WEBVTT 1 00:00:02.480 --> 00:00:04.960 You know, we really live in a world that's full 2 00:00:04.960 --> 00:00:09.480 of competing beliefs and values and choices, and what you 3 00:00:09.679 --> 00:00:14.400 believe shapes how you live and ultimately who you become. 4 00:00:14.919 --> 00:00:18.760 But the good news is God hasn't left us to 5 00:00:18.920 --> 00:00:20.800 figure it all out alone. 6 00:00:21.160 --> 00:00:21.239 No. 7 00:00:21.760 --> 00:00:24.960 In fact, today, on Pastor Rick's Daily Hope, we're going 8 00:00:25.079 --> 00:00:30.079 to continue our series Reframing Your Worldview, where Rick Warren 9 00:00:30.280 --> 00:00:34.119 unpacks powerful truths from God's Word to help you see 10 00:00:34.159 --> 00:00:38.840 life clearly and live it with confidence and purpose. And 11 00:00:38.920 --> 00:00:41.719 now here's Pastor Rick with the final part of a 12 00:00:41.759 --> 00:00:45.000 message called how did the world get so messed Up? 13 00:00:45.799 --> 00:00:48.640 You know how a parent grieves when they see their 14 00:00:48.719 --> 00:00:52.840 child messing up, and they see their child really blowing 15 00:00:52.920 --> 00:00:56.719 their life. Multiply that a zillion times with God going, 16 00:00:57.079 --> 00:00:59.240 I created them, I love them, And they're walking away 17 00:00:59.280 --> 00:01:01.679 like they don't even know, and they're hurting each other, 18 00:01:01.719 --> 00:01:04.519 and they're abusing each other, and they're being mean to 19 00:01:04.599 --> 00:01:06.640 each other, and they're killing each. 20 00:01:06.439 --> 00:01:07.319 Other, and on and on. 21 00:01:09.560 --> 00:01:12.640 Somebody who finally came to Christ after putting up with 22 00:01:12.680 --> 00:01:14.680 a lot of pain, don't want you to hear her story? 23 00:01:14.680 --> 00:01:15.959 Would you give her a warm welcome? 24 00:01:25.000 --> 00:01:28.480 I was born three months premature with some physical deformities, 25 00:01:28.879 --> 00:01:32.040 so growing up I felt different than everyone else. My 26 00:01:32.120 --> 00:01:34.920 mom tried to make me feel special, but her actions 27 00:01:34.959 --> 00:01:38.680 instead made me feel inferior. Mom was always on a 28 00:01:38.760 --> 00:01:42.680 diet and continually took appetite suppressants. Since I wanted to 29 00:01:42.680 --> 00:01:45.879 be beautiful like my mom, I started taking them too. 30 00:01:46.159 --> 00:01:48.760 At the age of five, I was already controlling my 31 00:01:48.840 --> 00:01:52.239 food intake and headed for a life of anorexia. I 32 00:01:52.239 --> 00:01:54.400 would take the meat on my dinner plate and put 33 00:01:54.439 --> 00:01:56.879 it under my booster seat because it had fat on it. 34 00:01:57.599 --> 00:01:59.879 Growing up, I never got to see what healthy relationship 35 00:02:00.200 --> 00:02:03.359 look like. All my relationships were pretty much shallow and 36 00:02:03.439 --> 00:02:06.640 superficial and broken. I could give you plenty of evidence 37 00:02:06.680 --> 00:02:09.240 that we live in a fallen world. My parents fought 38 00:02:09.280 --> 00:02:12.520 a lot. Then my dad abandoned our family for another woman. 39 00:02:13.159 --> 00:02:15.639 After that, my mom would drink and take out her 40 00:02:15.680 --> 00:02:19.840 anger on us kids with violent behavior. Many times I 41 00:02:19.879 --> 00:02:24.639 felt helpless, abandoned, depressed, guilty, and scared. In school, my 42 00:02:24.719 --> 00:02:27.039 brother and I learned to stop, drop and roll during 43 00:02:27.039 --> 00:02:30.120 a fire, so we used that same technique at home 44 00:02:30.199 --> 00:02:35.000 to protect ourselves from our mother's blows. As mom's drinking worsened. 45 00:02:35.240 --> 00:02:37.319 I felt I needed to take control of our family. 46 00:02:37.719 --> 00:02:40.439 I would sneak change out of my mom's wallet, ride 47 00:02:40.479 --> 00:02:43.319 my bike to the corner store, buy dinner, and then 48 00:02:43.360 --> 00:02:45.800 sneak the change back into my mom's wallet before she 49 00:02:45.800 --> 00:02:48.759 would wake up. Eventually, my brother and I went to 50 00:02:48.800 --> 00:02:52.000 live with my dad's stepmom and three stepbrothers, but I 51 00:02:52.000 --> 00:02:55.759 didn't learn anything about healthy relationships there either. I became 52 00:02:55.800 --> 00:02:59.199 the object of my older stepbrother's abuse and meanness, with 53 00:02:59.240 --> 00:03:02.120 such pranks as flushing my hamster down the toilet and 54 00:03:02.159 --> 00:03:06.199 putting my cat in the freezer alive. I felt violated 55 00:03:06.240 --> 00:03:08.759 and angry. I became a prisoner in my own home, 56 00:03:09.120 --> 00:03:11.080 running as fast as I could to my bedroom when 57 00:03:11.080 --> 00:03:13.719 I got home from school and wouldn't come out except 58 00:03:13.719 --> 00:03:16.960 for dinner. When my mom remarried, I was finally able 59 00:03:17.000 --> 00:03:19.560 to move back in with her. In high school, I 60 00:03:19.599 --> 00:03:23.680 engaged in many shallow relationships based on physical appearance. It 61 00:03:23.759 --> 00:03:26.479 didn't matter if the boys were drug addicts, alcoholics, or 62 00:03:26.479 --> 00:03:29.479 only wanted sex. I dated them if they were cute. 63 00:03:29.800 --> 00:03:32.199 When my brother became very good looking, I noticed that 64 00:03:32.240 --> 00:03:34.919 girls befriended me to get to him and When the 65 00:03:35.000 --> 00:03:37.560 kids at school learned that we had some famous relatives, 66 00:03:37.599 --> 00:03:41.400 they all wanted to be our friends. These experiences confirmed 67 00:03:41.439 --> 00:03:44.000 my inner feelings that no one really liked me for me. 68 00:03:44.680 --> 00:03:47.360 My fear of rejection made me feel very insecure and 69 00:03:47.439 --> 00:03:51.199 defensive in my search for an authentic relationship as a 70 00:03:51.199 --> 00:03:54.280 broken person in a broken world. I met my husband 71 00:03:54.280 --> 00:03:58.159 not long after graduating high school. He was tall, gorgeous, athletic, 72 00:03:58.240 --> 00:04:01.840 and very quiet. As we did Ken made derogatory comments 73 00:04:01.879 --> 00:04:05.960 about me. This reconfirmed my low self image and feelings 74 00:04:06.000 --> 00:04:09.080 of being different, deformed, and ugly, but I hid these 75 00:04:09.120 --> 00:04:12.360 fears beneath a mask of being fun, hilarious, and outgoing. 76 00:04:12.879 --> 00:04:15.000 I felt that I could earn his love this way 77 00:04:15.080 --> 00:04:18.240 since I had found conditional acceptance in the workplace as 78 00:04:18.240 --> 00:04:21.519 an overachiever and boss pleaser. So I tried my best 79 00:04:21.519 --> 00:04:24.839 to impress Ken. But three months after we moved in together, 80 00:04:25.000 --> 00:04:26.879 I caught Ken and a lie and he admitted he 81 00:04:26.920 --> 00:04:30.040 had cheated on me. I was heartbroken and furious, but 82 00:04:30.079 --> 00:04:33.639 I didn't end the relationship. We eventually got married, but 83 00:04:33.720 --> 00:04:36.639 we both wore masks to hide our weaknesses from each other. 84 00:04:37.120 --> 00:04:41.439 Our relationship was shallow and superficial. I controlled everything. One 85 00:04:41.480 --> 00:04:43.399 day I told Ken it was time to have children. 86 00:04:43.720 --> 00:04:46.240 I figured that was what was missing in our relationship. 87 00:04:46.639 --> 00:04:48.759 But during my pregnancy I gained a lot of weight 88 00:04:48.879 --> 00:04:51.800 and four of my teeth fell out. Ken became disgusted 89 00:04:51.879 --> 00:04:55.279 with my appearance and turned to pornographic videos that only 90 00:04:55.279 --> 00:04:59.199 made me feel more inferior, ugly, and unacceptable. Ken told 91 00:04:59.199 --> 00:05:01.160 me how unhappy he was and how it was all 92 00:05:01.279 --> 00:05:04.040 my fault, but he agreed to go to marriage counseling. 93 00:05:04.399 --> 00:05:07.199 After four months of counseling, Ken admitted he was having 94 00:05:07.240 --> 00:05:10.519 another affair. I hit bottom. I was in shock and 95 00:05:10.560 --> 00:05:14.000 lost all sense of reality. That depressing night, I was 96 00:05:14.120 --> 00:05:17.560 completely emptied of myself. I asked God to fill my 97 00:05:17.680 --> 00:05:20.160 empty body with himself and to show me where I 98 00:05:20.160 --> 00:05:23.759 could learn about Jesus. The following Sunday, I took Lauren, 99 00:05:23.800 --> 00:05:27.040 our daughter now too, to find Jesus. Right down the 100 00:05:27.040 --> 00:05:29.600 street from our home was a large church. As I 101 00:05:29.639 --> 00:05:32.439 made my way up the driveway, I kept yelling to God, 102 00:05:32.480 --> 00:05:34.319 are you sure this is where you want me to go? 103 00:05:35.240 --> 00:05:37.759 As I entered the worship center. Here at Saddleback, the 104 00:05:37.879 --> 00:05:41.120 music was beautiful. Pastor Rick had planned a message on 105 00:05:41.199 --> 00:05:44.920 building better relationships and sex and marriage. This service was 106 00:05:45.040 --> 00:05:48.040 just for me. I tried to write down everything being said, 107 00:05:48.279 --> 00:05:50.759 but there wasn't enough room on the bulletin. I saw 108 00:05:50.800 --> 00:05:53.439 there was a tape table and got that day's message. 109 00:05:53.720 --> 00:05:55.879 Ken listened to it at home, but said it was 110 00:05:55.920 --> 00:05:58.519 too late. He said, if only I had found out 111 00:05:58.560 --> 00:06:01.879 about this church sooner, things may have been different. I 112 00:06:01.959 --> 00:06:04.920 didn't agree. I knew i'd found a home at Saddleback. 113 00:06:05.279 --> 00:06:07.879 Ken and I did try counseling once more through a 114 00:06:07.959 --> 00:06:10.720 lay counselor here at Saddleback, but Ken said there was 115 00:06:10.800 --> 00:06:12.519 no hope of keeping our marriage together. 116 00:06:12.959 --> 00:06:14.480 He was in love with his girlfriend. 117 00:06:14.839 --> 00:06:16.759 He said that he had actually been with her for 118 00:06:16.879 --> 00:06:20.160 four of the six years we were married. A few 119 00:06:20.240 --> 00:06:23.279 days later, in Class one oh one here at Saddleback, 120 00:06:23.399 --> 00:06:26.680 I reflected on this and thought, I hate men, all men. 121 00:06:26.879 --> 00:06:29.279 I am never going to make myself vulnerable to another 122 00:06:29.319 --> 00:06:32.480 man again, and I am never going to trust another 123 00:06:32.519 --> 00:06:33.879 man as long as I live. 124 00:06:34.639 --> 00:06:36.079 But before I could finish. 125 00:06:35.759 --> 00:06:39.480 That thought, Pastor Brett said, everybody, look up here. Your 126 00:06:39.560 --> 00:06:42.360 father in Heaven loves you. He wants you to put 127 00:06:42.399 --> 00:06:46.279 all your trust in one man, Jesus Christ who died 128 00:06:46.319 --> 00:06:48.759 on the cross so you could live forever with him. 129 00:06:49.759 --> 00:06:52.319 I knew God had spoken to me At that very moment. 130 00:06:52.920 --> 00:06:55.519 I committed my life to Christ and I was baptized. 131 00:06:55.560 --> 00:06:59.360 The following weekend. At my baptism, Pastor Brett told me 132 00:06:59.680 --> 00:07:02.920 that Master John of celebrate Recovery would be baptizing me. 133 00:07:03.480 --> 00:07:06.720 I thought, I can't imagine being in recovery, let alone 134 00:07:06.759 --> 00:07:09.439 being able to celebrate it. There were just too many 135 00:07:09.480 --> 00:07:14.519 painful experiences in my life. The following week Ken decided 136 00:07:14.560 --> 00:07:17.959 to leave me and stay with his girlfriend. I felt helpless, 137 00:07:18.040 --> 00:07:21.160 completely rejected, and I fell into a very deep depression. 138 00:07:21.959 --> 00:07:24.600 In despair, I bought two bottles of sleeping pills to 139 00:07:24.720 --> 00:07:28.199 end it all. Relationships just weren't worth the pain, I thought. 140 00:07:28.839 --> 00:07:30.920 But then I got a call from the lay counselor 141 00:07:31.160 --> 00:07:33.600 whom Ken and I had seen a month before. He 142 00:07:33.680 --> 00:07:36.399 said he was following up on our visit at the 143 00:07:36.439 --> 00:07:39.120 lowest point in my life. He was like an angel 144 00:07:39.199 --> 00:07:41.959 sent from God to me. I told him I had 145 00:07:42.000 --> 00:07:44.680 been baptized and that Ken had moved out. I did 146 00:07:44.680 --> 00:07:46.720 not tell him I was going to kill myself right then. 147 00:07:47.480 --> 00:07:49.680 He said he was so sorry about Ken. And that 148 00:07:49.720 --> 00:07:52.279 he had been praying for us. I could not believe 149 00:07:52.319 --> 00:07:55.079 that this person we saw maybe two times was praying 150 00:07:55.120 --> 00:07:58.360 for us. God was reminding me that even though I'd 151 00:07:58.399 --> 00:08:01.480 been rejected by my husband, that God loved me, that 152 00:08:01.600 --> 00:08:04.399 my life does matter, and that God did not want 153 00:08:04.480 --> 00:08:04.920 me dead. 154 00:08:05.279 --> 00:08:06.720 He was not finished with my life. 155 00:08:07.839 --> 00:08:10.560 The next day, I decided to attend celebrate recovery here 156 00:08:10.560 --> 00:08:13.720 at Saddlebach for the first time. I cried all night 157 00:08:13.759 --> 00:08:16.399 that first night, but one lady, Debby, gave me a 158 00:08:16.399 --> 00:08:18.839 big hug and told me she was exactly where I 159 00:08:19.040 --> 00:08:22.639 was two years prior. Another woman, Lisa, gave me a 160 00:08:22.720 --> 00:08:25.079 hug and a phone list of our small group. She 161 00:08:25.120 --> 00:08:27.800 said I could call her any time. I taped my 162 00:08:27.879 --> 00:08:30.920 small group's phone list on my kitchen cabinet and thanked 163 00:08:30.959 --> 00:08:33.799 God for twenty women who knew exactly what I was feeling. 164 00:08:34.240 --> 00:08:37.360 I was no longer alone in my small group. I 165 00:08:37.440 --> 00:08:39.720 began to learn about what it takes to build a 166 00:08:39.759 --> 00:08:44.000 deep relationship with Jesus and healthy relationships with others. I 167 00:08:44.080 --> 00:08:47.200 learned about how our fears keep us from being authentic 168 00:08:47.279 --> 00:08:49.039 with each other, and how to break. 169 00:08:48.840 --> 00:08:50.240 Down the walls of isolation. 170 00:08:51.000 --> 00:08:55.000 Slowly, God began to replace unhealthy beliefs and reactions with 171 00:08:55.159 --> 00:08:58.279 healthy ones. For the first six months, I continued in 172 00:08:58.320 --> 00:09:01.759 a deep depression and a huge pity party, but everyone 173 00:09:01.799 --> 00:09:05.440 in my small group just kept loving me unconditionally. I 174 00:09:05.480 --> 00:09:08.279 had a difficult time understanding this because it was the 175 00:09:08.279 --> 00:09:12.879 first time that I had experienced unconditional love. Based on 176 00:09:12.960 --> 00:09:15.399 Pastor Rick's list of the results of living in a 177 00:09:15.440 --> 00:09:17.679 fallen world, I guess you could say that I was 178 00:09:17.720 --> 00:09:22.679 batting one thousand percent. I experienced them all. Disasters, deformities, 179 00:09:22.720 --> 00:09:27.799 decay and death, distress and disappointment, distance and discord in relationships, 180 00:09:28.080 --> 00:09:31.840 discontent with my life, and spiritual darkness. But I am 181 00:09:31.919 --> 00:09:35.120 so grateful to Jesus Christ for this church family and 182 00:09:35.240 --> 00:09:38.320 my recovery small group. My small group has been a 183 00:09:38.360 --> 00:09:41.679 safe place to develop healthy relationships and recover from the 184 00:09:41.720 --> 00:09:45.039 effects of sin in my past. As a result, I've 185 00:09:45.080 --> 00:09:49.200 seen so many of my broken relationships restored, including with 186 00:09:49.240 --> 00:09:52.960 my mom, my dad, my stepmom, one of my stepbrothers, 187 00:09:53.000 --> 00:09:56.039 and my own brother and sister in law. And God 188 00:09:56.080 --> 00:09:59.200 has used me to help them too. A few years ago, 189 00:09:59.279 --> 00:10:02.559 I gave my test ammonia at celebrate recovery. That very night, 190 00:10:02.639 --> 00:10:05.720 my stepdad had a heart attack. Two days later, my 191 00:10:05.799 --> 00:10:08.320 stepsister and I went to visit him, and I was 192 00:10:08.360 --> 00:10:13.320 able to pray with him and lead him to Christ. 193 00:10:19.480 --> 00:10:22.000 I know now that Jesus will never leave me or 194 00:10:22.039 --> 00:10:26.240 reject me. He loves me unconditionally, and with the security 195 00:10:26.279 --> 00:10:28.960 that comes from that kind of love, I would no 196 00:10:29.080 --> 00:10:31.879 longer run or hide from my feelings. Of course, I 197 00:10:31.919 --> 00:10:35.279 still struggle with issues, but I remember this is not heaven, 198 00:10:35.399 --> 00:10:38.440 which is perfect. It's Earth where we are getting ready 199 00:10:38.480 --> 00:10:41.559 for heaven. I'm grateful that God gave me a choice, 200 00:10:42.000 --> 00:10:45.320 showed me my need for a savior, and demonstrated his 201 00:10:45.480 --> 00:10:49.000 grace to me. Enclosing, I'd like to share three Bible 202 00:10:49.080 --> 00:10:53.039 verses that describe how Jesus Christ has transformed my life. 203 00:10:53.519 --> 00:10:57.480 Psalm one sixteen eight says you, O, Lord, have delivered 204 00:10:57.480 --> 00:11:01.279 my soul from death, my eyes from tears, and my 205 00:11:01.399 --> 00:11:06.000 feet from stumbling. Zephaniah three seventeen says the Lord, your 206 00:11:06.080 --> 00:11:09.840 God is with you. He is mighty to save. He 207 00:11:09.879 --> 00:11:13.200 will take great delight in you. He will quiet you 208 00:11:13.360 --> 00:11:16.720 with his love, he will rejoice over you with singing 209 00:11:17.320 --> 00:11:21.039 and Psalm thirty one fourteen says Lord, I trust you. 210 00:11:21.679 --> 00:11:24.759 I have said you are my God, and my life 211 00:11:25.000 --> 00:11:26.159 is in your hands. 212 00:11:26.399 --> 00:11:26.759 Thank you. 213 00:11:30.639 --> 00:11:32.360 Yes, there is a lot of pain in this world. 214 00:11:32.399 --> 00:11:34.679 There's a lot of suffering in this world. There's a 215 00:11:34.679 --> 00:11:37.840 lot of grief in this world, and it's because of 216 00:11:37.960 --> 00:11:43.519 sin and evil. They are realities. But God is still 217 00:11:43.559 --> 00:11:48.279 in control and he's moving history because it's his story 218 00:11:48.679 --> 00:11:50.440 to where he wants to take it, and he's waiting 219 00:11:50.440 --> 00:11:51.559 for people to come to him. 220 00:11:53.519 --> 00:11:55.279 In the Bible, Jesus is often. 221 00:11:55.080 --> 00:11:59.080 Called the Lamb of God, the Lamb of God because 222 00:11:59.080 --> 00:12:03.120 in the Old Testament, the Jewish nation would sacrifice lambs 223 00:12:03.360 --> 00:12:06.320 to represent an atonement or a payment for the sins 224 00:12:06.320 --> 00:12:09.799 of people on the day of Atonement Yam Kapur, and 225 00:12:09.879 --> 00:12:13.360 they would sacrifice lambs to say, this is paying for 226 00:12:13.440 --> 00:12:18.519 the sins of our lives. And Jesus came to pay 227 00:12:18.519 --> 00:12:20.480 for the sins of everybody, so there's no need for 228 00:12:20.600 --> 00:12:24.879 animal sacrifice. And one day John is baptizing at the 229 00:12:24.919 --> 00:12:27.279 Jordan River and he sees Jesus coming and he says, 230 00:12:27.679 --> 00:12:31.919 behold the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin 231 00:12:32.720 --> 00:12:35.399 of the world, the sin that caused all that pain. 232 00:12:36.080 --> 00:12:40.960 The Lamb of God takes away that sin. There was 233 00:12:40.960 --> 00:12:43.279 a little church in the former Soviet Union that was 234 00:12:43.320 --> 00:12:45.960 given permission to meet in the building that they had 235 00:12:46.000 --> 00:12:47.759 been able to meet in for a long long time, 236 00:12:48.039 --> 00:12:51.000 because obviously, under communism, atheism. 237 00:12:50.559 --> 00:12:51.039 Was the rule. 238 00:12:51.240 --> 00:12:53.679 There is no God, there is no Jesus, and there 239 00:12:53.720 --> 00:12:56.919 is no heaven or hell or anything like that, and. 240 00:12:56.840 --> 00:12:58.120 They were allowed to start meeting. 241 00:12:58.120 --> 00:13:01.039 They'd been faithful believers all through all all that persecution 242 00:13:01.240 --> 00:13:05.799 and torture and pain, and they'd put up with enormous suffering. 243 00:13:06.960 --> 00:13:08.519 During the communist regime. 244 00:13:09.480 --> 00:13:13.039 And when they were finally allowed to put a nameplate 245 00:13:13.120 --> 00:13:16.320 on the building they had been secretly meeting in, they 246 00:13:16.360 --> 00:13:17.519 met one night and they said. 247 00:13:17.399 --> 00:13:20.440 What are we going to call our church? And what 248 00:13:20.480 --> 00:13:23.440 are we going to put on the sign that we 249 00:13:23.600 --> 00:13:24.799 survived all of this? 250 00:13:26.519 --> 00:13:28.639 And one man spoke up and he said, I'm an 251 00:13:28.720 --> 00:13:31.679 artist and I know what to do, and I will 252 00:13:31.679 --> 00:13:34.919 bring a sign tomorrow night. So the next day he 253 00:13:34.960 --> 00:13:38.480 returned with a sign and they nailed it above their 254 00:13:38.519 --> 00:13:41.480 little church, and the sign simply said this. 255 00:13:42.840 --> 00:13:51.080 The Lamb one, the Lamb one God is allowing. 256 00:13:50.679 --> 00:13:53.360 Everything to continue because he is the Lamb of God 257 00:13:53.360 --> 00:13:55.080 who takes away the sin of the world. 258 00:13:55.840 --> 00:13:58.279 So how should I respond? Write these down real quick? 259 00:13:58.440 --> 00:14:01.960 I'm just going to mention themnumber one, since God is 260 00:14:02.000 --> 00:14:06.039 delaying the end of this earth in order to show 261 00:14:06.039 --> 00:14:11.720 his grace. First, receive God's grace daily. Receive it daily. 262 00:14:11.759 --> 00:14:14.240 You don't need grace just to be saved and get 263 00:14:14.279 --> 00:14:17.879 into Heaven. You need grace every day to live God's 264 00:14:17.919 --> 00:14:21.519 grace in your life. And the Bible says this through 265 00:14:21.559 --> 00:14:24.840 the sin of one man, that's Adam. Death began to 266 00:14:24.960 --> 00:14:27.799 rule because of that one man. Because Adam blew it. 267 00:14:27.879 --> 00:14:33.320 Everybody else is in the same boat. But now how 268 00:14:33.399 --> 00:14:36.200 much greater is the result of what one other man, 269 00:14:36.360 --> 00:14:39.960 what has done by one other man? Jesus Christ, and 270 00:14:40.039 --> 00:14:45.120 all who receive God's abundant grace are freely put right 271 00:14:45.200 --> 00:14:49.480 with him and will rule in life through Christ. If 272 00:14:49.480 --> 00:14:52.080 you haven't received that grace, you do it before you 273 00:14:52.159 --> 00:14:59.360 leave today. Number two, Remember this place is temporary. This 274 00:14:59.480 --> 00:15:03.799 planet is not your permanent home. Don't get too caught 275 00:15:03.879 --> 00:15:06.639 up or enamored with the things of this world because 276 00:15:06.679 --> 00:15:07.879 none of it's gonna last. 277 00:15:08.320 --> 00:15:09.679 Nothing you see is gonna last. 278 00:15:09.720 --> 00:15:12.200 The only thing that's gonna last on this planet are 279 00:15:12.440 --> 00:15:16.440 God's Word and people, and so the Bible says this, 280 00:15:17.759 --> 00:15:20.240 I'm here on earth for just a little while, thank God, 281 00:15:20.279 --> 00:15:23.240 with all the pain that's in it. And this world 282 00:15:23.360 --> 00:15:26.639 is not our home. We're looking forward to our everlasting 283 00:15:26.720 --> 00:15:29.440 home in heaven, where there is no injustice, there is 284 00:15:29.440 --> 00:15:31.759 no sorrow, there is no pain, there is no rape, 285 00:15:31.759 --> 00:15:33.600 there is no murder, there is no adultery, there is 286 00:15:33.639 --> 00:15:38.919 no abortion, there is no killing, there is no racial prejudice. 287 00:15:39.159 --> 00:15:41.039 God's taking us to a place a whole lot better. 288 00:15:41.320 --> 00:15:42.600 Now you look at the Word and think this is 289 00:15:42.600 --> 00:15:45.799 a pretty good place. Imagine what a perfect place is like. 290 00:15:47.639 --> 00:15:51.159 Number three, reject man made solutions. 291 00:15:52.840 --> 00:15:54.320 Reject man made solutions. 292 00:15:54.519 --> 00:15:58.399 You see it because you live in a fallen world. 293 00:15:58.600 --> 00:16:01.039 It has a very profound effect on you. And that 294 00:16:01.200 --> 00:16:05.919 effect is this, you have unmet needs because this is 295 00:16:05.919 --> 00:16:11.840 an imperfect place. You have unmet sexual needs. You have 296 00:16:11.960 --> 00:16:18.519 unmet financial needs. You have unmet personal needs. You have 297 00:16:18.639 --> 00:16:22.200 unmet relational needs, the need to be loved and cherished 298 00:16:22.240 --> 00:16:27.679 and understood completely. You have unmet emotional needs because you 299 00:16:27.720 --> 00:16:30.799 live in a fallen planet. You have unmet spiritual needs. 300 00:16:31.480 --> 00:16:36.840 You have unmet physical needs. Now the temptation is well 301 00:16:36.879 --> 00:16:38.799 I'll just go out and figure out a way to 302 00:16:38.919 --> 00:16:42.200 meet these needs in my own way. Do not give 303 00:16:42.200 --> 00:16:44.519 into that temptation man made solutions. 304 00:16:45.159 --> 00:16:46.320 My needs are not being met. 305 00:16:46.360 --> 00:16:48.519 So I'm just going to go out ignore what God says, 306 00:16:48.600 --> 00:16:50.480 and I'm going to do what I need to do 307 00:16:50.679 --> 00:16:54.159 to meet my needs. And God says, that's a major mistake. 308 00:16:55.200 --> 00:16:59.480 The Bible says this, my people have done two evil things. 309 00:17:00.399 --> 00:17:04.240 They have forsaken me the fountain of living water, and 310 00:17:04.279 --> 00:17:07.799 they have dug for themselves cracked cisterns that can hold 311 00:17:07.799 --> 00:17:08.640 no water at all. 312 00:17:09.400 --> 00:17:10.440 Do you know what a cistern is. 313 00:17:11.359 --> 00:17:13.559 You dig a hole in the ground in a clay 314 00:17:13.720 --> 00:17:16.400 area and you put water in it. It's not a well. 315 00:17:17.160 --> 00:17:19.599 A well has water bubbling up from the bottom of 316 00:17:19.640 --> 00:17:22.559 it a spring. A cistern is in a lot of 317 00:17:22.599 --> 00:17:24.880 desert areas. They just dig into the clay in the 318 00:17:24.880 --> 00:17:26.759 ground and then they carry water in and they pour 319 00:17:26.799 --> 00:17:29.640 it in there. And now water over time gets brackish 320 00:17:29.720 --> 00:17:35.599 and fetied, and you know, bacteria and stale. And God says, 321 00:17:35.599 --> 00:17:38.960 wait a minute, I am the source of living water. 322 00:17:39.039 --> 00:17:41.000 I'm the source of your life, and I'm here to 323 00:17:41.079 --> 00:17:41.839 fill you with all this. 324 00:17:42.119 --> 00:17:43.480 And you reject that, and you. 325 00:17:43.440 --> 00:17:47.519 Turn, you go after brackish cistern water which can't even 326 00:17:47.519 --> 00:17:49.599 hold anything, and it's cracked and it leaks out into 327 00:17:49.599 --> 00:17:54.519 the dirt. You say, reject man made solutions. 328 00:17:54.559 --> 00:17:56.960 Come to me now. 329 00:17:57.000 --> 00:18:00.440 If you have not released your needs to God, you 330 00:18:00.519 --> 00:18:01.599 need to do it right now. 331 00:18:02.279 --> 00:18:04.559 So I want us to bow our heads and we're 332 00:18:04.599 --> 00:18:08.839 going to pray. Dear God. I know there are all 333 00:18:08.920 --> 00:18:10.160 kinds of needs in our church. 334 00:18:10.920 --> 00:18:13.200 You know the heart of every person here, and you 335 00:18:13.319 --> 00:18:14.720 know the things that hurt. 336 00:18:14.519 --> 00:18:15.160 In our lives. 337 00:18:15.759 --> 00:18:19.079 You know the pain, You know the suffering, You know 338 00:18:19.160 --> 00:18:21.839 the lonely times, you know the fears and the insecurities. 339 00:18:22.640 --> 00:18:25.759 You know our worries. You know everything about us. You 340 00:18:25.839 --> 00:18:28.039 know the problems we have because we live in a 341 00:18:28.079 --> 00:18:29.720 fallen world. 342 00:18:30.359 --> 00:18:31.000 And you care. 343 00:18:32.680 --> 00:18:35.240 And so I pray that today many will open their 344 00:18:35.279 --> 00:18:39.200 hearts to Jesus Christ for the very first time and say, God, 345 00:18:39.240 --> 00:18:42.440 I want to be in your family before you shut 346 00:18:42.519 --> 00:18:48.319 down this planet and before we go into eternity. Now 347 00:18:48.400 --> 00:18:53.480 you pray, say, Dear God, I open my life to you. 348 00:18:55.880 --> 00:18:59.240 Thank you for loving me, thank you for creating me. 349 00:19:00.400 --> 00:19:06.240 I want to receive your grace today. There are things 350 00:19:06.279 --> 00:19:08.039 in my life. I want to change, but I don't 351 00:19:08.119 --> 00:19:11.319 seem to have the power to do it. I need 352 00:19:11.359 --> 00:19:16.559 a savior. I need to be forgiven, and I ask 353 00:19:16.640 --> 00:19:19.519 you to forgive me. And I ask you to give 354 00:19:19.519 --> 00:19:23.960 me the power to change for good, to be a 355 00:19:24.000 --> 00:19:28.799 better person, not a bitter person. Help me to remember 356 00:19:28.839 --> 00:19:32.119 that this place is temporary and that you made me 357 00:19:32.200 --> 00:19:36.039 to last forever. I want to be a part of 358 00:19:36.039 --> 00:19:41.200 your family, and so, Jesus Christ, I put my trust 359 00:19:41.240 --> 00:19:44.799 and faith in you, not in myself, but in you 360 00:19:46.000 --> 00:19:46.599 to save me. 361 00:19:47.799 --> 00:19:53.920 In your name, I pray Amen. There's one other thing 362 00:19:53.960 --> 00:19:54.440 you need to do. 363 00:19:54.519 --> 00:19:57.440 You might want to write it down on this outline, 364 00:19:57.720 --> 00:19:59.000 and it's reach out. 365 00:19:58.960 --> 00:19:59.839 With God's love. 366 00:20:01.240 --> 00:20:04.440 In other words, once you know the meaning and purpose 367 00:20:04.480 --> 00:20:06.559 of life, and once you know the good news that 368 00:20:06.559 --> 00:20:08.599 we can be forgiven, God says, I want you to 369 00:20:08.599 --> 00:20:09.200 tell others. 370 00:20:09.359 --> 00:20:10.480 That's why I'm waiting. 371 00:20:10.759 --> 00:20:13.759 I'm waiting for your family to step across the line. 372 00:20:13.880 --> 00:20:16.559 I'm waiting for your friends to step across the line. 373 00:20:16.640 --> 00:20:19.240 I'm waiting for your neighbors to step across the line. 374 00:20:19.799 --> 00:20:22.680 And I'm waiting on you to tell them. The Bible 375 00:20:22.720 --> 00:20:26.880 says this, look up here on the screen. Go out 376 00:20:26.920 --> 00:20:33.359 into the world uncorrupted, a breath of fresh air in 377 00:20:33.440 --> 00:20:37.720 the squalid and polluted society. Provide people with a glimpse 378 00:20:37.759 --> 00:20:41.319 of good living and of the living God. Carry the 379 00:20:41.440 --> 00:20:45.720 light giving message into the night. That's why we're here, 380 00:20:46.039 --> 00:20:48.319 to carry the message into the night to people who 381 00:20:48.319 --> 00:20:49.519 haven't heard it yet. 382 00:20:49.839 --> 00:20:51.680 And one more verse on the screen. 383 00:20:52.279 --> 00:20:56.599 Talking about testifying of God's love. You'll sing God's praises 384 00:20:56.640 --> 00:21:01.119 to everyone you meet, testifying. I'm messed up my life 385 00:21:01.599 --> 00:21:03.519 and it wasn't worth I'll tell you. Let me tell 386 00:21:03.519 --> 00:21:06.799 you it wasn't worth it, but God stepped in and 387 00:21:06.920 --> 00:21:18.240 saved me, and I'm alive again. Hi everybody, this is 388 00:21:18.319 --> 00:21:21.480 Rick and I hope you enjoyed today's broadcast. You know, 389 00:21:21.559 --> 00:21:24.240 if you just prayed that prayer for the very first time, 390 00:21:25.200 --> 00:21:28.519 or you just recommitted your life to Jesus again today, 391 00:21:28.680 --> 00:21:31.400 would you let me know about it. There's something real 392 00:21:31.440 --> 00:21:35.079 about sharing your commitment. So write me Rick at pastor 393 00:21:35.160 --> 00:21:37.880 Rick dot com and say, Rick, I prayed that prayer 394 00:21:37.880 --> 00:21:40.880 of commitment, I gave my life to Christ. And I'll 395 00:21:40.880 --> 00:21:43.440 send you some material that will help you on your 396 00:21:43.559 --> 00:21:46.839 journey with Jesus. And I'll also pray for you. God 397 00:21:46.880 --> 00:21:47.319 bless you. 398 00:21:51.400 --> 00:21:54.920 What a great message from Pastor Rick today. There's something 399 00:21:54.960 --> 00:21:58.720 I always take away from his message. Now here's Rick 400 00:21:58.839 --> 00:21:59.839 with today's offer. 401 00:22:00.240 --> 00:22:02.880