I've now served 103 00:05:30.920 --> 00:05:36.639 this church free for thirty six years. I'm a volunteer pastor. Okay, 104 00:05:37.000 --> 00:05:42.199 so no nobody pays me to do this, okay, So 105 00:05:42.319 --> 00:05:45.800 those of you who volunteer in this church will welcome 106 00:05:45.839 --> 00:05:49.720 to the club. I'm a volunteer pastor, okay. In fact, 107 00:05:49.759 --> 00:05:53.040 I'm a full time volunteer, and when some of you retire, 108 00:05:53.079 --> 00:05:57.000 I expect you to volunteer full time. Okay, because I'm 109 00:05:57.000 --> 00:05:59.079 a volunteer pastor. You know, this is the difference between 110 00:05:59.120 --> 00:06:03.079 professional and amateur. A professional is paid to do good. 111 00:06:03.480 --> 00:06:08.120 Those of us are amateurs, were good for nothing. Actually, 112 00:06:08.199 --> 00:06:11.079 the word amateur comes from the word amore. You know 113 00:06:11.120 --> 00:06:14.160 what that is the word love. And an amateur does 114 00:06:14.199 --> 00:06:16.319 it out of love. The professional does it to be 115 00:06:16.319 --> 00:06:18.959 paid for it. I am not a professional pastor. I'm 116 00:06:18.959 --> 00:06:21.519 an amateur pastor. I do it because I love you 117 00:06:21.800 --> 00:06:24.920 and because I love Jesus. Nobody pays me to do this. 118 00:06:26.160 --> 00:06:28.639 And then we set up a foundation called Acts of 119 00:06:28.680 --> 00:06:31.600 Mercy to help the vulnerable and the poor and people 120 00:06:31.639 --> 00:06:35.480 with aids and children and widows and orphans and all 121 00:06:35.560 --> 00:06:37.959 kinds of things like that. And then the last thing, 122 00:06:38.000 --> 00:06:40.439 most of you know, okay, and I became reversed tithers. 123 00:06:40.879 --> 00:06:42.879 Now we'd been raising our tithe every year. We got 124 00:06:42.879 --> 00:06:46.480 married forty one years ago, when we got married, we 125 00:06:46.480 --> 00:06:48.319 gave ten percent to the Lord. The next year we 126 00:06:48.360 --> 00:06:50.879 gave eleven, next year we gave twelve. A third year 127 00:06:50.879 --> 00:06:53.480 of marriage, we raised at three percent, And every year 128 00:06:53.519 --> 00:06:56.519 we raised our tithe giving to away because I just 129 00:06:56.560 --> 00:06:59.399 wanted my heart to grow bigger. Every year, every time 130 00:06:59.439 --> 00:07:03.000 I give, it breaks the grip of materialism in my life. 131 00:07:03.079 --> 00:07:05.279 Every time I give, my heart grows bigger. Every time 132 00:07:05.279 --> 00:07:07.879 I give, I become more like Jesus. I want to 133 00:07:07.920 --> 00:07:11.240 be like Jesus. And so on years it was very 134 00:07:11.279 --> 00:07:13.680 tight financially and the cupboards were bare, we would still 135 00:07:13.759 --> 00:07:16.639 raise our giving like a quarter of a percent, And 136 00:07:16.680 --> 00:07:18.920 on years I'd get a raise, or we'd have a 137 00:07:18.959 --> 00:07:21.399 windfall or something, and we'd raise it four or five percent. 138 00:07:22.160 --> 00:07:24.160 Most of you know that today, can I give away 139 00:07:24.279 --> 00:07:27.560 ninety one percent and live on nine? I've played this 140 00:07:27.639 --> 00:07:30.759 game with God for now, you know, forty one years. 141 00:07:30.920 --> 00:07:32.480 God says, you give to me, and I'll give to you, 142 00:07:32.519 --> 00:07:37.079 and we'll see who wins. And I've lost that for 143 00:07:37.079 --> 00:07:40.519 forty one years. I dare you to try that one. 144 00:07:40.639 --> 00:07:42.360 That was actually the easy part. What do you do 145 00:07:42.399 --> 00:07:44.800 with all that money? Just give it away and it's 146 00:07:44.839 --> 00:07:47.439 been so much fun just giving it away, so we did. 147 00:07:47.480 --> 00:07:50.920 We just gave it all away. The second thing, though, 148 00:07:51.040 --> 00:07:52.839 was what do you do with the fame, the attention. 149 00:07:53.000 --> 00:07:54.399 This is the thing that you get when you the 150 00:07:54.439 --> 00:07:58.040 more successful you become. And I was reading for that 151 00:07:58.079 --> 00:08:01.279 and I came up on Psalm seventy two. Psalm seventy 152 00:08:01.279 --> 00:08:04.079 two is a prayer by Solomon, the son of David, 153 00:08:04.639 --> 00:08:07.079 who was the king of Israel at that time. He's 154 00:08:07.160 --> 00:08:09.600 the most powerful man in the world in Israel, he 155 00:08:09.680 --> 00:08:14.160 is the king of the United Kingdom. It's apex of power. 156 00:08:14.279 --> 00:08:15.920 He's the wisest man in the world, and he's the 157 00:08:15.920 --> 00:08:18.759 wealthiest man in the world. And in Psalm seventy two, 158 00:08:19.160 --> 00:08:24.040 it's his prayer for more influence. When you read this prayer, 159 00:08:24.120 --> 00:08:28.480 it sounds so self centered because in this prayer Psalm 160 00:08:28.480 --> 00:08:31.959 seventy two, Solomon says this, God, I want you to 161 00:08:31.959 --> 00:08:35.440 make me more successful than I already am. I want 162 00:08:35.480 --> 00:08:38.679 you to make me famous. I want you to spread 163 00:08:38.679 --> 00:08:41.639 the fame of my name to every nation. I want 164 00:08:41.679 --> 00:08:44.279 everybody to know who I am. I want you to 165 00:08:44.279 --> 00:08:49.360 give me more influence, more power, more visibility. It sounds 166 00:08:49.399 --> 00:08:52.960 totally self centered. Until you read the motivation. And then 167 00:08:53.000 --> 00:08:56.639 he says, so that here's the motivation, So that the 168 00:08:56.759 --> 00:09:01.240 king may support the widow and orphan, The king may 169 00:09:02.360 --> 00:09:07.240 release the oppressed, the king may help the poor. That 170 00:09:07.320 --> 00:09:10.360 the King may care for the sick. That the King 171 00:09:10.480 --> 00:09:14.200 may you know, help those who are in prison and oppressed. 172 00:09:14.679 --> 00:09:18.600 That the King may be the defender of the immigrant 173 00:09:20.360 --> 00:09:24.679 and the foreigner. Today he's mentioning all the people have 174 00:09:24.799 --> 00:09:27.919 marginalized in society, and he's saying, you know, today he say, 175 00:09:28.159 --> 00:09:32.919 so that I can help the mentally ill and the handicapped, 176 00:09:33.200 --> 00:09:35.600 and the aged, and the elderly, and all the people 177 00:09:35.600 --> 00:09:37.720 that we want to push off to the side of society. 178 00:09:38.519 --> 00:09:40.960 And in that passage, I remember tears were coming down 179 00:09:40.960 --> 00:09:43.399 my face as I read that passage, God said to me, 180 00:09:43.480 --> 00:09:45.759 the purpose of influence is to speak up for those 181 00:09:45.840 --> 00:09:47.120 who have no influence. 182 00:09:57.600 --> 00:09:59.919 If you want to live a life full of purpose 183 00:10:00.159 --> 00:10:03.720 and joy, then you need to transform the way you think. 184 00:10:04.000 --> 00:10:06.879 And to help you do this, Pastor It created a 185 00:10:06.919 --> 00:10:10.320 brand new set of scripture cards with fifty two hand 186 00:10:10.360 --> 00:10:15.840 selected verses from his series Rethinking Your Life. These verses 187 00:10:15.879 --> 00:10:19.240 will guide you into a deeper understanding of your purpose 188 00:10:19.320 --> 00:10:22.679 and faith, and you'll find yourself gaining the strength to 189 00:10:22.799 --> 00:10:27.840 overcome temptation and conquer discouragement. When you allow God's word 190 00:10:27.960 --> 00:10:31.600 to transform your mind, you'll see your life through his eyes, 191 00:10:31.879 --> 00:10:35.679 apply his wisdom, and step into a life of purpose 192 00:10:35.759 --> 00:10:39.559 and joy. This set of beautifully designed cards will help 193 00:10:39.600 --> 00:10:43.080 you memorize scripture so you can recall God's word when 194 00:10:43.080 --> 00:10:46.519 you need it the most. And today, when you give 195 00:10:46.559 --> 00:10:49.159 a gift to help daily hope, take the hope of 196 00:10:49.279 --> 00:10:52.360 Jesus to a world in need, will send you the 197 00:10:52.480 --> 00:10:56.480 rethinking your life scripture card set to say thanks. 198 00:11:05.519 --> 00:11:08.120 God did not give you success, so you can be 199 00:11:08.120 --> 00:11:11.360 a fat cat and prideful and buy an island and 200 00:11:11.679 --> 00:11:16.799 you know, have drinks with little umbrellas in them. God 201 00:11:16.840 --> 00:11:20.200 gives you success not for your benefit, but for the 202 00:11:20.200 --> 00:11:23.720 benefit of others. And when you understand that, God will 203 00:11:23.759 --> 00:11:28.360 give you more. And if you're faithful and little, then 204 00:11:28.440 --> 00:11:31.600 you'll be faithful and much. I know some people hear 205 00:11:31.639 --> 00:11:33.879 that story and say, well, yeah, Rick, if God gave 206 00:11:33.919 --> 00:11:36.039 me millions of dollars, I'd give millions away too. No, 207 00:11:36.080 --> 00:11:39.480 you wouldn't, because you're not doing it now. I had 208 00:11:39.519 --> 00:11:42.000 a track record of being generous when I didn't have 209 00:11:42.080 --> 00:11:46.320 the money. I had a thirty six year track record 210 00:11:46.399 --> 00:11:51.200 on that. And the fact is, you know why God 211 00:11:51.240 --> 00:11:53.600 made that let me be the author of the best 212 00:11:53.600 --> 00:11:56.399 selling book in American history. He knew what I'd do 213 00:11:56.440 --> 00:12:00.720 with the money. He knew he could tryrust me with 214 00:12:00.799 --> 00:12:03.519 the money, that it wasn't going to use it on me, 215 00:12:04.960 --> 00:12:07.399 and that the first sentence would be, it's not about you. 216 00:12:08.039 --> 00:12:09.799 One of the verses that God showed me when I 217 00:12:09.879 --> 00:12:11.720 was having to go, because it scared me to death. 218 00:12:11.799 --> 00:12:14.440 I said, I know what success does to people. A 219 00:12:14.480 --> 00:12:17.240 lot of money, a lot of fame can ruin you 220 00:12:17.399 --> 00:12:20.120 very quickly. And one of the verses God gave me 221 00:12:20.159 --> 00:12:22.159 this verse on the screen Proverbs thirty one to eight 222 00:12:22.159 --> 00:12:25.960 and nine. Speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves. 223 00:12:27.360 --> 00:12:31.120 Insure justice for those who are perishing. By the way, 224 00:12:31.200 --> 00:12:35.600 that would include the unborn, because they can't speak for themselves, 225 00:12:35.600 --> 00:12:39.080 and they are certainly perishing. Speak up for those who 226 00:12:39.120 --> 00:12:42.960 can't speak for themselves. Insure justice for those who are perishing. Yes, 227 00:12:43.000 --> 00:12:45.679 speak up for the poor and the helpless, and see 228 00:12:45.720 --> 00:12:50.399 that they get justice. So we are to repent. Change 229 00:12:50.399 --> 00:12:54.320 your attitude, and we are to serve the poor. This 230 00:12:54.360 --> 00:12:56.919 is the warning that God gives to nebucan Ezer. He 231 00:12:57.039 --> 00:13:00.639 totally ignores it. And so the third thing that happens 232 00:13:00.720 --> 00:13:03.480 right down, the third problem is we put off doing 233 00:13:03.519 --> 00:13:06.720 what we know is right. And this is the third 234 00:13:06.759 --> 00:13:09.519 reason that Nebeknezer fell, and it's going to be the 235 00:13:09.559 --> 00:13:14.440 third reason that you might fall in your success if 236 00:13:14.480 --> 00:13:18.000 you don't hear the warning. We put off doing what 237 00:13:18.039 --> 00:13:24.600 we know is right. We procrastinate, we postpone, we delay, 238 00:13:24.759 --> 00:13:29.320 we defer, we dawdle. Daniel four verse twenty eight says 239 00:13:29.360 --> 00:13:34.600 this after he had had this dream interpreted twelve months later. 240 00:13:34.679 --> 00:13:38.000 Oh wait a minute, twelve months later, what's he been 241 00:13:38.000 --> 00:13:40.840 doing for the last year? God says, you're gonna lose 242 00:13:40.879 --> 00:13:43.200 your kingdom and you're gonna lose your mind if you 243 00:13:43.240 --> 00:13:46.759 don't change. Let me ask you that personally, if God 244 00:13:46.799 --> 00:13:53.120 warned you, The truth is he has warned you. It's 245 00:13:53.200 --> 00:13:55.639 right here in this book, and he says, if you'll 246 00:13:55.679 --> 00:13:57.799 do these things, I'm gonna bless you and you're going 247 00:13:57.879 --> 00:14:00.600 to succeed in life. If you don't do that these things, 248 00:14:00.720 --> 00:14:03.559 you're gonna fail. You're gonna hit the wall. You're gonna 249 00:14:03.559 --> 00:14:06.840 have dead ends, delays, difficulties, and things are not gonna 250 00:14:06.879 --> 00:14:09.440 go the way you wanted to go. There's a way 251 00:14:09.480 --> 00:14:11.360 that seems right into a man, but the ends thereof 252 00:14:11.360 --> 00:14:15.000 are the ways of death. So we put off doing 253 00:14:15.039 --> 00:14:16.960 what we know is right. He knew what to do, 254 00:14:18.039 --> 00:14:21.639 and it says here, twelve months later, because he hadn't 255 00:14:21.639 --> 00:14:26.639 done anything, all of what nebukin Ezra dreamed did actually 256 00:14:26.799 --> 00:14:30.840 happen to him. He lost it all. He's taking a 257 00:14:30.840 --> 00:14:33.519 walk on a flat roof of his royal palace in Babylon, 258 00:14:34.279 --> 00:14:37.720 and as he took looked out across the city and 259 00:14:37.759 --> 00:14:41.200 I'm sure it was quite magnificent the skyline, he boasted 260 00:14:41.279 --> 00:14:45.399 to himself. He's talking. I'm sure he's going. Man Neby, 261 00:14:45.559 --> 00:14:50.200 you know, he calls himself Nebby, Nebbe. You are the man, 262 00:14:51.600 --> 00:14:56.000 You're the dude. You're number one. You You, I mean, 263 00:14:56.039 --> 00:14:59.559 everybody wants to be you. You know, gotta be a 264 00:14:59.600 --> 00:15:01.120 good look. And he's so hard to see he is 265 00:15:01.159 --> 00:15:04.240 that you are the man. And as the words were 266 00:15:04.279 --> 00:15:08.519 still on his lips, a voice came from heaven. This 267 00:15:08.559 --> 00:15:11.120 is what God declares to you, decrees to you, Kingdom, 268 00:15:11.759 --> 00:15:15.000 your powers being taken away. You're no longer the ruler 269 00:15:15.000 --> 00:15:17.840 of this kingdom. You're going to be deposed from the palace, 270 00:15:18.279 --> 00:15:21.919 ostracized by everyone, forced to live with the wild animals. 271 00:15:22.240 --> 00:15:26.840 And immediately it all happened. He lost his kingdom and 272 00:15:26.879 --> 00:15:31.200 he lost his mind. He literally went insane. History confirms 273 00:15:31.240 --> 00:15:33.320 us that there was a period of time. Now we 274 00:15:33.320 --> 00:15:37.200 don't actually know how long he was in this loss 275 00:15:37.240 --> 00:15:39.600 where he lost his mind, lost his kingdom, because the 276 00:15:39.600 --> 00:15:42.080 Bible says you're going to lose it for seven periods, 277 00:15:42.440 --> 00:15:45.600 and some scholars think that means seven seasons, which would 278 00:15:45.600 --> 00:15:47.559 have been a little bit less than two years, and 279 00:15:47.600 --> 00:15:50.559 some people think it means seven years, which would have 280 00:15:50.600 --> 00:15:52.399 been a long time. But it wasn't like a month 281 00:15:52.480 --> 00:16:01.080 or two. He has a major CEO burnout, and it's 282 00:16:01.320 --> 00:16:04.559 public and it's embarrassing, and the guy who is the 283 00:16:04.559 --> 00:16:06.639 most powerful man in the world is now drooling on 284 00:16:06.720 --> 00:16:09.120 himself and acting like an animal in the desert and 285 00:16:09.159 --> 00:16:14.440 can't even make sense. That's humbly, that's humiliating. He's out 286 00:16:14.480 --> 00:16:16.960 of touch with reality, becomes a fool, he's unreasonably he 287 00:16:17.000 --> 00:16:20.919 acts like an animal. By the way, you haven't ever 288 00:16:20.919 --> 00:16:24.159 seen it like this. But have you ever seen a 289 00:16:24.240 --> 00:16:26.799 friend who all of a sudden decides to not do 290 00:16:26.879 --> 00:16:30.039 what God wants him to do and they walk off 291 00:16:30.080 --> 00:16:34.320 a cliff and do something self destructive And you're going, 292 00:16:34.480 --> 00:16:37.799 what in the world have you lost your mind? 293 00:16:38.600 --> 00:16:38.639 You? 294 00:16:38.840 --> 00:16:41.840 Wait a minute, tell me you're gonna leave your wife 295 00:16:41.840 --> 00:16:46.440 and kids for her? Or have you lost your mind? 296 00:16:48.320 --> 00:16:52.679 Wait a minute, you're gonna leave your husband and you're 297 00:16:52.720 --> 00:16:54.840 gonna break up your marriage for that guy? Have you 298 00:16:54.919 --> 00:17:00.240 lost your mind? People do this all the time, self 299 00:17:00.320 --> 00:17:04.920 destructive behavior because they're running from God. And so his 300 00:17:05.039 --> 00:17:08.480 life just collapses in a very public and humiliating way, 301 00:17:08.759 --> 00:17:11.000 and we see it all the time. In fact, the 302 00:17:11.079 --> 00:17:15.519 news love to cover this kind of stuff. But God 303 00:17:15.559 --> 00:17:20.839 has mercy on Nebucanezer. And after this period of humiliation, 304 00:17:20.920 --> 00:17:22.759 whether it's two and a half years or a couple 305 00:17:22.839 --> 00:17:26.839 years or seven years, we don't know, he restored his mind. 306 00:17:27.279 --> 00:17:29.720 And I want you to see now the steps that 307 00:17:29.799 --> 00:17:34.519 Nehemiah took back to sanity. This is the road to recovery. 308 00:17:34.599 --> 00:17:37.680 And he did three things. When you have a major 309 00:17:37.720 --> 00:17:41.480 failure in your life, you need to do these exact 310 00:17:41.559 --> 00:17:44.599 three things. He looked up, he woke up, and he 311 00:17:44.680 --> 00:17:46.920 spoke up. Let's look at the first number one. Write 312 00:17:46.960 --> 00:17:50.359 this down. Three steps to recovery after failure. First, look 313 00:17:50.440 --> 00:17:55.319 up to God. Look up to God. And the Bible 314 00:17:55.359 --> 00:17:59.079 says in Daniel four, verse thirty four, at this time, 315 00:17:59.200 --> 00:18:01.599 after this time past, you know when he had lost 316 00:18:01.640 --> 00:18:06.480 his mind, I Nebuicanzer. He's given the testimony. This chapter 317 00:18:06.559 --> 00:18:11.839 is his testimony. I nebuican Azer looked up to heaven 318 00:18:12.160 --> 00:18:16.799 and my sanity returned. Literally, it says in the Hebrews, 319 00:18:16.880 --> 00:18:19.759 he lifted up his eyes to heaven. Do you need 320 00:18:19.799 --> 00:18:23.119 to do that today? Some of you've never taken this 321 00:18:23.200 --> 00:18:26.200 first step. You're in a heap of trouble right now. 322 00:18:26.240 --> 00:18:29.599 You're in a mess. You're in a mess in your life. 323 00:18:29.799 --> 00:18:32.440 It's going the wrong way. But you're looking at everything 324 00:18:32.440 --> 00:18:35.440 else and everybody else to solve it. You're look into 325 00:18:35.440 --> 00:18:37.519 other people. You're looking to the government, or you're looking 326 00:18:37.559 --> 00:18:40.400 to yourself. You expect your husband or your wife to 327 00:18:40.440 --> 00:18:42.720 solve it. Whatever. You're in a mess, you need to 328 00:18:42.799 --> 00:18:46.640 look up to God. You need to get your eyes 329 00:18:46.759 --> 00:18:51.000 on Heaven. Refocus on God, not be looking at anything 330 00:18:51.000 --> 00:18:53.359 and everybody else. Now, by the way, sometimes God has 331 00:18:53.400 --> 00:18:55.839 to lay you flat on your back to get you 332 00:18:55.880 --> 00:18:59.400 to look up. I hope he doesn't have to do 333 00:18:59.440 --> 00:19:03.000 that to you. Just do this now, look up to God. 334 00:19:03.240 --> 00:19:05.640 The second thing he did is he woke up. Here's 335 00:19:05.640 --> 00:19:11.119 the second step. Wake up to God's greatness and start worshiping. 336 00:19:11.920 --> 00:19:15.480 Wake up to God's greatness, not your own greatness, but 337 00:19:15.559 --> 00:19:18.960 God's greatness, and start worshiping him. Worshiping it just means 338 00:19:19.000 --> 00:19:22.839 focus on God. When you focus on God's greatness, that's 339 00:19:22.920 --> 00:19:26.319 called worship. You wake up to God's greatness and you 340 00:19:26.440 --> 00:19:30.119 start worshiping. You get your focus off yourself, off your problem, 341 00:19:30.519 --> 00:19:33.839 off your humiliation, and you get your focus back on God. 342 00:19:34.960 --> 00:19:37.279 How do you do that when you start worshiping again? 343 00:19:38.200 --> 00:19:40.319 If in the past you used to read your Bible 344 00:19:40.359 --> 00:19:42.880 a little bit every day, or try to pray every 345 00:19:42.960 --> 00:19:45.039 day and read the Bible, that's called the quiet time. 346 00:19:45.240 --> 00:19:47.240 You need to do that with regularity. You need to 347 00:19:47.279 --> 00:19:50.680 develop that habit and start focusing worshiping on God every day. 348 00:19:51.880 --> 00:19:54.960 If you've been inconsistent in your small group, or you 349 00:19:55.000 --> 00:19:56.759 haven't been in a small group for a while, you 350 00:19:56.839 --> 00:19:58.920 need to get in a small group again. You need 351 00:19:58.960 --> 00:20:02.240 to start going every week and be consistent worshiping God. 352 00:20:03.920 --> 00:20:06.279 You see in good times you start backing off. Go Hey, 353 00:20:06.400 --> 00:20:07.720 I don't need to go to church this week. I'll 354 00:20:07.759 --> 00:20:10.440 go once a month. That's cool. You know now that 355 00:20:10.519 --> 00:20:13.240 we got money, let's buy a boat, our cabin or 356 00:20:13.279 --> 00:20:16.839 a condo or an RV and we'll spend three weeks 357 00:20:16.880 --> 00:20:19.920 playing and once a month we'll go to church. Really, 358 00:20:21.160 --> 00:20:23.839 is there anything more important in your life than worshiping 359 00:20:23.839 --> 00:20:27.640 God and hearing from Him on a regular basis. If 360 00:20:27.680 --> 00:20:31.200 you know something that will help your life more than 361 00:20:31.359 --> 00:20:34.119 going to worship God, stand up and tell us right now, 362 00:20:35.240 --> 00:20:37.680 because I'll go do it with you, because I'm not 363 00:20:37.720 --> 00:20:42.359 going to waste my life. Just tell us no getting 364 00:20:42.359 --> 00:20:46.039 in touch with God every week in worship. You need 365 00:20:46.319 --> 00:20:48.240 you know when the doors are open at a church, 366 00:20:48.279 --> 00:20:51.160 I'm going to be there. Why Because I've often wondered 367 00:20:51.319 --> 00:20:53.119 what if that was the week God wanted to speak 368 00:20:53.160 --> 00:20:54.640 to me that was going to turn the direction of 369 00:20:54.680 --> 00:20:57.119 my life, build the career that I never even imagined. 370 00:20:57.480 --> 00:20:59.480 And if I didn't go that week, I missed it. 371 00:21:01.119 --> 00:21:02.880 I missed it. I don't want to miss what God 372 00:21:02.920 --> 00:21:05.960 says to me. Some of you need to make the recommitment. 373 00:21:06.000 --> 00:21:09.240 To be at worship every single week, not like once 374 00:21:09.279 --> 00:21:12.200 a month or every two weeks or whatever I do. 375 00:21:12.279 --> 00:21:14.519 It's more important for me to hear from God than 376 00:21:14.559 --> 00:21:19.960 to hear from television or hear from anything else going 377 00:21:20.000 --> 00:21:23.880 on in life. So I wake up to God's greatness 378 00:21:23.880 --> 00:21:26.440 and I start worshiping again, and I'm there and I 379 00:21:26.480 --> 00:21:31.119 worship God all the time. Verse thirty four, nebuchan Ezra says, 380 00:21:31.160 --> 00:21:36.599 my sanity returned and I praised and worshiped the most high, 381 00:21:36.680 --> 00:21:40.359 that's God, and I honored the one who lives forever. 382 00:21:40.440 --> 00:21:43.880 This is the second step to recovery. My sanity returned 383 00:21:44.000 --> 00:21:46.519 when I started praising and worshiping and you know, being 384 00:21:46.519 --> 00:21:48.720 grateful for the things God has done in my life. Now, 385 00:21:48.759 --> 00:21:51.160 I want you to write this down. I don't know 386 00:21:51.160 --> 00:21:54.000 what bad thing you're going through right now, but I 387 00:21:54.000 --> 00:21:57.720 will tell you this. We get better. We get better 388 00:21:58.000 --> 00:22:03.640 when we replace pride with We get better in any 389 00:22:03.680 --> 00:22:07.359 area of our lives when we replace pride in ourselves 390 00:22:08.160 --> 00:22:12.440 with praise to God. Now, let me say it again, 391 00:22:12.759 --> 00:22:16.119 every time things are going good in your life, this 392 00:22:16.400 --> 00:22:19.759 is as much a test as the bad times, as 393 00:22:19.759 --> 00:22:22.400 the delays, the difficulties, and the suffering and the pain. 394 00:22:23.680 --> 00:22:26.119 Every time things are going good in your life, God's 395 00:22:26.119 --> 00:22:28.759 going to go Are they going to become prideful? Are 396 00:22:28.759 --> 00:22:32.319 they going to become praiseful? Are they going to just think, Hey, 397 00:22:32.319 --> 00:22:36.119 look how cool we are I am, or look how 398 00:22:36.160 --> 00:22:39.839 cool God is. I would not have any of this 399 00:22:40.119 --> 00:22:54.319 if it weren't for God. Friends, if you're having trouble 400 00:22:54.319 --> 00:22:57.839 staying consistent in your Bible study and quiet time, one 401 00:22:57.920 --> 00:23:01.480