WEBVTT 1 00:00:00.560 --> 00:00:01.480 Well, good morning. 2 00:00:03.000 --> 00:00:07.599 I want to first say before I get started. Man, 3 00:00:07.639 --> 00:00:09.919 I've been here for just over a year, and what 4 00:00:10.119 --> 00:00:12.560 a blessing I know. Wow, thank you for putting up 5 00:00:12.560 --> 00:00:15.160 with me. What a blessing it has been to be here. 6 00:00:15.279 --> 00:00:18.120 It has been so encouraging in the way that you 7 00:00:18.120 --> 00:00:21.239 have welcomed myself and my family into this local body. 8 00:00:21.600 --> 00:00:23.640 It's been amazing. So thank you for loving us well. 9 00:00:23.679 --> 00:00:27.800 We are super excited for man, what God has and 10 00:00:27.879 --> 00:00:29.559 sore for us here. It costs a way for the future. 11 00:00:29.559 --> 00:00:31.440 So thank you guys so much for loving us well. 12 00:00:31.960 --> 00:00:34.399 With that, we're gonna be in Psalm sixteen, as Josh 13 00:00:34.520 --> 00:00:36.560 just said, and so if you'll open up to Psalm 14 00:00:36.600 --> 00:00:39.679 sixteen a follow along, I'm gonna read the whole thing. 15 00:00:39.759 --> 00:00:45.039 It's eleven verses, so Psalm sixteen, starting in verse one. 16 00:00:46.000 --> 00:00:49.880 Preserve me, Oh God, for in you I take refuge. 17 00:00:50.280 --> 00:00:53.479 I say to the Lord, you are my Lord. I 18 00:00:53.520 --> 00:00:57.000 have no good apart from you. As for the saints 19 00:00:57.000 --> 00:00:59.640 in the land, they are the excellent ones, and whom 20 00:00:59.799 --> 00:01:03.119 is all my delight. The sorrows of those who run 21 00:01:03.159 --> 00:01:07.599 after another, God shall multiply their drink offerings of blood. 22 00:01:08.120 --> 00:01:11.000 I will not pour out or take their names on 23 00:01:11.079 --> 00:01:14.239 my lips. The Lord is my chosen portion, and my 24 00:01:14.359 --> 00:01:17.319 cup you hold my lids. 25 00:01:18.159 --> 00:01:19.560 The lines have fallen. 26 00:01:19.599 --> 00:01:23.760 For me in pleasant places. Indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance. 27 00:01:24.519 --> 00:01:27.319 I bless the Lord, who gives me counsel. And in 28 00:01:27.400 --> 00:01:31.359 the night also my heart instructs me. I set the 29 00:01:31.400 --> 00:01:35.280 Lord always before me, because he is at my right hand, 30 00:01:35.519 --> 00:01:39.799 and I shall not be shaken. Therefore my heart is glad, 31 00:01:39.879 --> 00:01:45.200 and my whole being rejoices. My flesh also dwells secure, 32 00:01:46.040 --> 00:01:48.359 for you will not abandon my soul to sheol, or 33 00:01:48.480 --> 00:01:51.799 let the Holy One see corruption. You make known to 34 00:01:51.959 --> 00:01:55.480 me the path of life, and in your presence there 35 00:01:55.519 --> 00:02:01.000 is fullness of joy. At your right hand are pleasures forevermore. 36 00:02:02.480 --> 00:02:08.639 Psalm sixteen David shares where joy is found. And this 37 00:02:08.759 --> 00:02:11.479 psalm is written from a heart that has learned where 38 00:02:11.520 --> 00:02:16.800 true joy and true security are found. Joy isn't found 39 00:02:17.479 --> 00:02:21.319 lasting joy. It's not found in circumstances. It's not found 40 00:02:21.400 --> 00:02:26.439 in success, it's not found in control. Lasting joy is 41 00:02:26.560 --> 00:02:30.840 found in God himself. And so as we go through 42 00:02:30.840 --> 00:02:33.960 the Psalm, we'll see three ways of how we find 43 00:02:34.080 --> 00:02:38.199 joy In God. We find joy and God by trusting 44 00:02:38.199 --> 00:02:42.639 in God. The second is we find joy by living 45 00:02:42.680 --> 00:02:47.759 with God's design, and the third one is we find 46 00:02:47.919 --> 00:02:52.879 joy by living in His presence forever. And those will 47 00:02:52.919 --> 00:02:54.680 be up on the screen as we go throughout, so 48 00:02:54.919 --> 00:02:57.439 if you miss them, they'll be up there. And so 49 00:02:57.520 --> 00:02:59.639 as I was preparing this morning, I was like, man, 50 00:03:00.080 --> 00:03:03.680 in my own life, where do I find joy? And 51 00:03:03.759 --> 00:03:07.759 right away my family came to mind, my three kids 52 00:03:07.759 --> 00:03:09.719 and my beautiful wife. If you don't know, I have 53 00:03:09.759 --> 00:03:11.680 three kids. I have a one, a two, and a 54 00:03:11.719 --> 00:03:14.599 four year old. So we are often busy and we're 55 00:03:14.639 --> 00:03:18.639 often tired, but man, the joy that they bring. And 56 00:03:18.719 --> 00:03:21.080 so one of the cool things as a parent is 57 00:03:21.120 --> 00:03:24.759 getting to watch your kids go from cautious in something 58 00:03:25.439 --> 00:03:30.240 to confidence in that thing. Last summer, we were trying 59 00:03:30.280 --> 00:03:32.840 to teach my four year old, who was then three, 60 00:03:32.879 --> 00:03:34.759 how to jump or how to swim into a pool, 61 00:03:35.360 --> 00:03:37.039 and we thought the best way to do that is 62 00:03:37.080 --> 00:03:38.680 to have her jump into the pool. She doesn't even 63 00:03:38.680 --> 00:03:39.919 like to get her eyes west. We're like, let's just 64 00:03:39.919 --> 00:03:42.599 get her all in there, and so she's standing on 65 00:03:42.639 --> 00:03:45.520 the edge, she's nervous. I'm not I'm super happy. 66 00:03:45.560 --> 00:03:47.280 I'm like arms reaching out. I'm like, come on, you 67 00:03:47.280 --> 00:03:49.039 can do it, and she's looking. 68 00:03:48.840 --> 00:03:51.120 At me, nervous, and then looking at the water even 69 00:03:51.159 --> 00:03:54.120 more nervous, and then me nervous, and then back and forth. 70 00:03:54.159 --> 00:03:57.120 And she was nervous, but she was making sure that 71 00:03:57.159 --> 00:03:59.560 I was right there to catch her. And once she 72 00:03:59.639 --> 00:04:02.159 realized that she could do it and that I was there, 73 00:04:02.479 --> 00:04:05.280 that I was going to catch her, and she didn't 74 00:04:05.280 --> 00:04:07.800 even look anymore. She just launched herself off the hedge 75 00:04:07.840 --> 00:04:11.080 of the pool man. She was having a blast, as 76 00:04:11.080 --> 00:04:13.879 happy as can be. At one point, she would jump, 77 00:04:13.919 --> 00:04:15.199 she would get out, she would do it over and over, 78 00:04:15.280 --> 00:04:18.120 and she wasn't even making sure that I was paying attention. 79 00:04:19.439 --> 00:04:21.839 In her mind, if she was jumping, then I was 80 00:04:21.920 --> 00:04:26.839 catching And man, guys, that right there, that is trust. 81 00:04:27.759 --> 00:04:30.079 It's not because the water is safe. The water is 82 00:04:30.160 --> 00:04:34.360 still not safe. It's because I was there. And you 83 00:04:34.360 --> 00:04:38.079 could see in that moment you could see the joy 84 00:04:38.279 --> 00:04:42.639 that she had, that trust in me had then created. 85 00:04:43.439 --> 00:04:45.839 You could see it through her joy, through the smiles. 86 00:04:46.120 --> 00:04:47.759 You could see it through the repetition of her getting 87 00:04:47.800 --> 00:04:49.920 in and immediately running out and jumping right back in. 88 00:04:51.160 --> 00:04:54.959 Her excitement came from the confidence, her trust that she 89 00:04:55.040 --> 00:05:00.240 would be caught somewhere along the way in life. Use 90 00:05:00.319 --> 00:05:04.519 that we grow up and we become far more self aware, 91 00:05:05.000 --> 00:05:09.800 far more cautious, and we begin to plan instead of trust. 92 00:05:10.720 --> 00:05:14.759 We depend on our own strength until life gets hard, 93 00:05:15.160 --> 00:05:18.560 and then suddenly we find ourselves looking for someone to 94 00:05:18.600 --> 00:05:23.160 catch us. There are moments in life when everything feels uncertain, 95 00:05:23.759 --> 00:05:26.720 seasons when we are looking for something that's solid to 96 00:05:26.759 --> 00:05:33.800 stand on, something sturdy, something dependable, something that's unshakable, And 97 00:05:33.839 --> 00:05:35.879 whether we realize it or not, in those moments, what 98 00:05:35.920 --> 00:05:39.600 we're looking for is joy. And it's a joy that's 99 00:05:39.720 --> 00:05:42.759 not weak. It's a joy that is lasting, and it's 100 00:05:42.759 --> 00:05:45.319 a joy that doesn't depend on circumstances. 101 00:05:45.959 --> 00:05:48.839 No, it's a joy that lasts. 102 00:05:49.920 --> 00:05:52.519 So where do we find that joy that brings us 103 00:05:52.560 --> 00:05:56.560 to the very first point? Joy is found and trusting 104 00:05:57.079 --> 00:06:02.439 God man. David begins and Psalm sixteen with such. 105 00:06:02.240 --> 00:06:03.600 A powerful prayer. 106 00:06:05.399 --> 00:06:11.000 It reads, preserve me, Oh God, friend, you I take refuge. 107 00:06:11.120 --> 00:06:13.519 It doesn't seem to be a prayer of someone who 108 00:06:13.560 --> 00:06:16.639 is panicking. It seems to a prayer if someone who 109 00:06:16.759 --> 00:06:22.480 understands their dependence. What David is saying is God You 110 00:06:22.759 --> 00:06:27.279 are my safety, You are who I turn to. You 111 00:06:27.759 --> 00:06:33.199 are my refuge. But David is simply acknowledging this truth 112 00:06:34.279 --> 00:06:39.480 that he needs God for everything. You see, we often 113 00:06:39.519 --> 00:06:43.560 just try cry out to God. Maybe it's when when 114 00:06:43.560 --> 00:06:47.399 things are falling apart. Maybe it's when that diagnosis comes, 115 00:06:48.759 --> 00:06:53.000 the relationship is breaking. Maybe it's just when finances are tight. 116 00:06:54.480 --> 00:06:56.319 And David he shows us right here, He shows us 117 00:06:56.319 --> 00:06:59.879 something better. He lives in a way of depending on 118 00:07:00.360 --> 00:07:06.879 the Lord, not in desperation of the Lord. See this 119 00:07:06.920 --> 00:07:08.959 really hit close to me. About a month and a 120 00:07:08.959 --> 00:07:13.040 half ago, I ran a marathon, and about six seven 121 00:07:13.079 --> 00:07:15.839 months before that, I did a whole bunch of training 122 00:07:16.160 --> 00:07:18.519 leading up to that, and I was about twenty miles 123 00:07:18.560 --> 00:07:21.639 in and man, I was feeling so good, way better 124 00:07:21.680 --> 00:07:24.040 than I expected to. My legs were strong or they 125 00:07:24.040 --> 00:07:29.240 ever feeling strong, and my pace, man, it was good mentally, 126 00:07:29.240 --> 00:07:31.519 which when you're running four hours, mentally it becomes a 127 00:07:31.519 --> 00:07:31.920 mental game. 128 00:07:31.959 --> 00:07:33.120 You're like, I can do this. Yeah. 129 00:07:33.160 --> 00:07:35.720 I was in a great place and at one point 130 00:07:35.759 --> 00:07:37.879 I was like, you know what, I may actually be 131 00:07:37.959 --> 00:07:40.319 able to do this thing, because I wasn't sure up 132 00:07:40.360 --> 00:07:41.079 until that moment. 133 00:07:41.879 --> 00:07:44.560 Everything felt under control. 134 00:07:45.639 --> 00:07:50.319 Until mile twenty, something changed, something happened. We're three hours 135 00:07:50.360 --> 00:07:52.879 in and I remember running this race and I see 136 00:07:52.879 --> 00:07:54.519 people that are running. They look great, and then they 137 00:07:54.560 --> 00:07:57.319 grabbed their leg and they drop to the ground. You're like, ooh, 138 00:07:58.000 --> 00:07:59.680 I don't know what just happened to them, but I 139 00:07:59.759 --> 00:08:01.399 do not want to experience that. 140 00:08:02.279 --> 00:08:05.079 Well, let me tell you my twenty. The cramps hit hard. 141 00:08:06.000 --> 00:08:10.800 My legs locked up, and every single step became a fight. 142 00:08:12.199 --> 00:08:13.839 The pace that I had been running. 143 00:08:13.959 --> 00:08:18.120 For three hours, it suddenly did not seem possible anymore. 144 00:08:19.240 --> 00:08:21.600 And at that moment, it didn't matter how confident I 145 00:08:21.680 --> 00:08:26.399 had been, didn't matter how confident I had felt. All 146 00:08:26.439 --> 00:08:30.879 that mattered was that I can I keep going. The 147 00:08:30.959 --> 00:08:33.720 last five to six miles they were slow, Boy were 148 00:08:33.720 --> 00:08:38.320 they painful, but man, they were humbling. 149 00:08:38.919 --> 00:08:39.799 I was able to finish. 150 00:08:40.279 --> 00:08:42.159 And as I thought about this experience later, as I 151 00:08:42.200 --> 00:08:45.360 was writing this sermon, I thought, how often is that 152 00:08:45.519 --> 00:08:49.480 exactly how we live our spiritual lives. We feel strong, 153 00:08:50.399 --> 00:08:53.559 maybe we feel capable of ourselves. We feel like man, 154 00:08:53.559 --> 00:08:58.639 we're in control, until we're not. We rely on our 155 00:08:58.679 --> 00:09:04.399 own strength, our own discipline, our own plans that we create, 156 00:09:05.799 --> 00:09:10.080 and then something happens and it changes everything. Maybe it's 157 00:09:10.080 --> 00:09:11.000 we experience a. 158 00:09:11.000 --> 00:09:14.080 Loss, maybe we're just exhausted. 159 00:09:15.600 --> 00:09:22.679 Maybe it's that disappointment has set in. We realize in 160 00:09:22.679 --> 00:09:27.879 those moments how much we really need the Lord. You see, 161 00:09:27.960 --> 00:09:30.600 David wasn't waiting until mile twenty to cry out to God. 162 00:09:30.679 --> 00:09:32.799 We can see that in this psalm. He lived in 163 00:09:32.919 --> 00:09:37.840 daily dependence. He didn't just run to God when he 164 00:09:37.879 --> 00:09:42.240 was exhausted. He ran with God from the beginning. And 165 00:09:42.240 --> 00:09:43.960 that's why he can say in this text, we just 166 00:09:44.000 --> 00:09:48.600 read I have no good apart from You. And that's 167 00:09:48.639 --> 00:09:55.080 the difference between desperation and dependence. You see, Desperation it 168 00:09:55.159 --> 00:10:00.120 cries out when every single thing falls apart. Dependence it 169 00:10:00.159 --> 00:10:04.919 walks closely with God way before those things fall apart. 170 00:10:06.399 --> 00:10:10.360 Desperation it usually shows up when we feel like we 171 00:10:11.080 --> 00:10:12.399 have exhausted. 172 00:10:11.919 --> 00:10:13.120 All of our own efforts. 173 00:10:14.679 --> 00:10:17.360 It comes when our strength runs out and those plans 174 00:10:17.399 --> 00:10:20.799 that we had created they fall apart. And I want 175 00:10:20.799 --> 00:10:23.639 to be clear, there's nothing wrong with crying out to 176 00:10:23.720 --> 00:10:26.600 God and desperation. In fact, we'll find so many prayers 177 00:10:26.720 --> 00:10:32.200 like that in scripture, that kind of prayer. But David 178 00:10:32.240 --> 00:10:36.159 does show with something super important here he shows us 179 00:10:36.159 --> 00:10:40.320 that dependence it's not something that's reactive. Dependence is something 180 00:10:40.360 --> 00:10:45.279 that is relational. It's the steady posture someone who knows 181 00:10:45.480 --> 00:10:50.360 that they need God long before life forces. 182 00:10:49.960 --> 00:10:55.399 Them to admit it. Desperation. It comes at mile twenty. 183 00:10:56.240 --> 00:11:01.440 Dependence starts at mile one. Is learned in the normal 184 00:11:01.519 --> 00:11:04.080 day today. It's in the routines that we make. It's 185 00:11:04.080 --> 00:11:06.840 in the decisions that we have. It's in the responsibilities 186 00:11:06.840 --> 00:11:08.759 that we've set out for ourselves. 187 00:11:09.360 --> 00:11:10.200 And it's in. 188 00:11:10.120 --> 00:11:14.960 Those places that joy is formed long before suffering. 189 00:11:16.480 --> 00:11:20.360 It's where trust is made before trials arrive. 190 00:11:22.279 --> 00:11:24.679 Look at verse two, he says, I say to the Lord, 191 00:11:25.480 --> 00:11:29.759 you are my lord, and I have no good apart 192 00:11:29.799 --> 00:11:30.159 from you. 193 00:11:31.440 --> 00:11:35.559 I'm like man, David. That's a bold statement, David. 194 00:11:35.600 --> 00:11:38.279 You're declaring that You're saying that everything good in this life, 195 00:11:38.360 --> 00:11:43.799 like joy and meaning and purpose and security, all of 196 00:11:43.840 --> 00:11:45.440 that comes from God alone. 197 00:11:46.720 --> 00:11:48.600 Yes, But here's the thing. 198 00:11:49.279 --> 00:11:51.840 We live in a culture that constantly tells us that 199 00:11:51.960 --> 00:11:58.120 joy comes from success, that joy comes from comforts. However, 200 00:11:58.240 --> 00:12:01.799 David reminds us that joy is not found and what 201 00:12:01.840 --> 00:12:06.840 we have, Rather, joy is found, and who we belong to, 202 00:12:08.039 --> 00:12:10.000 what we've given our lives to. 203 00:12:12.240 --> 00:12:15.320 David doesn't say that God gives him good things. He 204 00:12:15.320 --> 00:12:18.000 says that God is his good. 205 00:12:17.639 --> 00:12:21.679 Thing, and that right there is the difference between enjoying 206 00:12:21.799 --> 00:12:25.039 God's good gifts that he's given you and worshiping him. 207 00:12:27.000 --> 00:12:31.440 When God becomes our most important thing, everything else falls 208 00:12:31.440 --> 00:12:35.320 into its proper places. And so if all of that, 209 00:12:35.440 --> 00:12:37.240 if all of that we just talked about is true, 210 00:12:37.440 --> 00:12:39.720 if God is the most important thing in your life, 211 00:12:39.799 --> 00:12:43.919 and He is who you are trusting in, then we 212 00:12:44.000 --> 00:12:47.279 ask is how do we actually live like that? 213 00:12:48.159 --> 00:12:49.919 How do we live in a way that. 214 00:12:49.879 --> 00:12:54.519 Is leaning towards joy instead of leaning away from it? 215 00:12:55.919 --> 00:12:57.759 And David answers that when he shows us in this 216 00:12:57.840 --> 00:13:02.679 text that joy is found and living within God's design. 217 00:13:03.440 --> 00:13:06.600 So this is the point two, finding joy by. 218 00:13:06.480 --> 00:13:08.480 Trusting in God, and then as we do that, we 219 00:13:08.519 --> 00:13:12.720 will find joy by living within his design. Let me 220 00:13:12.799 --> 00:13:14.559 go ahead and reread verses four and five. For us 221 00:13:15.120 --> 00:13:19.120 says the sorrows of those who run after another God 222 00:13:19.240 --> 00:13:24.039 shall multiply their drink offerings of blood. I will not 223 00:13:24.240 --> 00:13:26.279 pour out or take their names. 224 00:13:26.000 --> 00:13:30.519 On my lips. The Lord is my chosen portion, and. 225 00:13:30.639 --> 00:13:36.679 My cup you hold my lives. David's about to show 226 00:13:36.720 --> 00:13:38.799 us two different ways of living. He says, those who 227 00:13:38.919 --> 00:13:42.799 chase after other gods, man, your sorrows are just multiplying. 228 00:13:43.679 --> 00:13:45.559 And another way we can say that is when we 229 00:13:45.799 --> 00:13:49.960 are looking for meaning outside of God's good design, the 230 00:13:50.080 --> 00:13:52.559 results will always be emptiness. 231 00:13:53.919 --> 00:13:55.519 And we see this all around. 232 00:13:55.279 --> 00:13:59.000 Us because the world tells us constantly if we just 233 00:13:59.080 --> 00:14:02.679 had more than we would be more happy, more money, 234 00:14:02.919 --> 00:14:10.639 more success, more recognition, more freedom. And then scripture tells 235 00:14:10.720 --> 00:14:15.320 us tells us a different story. It says that God's 236 00:14:15.360 --> 00:14:18.120 boundaries they're not meant to restrict us. 237 00:14:18.679 --> 00:14:20.519 No, they're meant to protect us. 238 00:14:20.679 --> 00:14:26.840 His boundaries are meant to help you grow closer to him. 239 00:14:27.200 --> 00:14:29.879 We see right here in verse six it says that 240 00:14:29.919 --> 00:14:33.879 the lines have fallen for me in pleasant places. Indeed, 241 00:14:34.000 --> 00:14:39.759 I have a beautiful inheritance. Those lines that are being 242 00:14:39.759 --> 00:14:47.120 referred to, they're boundaries. It's God's design for life, and 243 00:14:47.279 --> 00:14:51.600 David is not complaining about them. Rather, David is rejoicing 244 00:14:51.799 --> 00:14:55.240 in them. He's saying, God, where you have placed me, 245 00:14:55.559 --> 00:14:59.440 it is good. The life that you've called me to live, 246 00:15:00.120 --> 00:15:05.200 it is good. And that is such a different idea 247 00:15:05.480 --> 00:15:11.039 from a culture that equates freedom with the absence of boundaries. 248 00:15:12.960 --> 00:15:19.639 True freedom isn't found in doing whatever we want. It's 249 00:15:19.639 --> 00:15:22.639 found in living the way that we have been created 250 00:15:22.919 --> 00:15:27.720 to live. When we live outside of God's design, things 251 00:15:27.759 --> 00:15:31.600 will eventually fall apart. But when we walk with him, 252 00:15:31.879 --> 00:15:35.279 when we walk within his design, even though it's hard. 253 00:15:35.360 --> 00:15:38.480 I'm not saying, hey, when you find joys, everything's happy 254 00:15:38.519 --> 00:15:39.000 and go lucky. 255 00:15:39.080 --> 00:15:41.440 No, there's still hard moments in life. 256 00:15:41.840 --> 00:15:44.679 But when we do walk in His way and trust 257 00:15:44.720 --> 00:15:50.240 in Him, that is where we find peace. And David 258 00:15:50.279 --> 00:15:53.919 goes on to say in this text, the Lord gives. 259 00:15:53.759 --> 00:15:56.039 Him counsel even at night. 260 00:15:57.519 --> 00:15:59.720 That right there is a picture of a heart that 261 00:15:59.799 --> 00:16:03.240 is aligned with God's word and it is shaping his 262 00:16:03.440 --> 00:16:08.000 inner life. God's word is not just a guide that 263 00:16:08.080 --> 00:16:11.919 becomes helpful for him to make decisions. It's the guide 264 00:16:12.159 --> 00:16:16.360 that shapes his desires. And that is what it looks 265 00:16:16.399 --> 00:16:19.399 like to walk with God daily, not just knowing about God, 266 00:16:19.919 --> 00:16:22.559 but being shaped by God and being shaped. 267 00:16:22.480 --> 00:16:27.000 By his word. So that raises a. 268 00:16:27.000 --> 00:16:33.440 Question, who is shaping us? I want us to think 269 00:16:33.480 --> 00:16:37.120 about the voices that we listen to. Maybe it's the 270 00:16:37.240 --> 00:16:39.519 podcast you listen to on the drive to work. 271 00:16:40.360 --> 00:16:42.279 Maybe it's the YouTubers that you watch. 272 00:16:42.519 --> 00:16:45.639 Maybe it's the music that you listen to, the movies 273 00:16:45.639 --> 00:16:50.200 we watch, the shows we binge watch, I'm guilty. Maybe 274 00:16:50.200 --> 00:16:54.440 it's the social media feeds that we doomscroll on all 275 00:16:54.720 --> 00:16:59.120 day because we're constantly being counseled, whether we know it 276 00:16:59.480 --> 00:17:03.240 or not. And the thing is, those voices that I 277 00:17:03.320 --> 00:17:06.960 just said, none of them are neutral. They're all shaping 278 00:17:07.000 --> 00:17:08.920 the way that we think about life, to shaping the 279 00:17:08.920 --> 00:17:12.039 way that we think about success, relationships, the way we 280 00:17:12.079 --> 00:17:15.519 think about identity, and more importantly, they're shaping the way 281 00:17:15.559 --> 00:17:17.359 that we think and how we think. 282 00:17:17.359 --> 00:17:23.039 Joy is supposed to look like. We often expect. 283 00:17:22.640 --> 00:17:26.160 To find joy from those places we listen, we watch, 284 00:17:26.440 --> 00:17:31.720 we scroll. Maybe it's to hope, to feel encouraged. Maybe 285 00:17:31.759 --> 00:17:36.559 it's even hope to feel fulfilled. And if we're honest 286 00:17:36.559 --> 00:17:41.359 with ourselves, those voices they don't just distract us from God. Oftentimes, 287 00:17:41.359 --> 00:17:43.960 those voices we listen to they contradict the way that 288 00:17:44.039 --> 00:17:47.160 God has called us to live his design for us. 289 00:17:49.279 --> 00:17:52.240 One side tells you, hey, do whatever makes you happy, 290 00:17:53.119 --> 00:17:55.440 protect yourself at all costs because. 291 00:17:55.119 --> 00:17:58.599 You deserve more. And then we have. 292 00:17:58.519 --> 00:18:04.599 God's word, and it says things like deny yourself, take 293 00:18:04.720 --> 00:18:09.680 up your cross, trust in me, walk in my ways. 294 00:18:11.880 --> 00:18:13.799 And so when we throw our hearts in our minds 295 00:18:13.799 --> 00:18:16.640 with counsel that run against God's design for us, it 296 00:18:16.640 --> 00:18:19.039 should be to no surprise when we feel like we 297 00:18:19.079 --> 00:18:21.680 don't get to experience any joy, or that joy is 298 00:18:21.759 --> 00:18:26.440 distant from us. When David had said that the Lord 299 00:18:26.480 --> 00:18:29.920 counsels him even at the night, that means that God's 300 00:18:30.279 --> 00:18:33.920 truth was so deeply planted in his heart it shaped 301 00:18:33.960 --> 00:18:38.039 him when no one else was speaking. That kind of 302 00:18:38.160 --> 00:18:42.400 counsel does not come by accident. That kind of counsel 303 00:18:42.519 --> 00:18:46.119 comes from intentionally getting into God's word. 304 00:18:47.440 --> 00:18:48.960 Pastor Josh said it a few weeks ago. 305 00:18:50.039 --> 00:18:53.960 It's constant weeding and feeding of your garden of your heart. 306 00:18:55.039 --> 00:18:58.359 It's weeding out the sin and ungodliness, and it's feeding 307 00:18:58.400 --> 00:19:03.839 your heart with the knowledge of truth. And so then 308 00:19:03.880 --> 00:19:07.079 the question is it is not if you're being shaped. 309 00:19:07.920 --> 00:19:11.839 The question is who or what is shaping you. 310 00:19:14.119 --> 00:19:17.240 If we want a joy that last, we can't keep 311 00:19:17.279 --> 00:19:20.720 looking forward in places that were never designed to give it. 312 00:19:21.759 --> 00:19:22.359 Joy is found. 313 00:19:22.440 --> 00:19:26.440 We live within God's design, and that starts by letting 314 00:19:26.480 --> 00:19:32.119 God be our primary counselors. We've talked a lot about joy, 315 00:19:32.559 --> 00:19:35.759 a lot about Christian joy already, but we really haven't 316 00:19:35.799 --> 00:19:37.799 defined it. I think we all kind of a framework 317 00:19:37.839 --> 00:19:40.039 of what joy may be in our lives, but I 318 00:19:40.079 --> 00:19:42.000 want to define it for us. Michael Reeves, he's a 319 00:19:42.039 --> 00:19:44.960 well known author. He puts it this way. He defines 320 00:19:45.039 --> 00:19:50.799 Christian joy. It's a deep, enduring delight that comes from 321 00:19:50.839 --> 00:19:56.400 beholding and rejoicing in Jesus Christ. It is not something 322 00:19:56.440 --> 00:20:00.720 that we manufacture ourselves, but something that naturally bubbles up 323 00:20:00.720 --> 00:20:07.160 as we fix our eyes on hill Man, beholding and rejoicing. 324 00:20:06.519 --> 00:20:07.599 In Jesus Christ. 325 00:20:09.200 --> 00:20:13.480 Guys, that's the beauty of Christian joy. 326 00:20:13.559 --> 00:20:16.079 We can't produce it by our own effort. We don't 327 00:20:16.200 --> 00:20:18.559 force it, we don't work our way into it. 328 00:20:19.359 --> 00:20:23.759 Joy grows as we behold Jesus, who he is, what 329 00:20:23.920 --> 00:20:26.440 he has done for us, the grace that he has 330 00:20:26.480 --> 00:20:30.359 shown to us. And so it's never am I doing enough? 331 00:20:31.079 --> 00:20:36.200 It is what am I beholding? Because when we become 332 00:20:36.480 --> 00:20:41.000 like what we behold, we rejoice and what we treasure 333 00:20:41.039 --> 00:20:47.880 the most beholding Jesus. It's not just in the early 334 00:20:48.000 --> 00:20:51.920 morning hours with our bibles open. Although that is very 335 00:20:51.960 --> 00:20:56.440 important and we should be doing that. But we behold 336 00:20:56.519 --> 00:21:01.759 Christ in the ordinary, everyday life. Maybe it's through fellowship, 337 00:21:02.480 --> 00:21:07.279 Maybe it's through prayer, Maybe it's through obedience. Maybe it's 338 00:21:07.319 --> 00:21:15.960 through repentance, through conversation, through relationship, through remembering the gospel. Guys, 339 00:21:15.960 --> 00:21:21.039 God's design is not about taking joy from you. It's 340 00:21:21.119 --> 00:21:25.039 actually to lead you to the only joy that last, 341 00:21:26.400 --> 00:21:29.319 and that leads us to our last point, find joy 342 00:21:29.680 --> 00:21:37.319 by living in His presence forever. David's confidence is super 343 00:21:37.319 --> 00:21:41.799 powerful here and verse nine he says, therefore, my heart 344 00:21:41.839 --> 00:21:43.279 is glad. 345 00:21:43.599 --> 00:21:48.480 My whole being rejoices. My flesh also dwells secure. 346 00:21:50.359 --> 00:21:55.039 Why can David say something like that, Wow, Guys, It's 347 00:21:55.079 --> 00:21:58.480 because he knows his future is secure in God's hands. 348 00:21:59.839 --> 00:22:04.000 Go on to say, you will not abandon my soul 349 00:22:04.079 --> 00:22:08.880 to shield or let your Holy One see corruption. What 350 00:22:09.000 --> 00:22:12.039 David is saying right there is even death does not 351 00:22:12.359 --> 00:22:16.480 get the final word. He's not just saying God will 352 00:22:16.519 --> 00:22:19.960 be with me in this life. He's saying God will 353 00:22:20.000 --> 00:22:23.519 not even abandon me in death. And that right there 354 00:22:23.559 --> 00:22:26.160 is a category of hope that this world just simply 355 00:22:26.240 --> 00:22:29.720 does not have the best that the world can do. 356 00:22:29.880 --> 00:22:31.079 Is try to deny it. 357 00:22:31.960 --> 00:22:36.720 They can try to distract from death, they can try 358 00:22:36.720 --> 00:22:42.240 to maybe delay it, but they world cannot defeat it. 359 00:22:42.640 --> 00:22:45.839 And David, the joy he's speaking of right here, it's 360 00:22:45.880 --> 00:22:51.079 the kind of joy that survives the grave. To be 361 00:22:51.200 --> 00:22:55.359 quite frank, death, it's coming for all of us. We 362 00:22:55.440 --> 00:22:59.440 cannot escape it. And so if death is unavoidable, which 363 00:22:59.480 --> 00:23:01.880 it is, then the question is not, well, man, how 364 00:23:01.920 --> 00:23:04.799 long am I going to live? No, the question needs 365 00:23:04.839 --> 00:23:09.240 to be where does my joy rest? Because when we 366 00:23:09.319 --> 00:23:12.680 find our joy in Christ, we are then receiving a 367 00:23:12.799 --> 00:23:18.720 joy that continues in His presence forever. And that's important 368 00:23:18.759 --> 00:23:20.799 because it it starts beginning for us to. 369 00:23:20.799 --> 00:23:23.039 Ask deeper questions of ourselves. 370 00:23:24.160 --> 00:23:28.920 What kind of joy actually outlast suffering, outlast loss and death? 371 00:23:30.000 --> 00:23:34.119 Because if our joy is rooted in our circumstances, what 372 00:23:34.279 --> 00:23:36.200 happens when our circumstances change? 373 00:23:37.079 --> 00:23:38.200 The joy will fade away. 374 00:23:39.319 --> 00:23:41.759 If our joy is rooted in our health, what happens 375 00:23:41.759 --> 00:23:44.839 when our health fails? If our joy is rooted in 376 00:23:44.880 --> 00:23:48.440 our careers, what happens when our career ends? If our 377 00:23:48.519 --> 00:23:51.480 joy is rooted in our relationships, what happens when those 378 00:23:51.559 --> 00:23:53.319 relationships are then broken? 379 00:23:55.079 --> 00:23:55.799 You see, David is. 380 00:23:55.799 --> 00:23:58.519 Inviting us into a joy that has a stronger foundation 381 00:23:58.599 --> 00:24:03.200 than anything this world has to offer. It's a joy 382 00:24:03.200 --> 00:24:07.720 that's rooted in God himself, and man, if we're honest, 383 00:24:08.000 --> 00:24:11.720 even with that kind of future hope, which is so 384 00:24:12.720 --> 00:24:16.119 encouraging to look forward to, life can still feel unstable. 385 00:24:18.279 --> 00:24:21.319 Life can still feel unpredictable. I'm not saying that it's 386 00:24:21.359 --> 00:24:25.839 going to be easy by any means. There's gonna be 387 00:24:25.839 --> 00:24:28.359 a lot of times where things feel out of control. 388 00:24:29.920 --> 00:24:32.440 I was thinking as I was preparing this morning. 389 00:24:32.400 --> 00:24:35.079 When do I feel out of control? Like it's not 390 00:24:35.160 --> 00:24:38.279 in my control anymore? And the first thing comes to 391 00:24:38.279 --> 00:24:40.400 my mind is when I'm an airplane thirty thousand feet 392 00:24:40.440 --> 00:24:43.440 in the air, and have you ever been there? And 393 00:24:43.480 --> 00:24:47.960 you hit bad turbulence and your heart's racing and your 394 00:24:47.960 --> 00:24:50.680 stomach kind of drops a little bit, and maybe you 395 00:24:50.680 --> 00:24:52.960 grab the legs of the people beside you, you squeeze them. 396 00:24:54.000 --> 00:24:57.119 Don't do that, that's weird, but maybe some people do. 397 00:24:58.519 --> 00:25:01.640 I was on an international flight last year, and actually, 398 00:25:01.680 --> 00:25:03.599 I'm gonna pause a story before we go any further. 399 00:25:03.680 --> 00:25:06.519 My wife saysn't very dramatic, so you can decide after 400 00:25:06.519 --> 00:25:09.519 I tell the story I was on an international flight 401 00:25:09.640 --> 00:25:12.079