"Cultivating a Godly Family"

WEBVTT

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Cause the last will be the first. What a day,

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I'm telling you. This is Jimmy and Annette. We

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want to welcome you to Living Up in a Down World.

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This is episode number 108 of our podcast where

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we get to do life together. And as we always

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say, we show up and throw up. Oh, gosh. I knew

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you would like that. Really? I knew she was going

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to hate that. I was hoping he would not say that.

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I know. I can't help it. The youth pastor in

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me continues to come out. It's not a good word.

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But we do want to welcome you. This is part two.

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We started this last week, and we realized very

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quickly that with our stories and just really

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the heart of what we want to say, what we believe

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the Lord would have us together explore, we realized

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quickly we're just going to have to do this in

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two parts. So here we are today. If you're new

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to the church, you're a guest today, first of

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all, welcome. You're sort of jumping on a moving

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train here because you're like, what are they

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doing up there? This is not normal for us. We

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do a podcast called Living Up in a Down World.

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Now this will be 108 episodes of it. Actually,

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our church, we have several podcasts that we

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have that we do out of this church because we

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feel like the Lord's given us technology, and

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we can either let the enemy have it or we can

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take it back and redeem it for the cause. Amen.

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And for good things. So that's our heart and

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technology. So we've been talking about last

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week, we talked about marriage and we talked

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about our relationship. We shared some things,

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some hard stuff too. I mean, it's not all, it's

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not all beautiful, is it? No. I mean, it's beautiful

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in the bigger thing, but in the smaller, it hasn't

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always been beautiful. It can get wanky though.

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For example, tell them what happened this last

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week. So last Sunday was amazing. So we had a

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great Sunday. We had so many people, so many

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of you and people online respond to our podcast

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from last Sunday. We had amazing testimonies

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that came out of that through email, through

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text, through calls. It was just overwhelming,

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which is another reason why we knew we probably

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needed to do this again. But on Monday, oh. The

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enemy came at us with everything he could. And

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it wasn't with people. It was just this, have

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you ever had a Monday that you're just like,

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you wish you could just have a do -over? It was

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one of those Mondays. I went to work, and you

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stayed at home. He's taking a Sabbath on Mondays.

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And I went to work, and when I came back, I mean,

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he had... A wonderful day in the Lord. He got

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to play his guitar all day without interruption.

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So you make it sound like it's a play day. Well,

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it is a play day. It's a Sabbath. I was playing

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for an audience of one. Right. And not Mr. Chevy.

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I mean the Lord. Doing what you love to do. Right.

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And so I came back. I came in. And it was like

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we were just. On each other's nerves the whole

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day and night. It was terrific. We were edgy.

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Very edgy. It was bizarre. I felt frustrated

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and angry, but not at her. In general, I thought,

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what is going on? It was literally like something

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was just off. And she was the same way, but we

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didn't come together and talk about it because

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we needed to stew in it and be silly. And ignore

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each other and go in another room. Yeah, I just

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thought, okay, all right. And we had such a good

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day Sunday. I mean, we had our Israel meeting

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last Sunday night, too. So we had a really long

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day, but it was such a good, exciting day. And

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then, boom. This is what happens, though. When

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you have a victory, the enemy will come in when

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you let... your guard down and he will come in

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like a freight train. And that's what he did

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with us. And we recognized it the second day.

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Yeah, that was what was good. We recognized it.

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We called it out. Because here's the thing that's

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so powerful. I think Tommy Hayes was here last

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week. He said, you got to reveal. You got to

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expose what the enemy's doing. If you don't reveal

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it, you can't heal it. You know what I'm saying?

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And so we called it out. We had a conversation.

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I guess it was Monday night. Monday. And we said,

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all right. Okay. No, I think it was Tuesday.

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Wasn't it? I think it was. Anyway. It's a blur.

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This week was a blur. It is kind of a blur. We

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had a big week. We had people in town from all

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over the United States hosting. We hosted pastors.

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A lot of stuff going on. So, yeah, whatever day

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it was, we recognized it. And I just said, okay,

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what is going on? I said, have you noticed we've

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been on edge with each other? That was like the

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most obvious question ever. And she said, yeah,

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absolutely. I said, how? I think this is demonic.

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I think this is a spiritual attack. Now we're

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going to own our part in it. You know, when we

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cooperate with the enemy, you know, we're going

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to own it and repent. But also it was like, all

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right, we need to kick the devil out of our home.

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And so we went to war. We just decided, so we

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prayed, and we just said, in the name of Jesus,

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we bind the enemy from our lives, from our relationship.

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Lord, we know the enemy hits us when we're weakest,

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and we're typically weakest after a really good

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spiritual breakthrough. Have you ever noticed

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when you have a win, that's when you get hit

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the hardest, and we're the only vulnerable humans

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on the planet in the room? Okay, a couple of

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you. All right. So maybe you'll get something

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out of this. So whenever you score a touchdown

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spiritually, spiritually speaking, and you seem

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to have something, a good move forward or a good

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step forward, it's like you're vulnerable. It's

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like me in high school, number 45, and the whistle

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blows. I'm standing in the end zone, and I drop

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my guard, and some linebacker takes my head off,

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which happened. And it's because I let my guard

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down. But if anything we should have learned

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after all these years is that when something

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really good happens, then we're vulnerable to

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the enemy's attack because we tend to... Just

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want to veg out and relax. And I got to tell

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you something. You can relax and rest, but keep

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your guard up by all means. Right. I mean, so

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we recognize it. Thank the Lord. We dealt with

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it. And then the very next morning, we both had

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horrific. horrific, demonic nightmares. And that

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doesn't happen a lot. But again, when you're

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vulnerable. So after we had done business, after

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we did spiritual warfare for our family, broke

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any agreements we made with the enemy about who

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we are or what's going on, that very night, by

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the next morning, we both woke up with horrific.

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that were just demonic and evil and violent and

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vile. You know, the enemy hates us. He does.

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He hates anybody that's... You know, moving the

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needle. How do you say that? Moving the needle.

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Or moving the ball down the field, as you say.

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Football. I'm not a football fan. But it's true.

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If you're making strides, spiritually speaking,

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like maybe answer prayer or you're growing in

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one area, you've got revelation, boy, the enemy

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will come in and do anything. He can to dismantle

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everything, every kind of revelation or any kind

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of prayer that was answered. He will try to dismantle

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that. And that's why we have to grow up. This

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is why we do WWJD is because we want you to be

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armed and be discipled and learn what the word

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says, how to live in this culture as a Christian.

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And it's so important to just not come to church

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on Sunday mornings. Check the box. And check

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the box. And that is it. I had this analogy earlier

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in the service in that if you just ate one meal

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every week on Sunday morning, you had your meal.

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What would you look like and feel like all week

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long if you only had that one meal? And to me,

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that's indicative of the meal that we get when

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we read the Word. If we just come to church or

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we just read the Word just on Sunday mornings,

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we're missing out on so much good food that He

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wants to give us to nourish us spiritually. Well

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said. I have a theme. Oh, you do? Listen to this.

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Yeah, amen. That's absolutely true. And this

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goes right along in line with that. First of

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all, one note, and you'll see it on the screen.

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Spiritual warfare is being waged upon the family.

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The enemy knows that if he can disintegrate,

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disintegrate the family, disintegrate, pull us

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apart, then he will take, he will take that ground.

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He will go after that. He'll backfill every inch

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of space that we give up to him, every inch of

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territory we acquiesce to or capitulate to. He

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will backfill it with his own devices and his

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own people and his own demonic strategies. And

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so he's after the family. Note this. Satan hates.

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This is kind of what you said. Satan hates and

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detests. Anything and anyone whose primary or

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sole purpose is to honor, relate to, and glorify

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God. He hates us. And he hates the family, especially

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because the family becomes the reflection of

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the kingdom of God and the earth. That was the

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whole point. The reason God gave us families

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and established that from the very beginning

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wasn't just so we would be happy or we would

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have drama to contend with or whatever your family

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generates. It was actually his plan to reflect

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and radiate his image and his life with Christ

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and the bride. The groom, Jesus Christ, the bride.

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the church. And it's a reflection of that. And

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so we have this responsibility that we don't

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talk about enough, frankly, that actually our

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relationship and our relationship with our kids

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and our family is to glorify, honor, and point

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people to Jesus, point people to God. But it's

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also to reflect him and to literally set up a

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guard against the enemy who wants to destroy

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you. This means we have to be vigilant. I want

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to share a couple of scriptures. Is that good?

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John 10 .10. We always like to camp out in the

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back half of this verse, by the way. You'll see

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it on the screen. We're all about the back. I'm

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going to reverse engineer this and read the last

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part of the verse, and then we'll talk about

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the first part. Look at the last half of John

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10 .10. This is where we spike the ball and we

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have a great time. Jesus says, I came that they

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may have life and have it. Abundantly. Woo -hoo.

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We're all excited about that, right? Abundant

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life. Overflow. That's what that literally means.

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It means to the full. It means extreme. It's

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like when you were at the gas station the other

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day and you were gassing your own car, which

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you rarely do, by the way. I know. Rarely do.

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I was at a gas station there. Rarely. And I put

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the pump. And then I, or whatever you do. It's

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called a pump. Yeah, whatever. And then I sat

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in the car and I was like on my phone just kind

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of wasting time because it was hot outside. I

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was just kind of wasting. All of a sudden I kept

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hearing something running. Like water. Like water.

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And it dawned on me. I mean, my gas, it usually

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costs like $38. It was $65. That's how much it

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went. I know, crazy. But that's the kind of life

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Jesus wants to give us. Wow. It was really bad.

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I've never had that happen. So that was an illustration

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of overflow. Overflow. That's what that is. That's

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what God wants to do with us. More than enough.

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So he says, I came that they may have. See what

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I'm doing? I know. I see what you're doing. I

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came that they may have life and have it to the

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overflow of the abundance. We love that. But

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we've got to read the first part, too. Jesus

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did a precursor here when he said, the thief.

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Who's the thief, you think? You said it, you

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got it. The thief, Satan comes only to steal

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and kill and destroy. This is what he is about.

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This is his MO in your life and in your family's

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life. And some of you would go, amen, brother,

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we get it. But others don't get it. And they

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don't know why they're living a life that tends

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to be beset. That means like you have setback

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after setback. after setback, and you can't figure

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it out. Because we're Western thinkers by nature,

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we're Greek in descent, we're Western. So we

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think in terms of rationale. We think in terms

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of reason and logic. But here's the deal. The

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spiritual world doesn't play according to our

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logic and reason. Did you know that most of the

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known world today, most of the population...

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of our world today actually has a category for

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spiritual warfare and spiritual activity. But

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most of the more Western thinking countries do

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not. We tend to think in terms of logic, reason.

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If it doesn't make sense, then I don't have a

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category for it. But I have to tell you something.

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You better have a category for spiritual warfare

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and a category for the enemy, the devil, and

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his hordes, the demons, because they are real.

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And they are after you and they're after your

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family. And they're especially after our kids

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and the next generation. And that's why we've

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got to be wise as we talk about family. We have

00:13:36.860 --> 00:13:39.940
to talk about the real enemy of our souls. Ephesians

00:13:39.940 --> 00:13:44.299
6, 12. For we do not wrestle against flesh and

00:13:44.299 --> 00:13:47.000
blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities,

00:13:47.220 --> 00:13:50.080
against the cosmic powers over this present darkness,

00:13:50.200 --> 00:13:53.460
against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly

00:13:53.460 --> 00:13:58.409
places. This is what you are up against. And

00:13:58.409 --> 00:14:00.269
I want to talk to the men for just a minute because,

00:14:00.330 --> 00:14:03.830
men, we have a responsibility here. I mean, I

00:14:03.830 --> 00:14:05.549
don't know a man in this room who doesn't thank

00:14:05.549 --> 00:14:07.629
God that their wife is in love with Jesus and

00:14:07.629 --> 00:14:10.129
on fire and reading their Bible. But here's the

00:14:10.129 --> 00:14:13.230
thing, men. You have been given an assignment.

00:14:14.029 --> 00:14:17.090
And that assignment is to lead your home spiritually.

00:14:17.809 --> 00:14:22.190
To lead your home. That means that we have to

00:14:22.190 --> 00:14:26.529
lead out. We have to take those moments and we

00:14:26.529 --> 00:14:29.129
have to submit them to Christ. We have to set

00:14:29.129 --> 00:14:32.269
the pace. We have to set the example. And I want

00:14:32.269 --> 00:14:33.629
to say something because I want to help somebody

00:14:33.629 --> 00:14:36.289
here today. You need to understand, ladies, your

00:14:36.289 --> 00:14:38.710
husband is up against everything we just read.

00:14:38.870 --> 00:14:41.549
He's up against rulers. And we're talking about

00:14:41.549 --> 00:14:45.269
spiritual rulers, authorities, spiritual authorities,

00:14:45.370 --> 00:14:49.549
the cosmic powers over this present darkness.

00:14:50.669 --> 00:14:52.669
There's a reason we named our podcast Living

00:14:52.669 --> 00:14:54.929
Up in a Down World. We're talking about that

00:14:54.929 --> 00:14:57.850
darkness that we have to fight through and dwell

00:14:57.850 --> 00:15:01.870
in. And then against the spiritual forces of

00:15:01.870 --> 00:15:04.830
evil in the heavenly places, your husband's assignment

00:15:04.830 --> 00:15:08.090
is to protect you and provide for you and for

00:15:08.090 --> 00:15:11.200
your family. And it is not an easy job. And the

00:15:11.200 --> 00:15:14.120
culture has sold us a lie about toxic masculinity.

00:15:15.259 --> 00:15:17.919
I love that Reagan Green from Patriot Academy

00:15:17.919 --> 00:15:19.879
is going to come teach on that. He's a prime

00:15:19.879 --> 00:15:22.960
example of someone who's not afraid and who is

00:15:22.960 --> 00:15:25.340
learning what it means to step up as a husband

00:15:25.340 --> 00:15:29.139
and carry the ball. And so, men, I have an assignment

00:15:29.139 --> 00:15:30.860
for you, and ladies, I have an assignment for

00:15:30.860 --> 00:15:34.519
you. I'll make this real quick. Brothers. You

00:15:34.519 --> 00:15:36.639
may have tried to be spiritual before in terms

00:15:36.639 --> 00:15:38.399
of, hey, we're going to start praying for our

00:15:38.399 --> 00:15:40.179
meals. And you may have done it for a while,

00:15:40.200 --> 00:15:42.399
but then maybe you got out of the habit or you

00:15:42.399 --> 00:15:44.600
stopped. Or maybe you didn't feel like it was

00:15:44.600 --> 00:15:48.100
impressive or it wasn't making a big impact and

00:15:48.100 --> 00:15:50.580
maybe your kid snickered when you did it. But

00:15:50.580 --> 00:15:54.090
here's the thing. Brothers, everything we do

00:15:54.090 --> 00:15:57.370
in order to honor God in our life is actually

00:15:57.370 --> 00:16:00.929
a win in heaven. It's actually a win for your

00:16:00.929 --> 00:16:03.590
children's souls. And it's a win for your wife's

00:16:03.590 --> 00:16:06.549
soul. When we begin to step out, even if we're

00:16:06.549 --> 00:16:09.570
awkward, even if it doesn't feel natural. Why

00:16:09.570 --> 00:16:11.950
would it feel natural if it's supernatural? It

00:16:11.950 --> 00:16:14.429
doesn't. So when we step into these things, we

00:16:14.429 --> 00:16:16.450
feel awkward, especially if we haven't done it

00:16:16.450 --> 00:16:18.710
before. So here's what I'm going to do. Two assignments.

00:16:18.830 --> 00:16:21.419
Men. I'm going to ask you to take the lead in

00:16:21.419 --> 00:16:24.080
your home concerning spiritual things. I'm not

00:16:24.080 --> 00:16:25.580
saying you've got to become a Bible scholar.

00:16:26.279 --> 00:16:29.620
I'm just saying pray for your food and pray for

00:16:29.620 --> 00:16:32.460
your family in front of your family at home.

00:16:33.240 --> 00:16:35.220
And it doesn't matter if your kids are snickering

00:16:35.220 --> 00:16:37.299
or they're going, what? We've never done this

00:16:37.299 --> 00:16:40.039
before. It's okay. And wives, I'm going to ask

00:16:40.039 --> 00:16:43.879
a favor of you. Sometimes when we step out into

00:16:43.879 --> 00:16:46.940
things that we're not used to doing, It can be

00:16:46.940 --> 00:16:49.539
met with sarcasm. It can be met with resistance

00:16:49.539 --> 00:16:53.240
if we haven't done it before. Or it can be, oh,

00:16:53.539 --> 00:16:57.220
he's done this before, but it didn't last. So

00:16:57.220 --> 00:16:59.399
I'm going to ask a favor, wives. If your men

00:16:59.399 --> 00:17:03.539
will take a chance and step out, I'm asking you

00:17:03.539 --> 00:17:05.940
to come alongside and hold their arms up. Could

00:17:05.940 --> 00:17:09.240
we do that? Could we try that? Could we experiment?

00:17:09.579 --> 00:17:12.400
Let's do some real experimentation. What would

00:17:12.400 --> 00:17:14.700
it look like if your husband began to lead out

00:17:14.700 --> 00:17:17.319
in your home spiritually? Now, we have an example

00:17:17.319 --> 00:17:19.319
of what can go wrong with that. Can you share

00:17:19.319 --> 00:17:21.539
that story? Yes, we had a couple in our church

00:17:21.539 --> 00:17:25.259
in Abilene, and the wife came to us and asked

00:17:25.259 --> 00:17:27.460
us if we would disciple. Actually came to me.

00:17:27.500 --> 00:17:29.660
Came to you. The man thing. That's true. And

00:17:29.660 --> 00:17:34.319
asked, well, I was with you, but asked if he

00:17:34.319 --> 00:17:37.480
would disciple her husband because he's not being

00:17:37.480 --> 00:17:40.319
the leader in the family. And so Jimmy said,

00:17:40.440 --> 00:17:41.940
of course, you know, I'll meet with him and see

00:17:41.940 --> 00:17:44.319
if he wants me to disciple him. You began to

00:17:44.319 --> 00:17:47.380
meet with him. He started getting strong in his

00:17:47.380 --> 00:17:51.799
faith. A little time passed and she came to us

00:17:51.799 --> 00:17:55.359
and she was upset because he was too strong.

00:17:55.619 --> 00:17:59.319
And she, and the reason, it was because she was

00:17:59.319 --> 00:18:03.140
a dominant woman who was wanting, what she thought

00:18:03.140 --> 00:18:06.099
was that she wanted her husband to be a leader.

00:18:06.180 --> 00:18:09.720
But then when he did become one, It threatened

00:18:09.720 --> 00:18:14.720
her. And so she ended up wanting a divorce from

00:18:14.720 --> 00:18:18.220
him over this, the very thing she wanted. God

00:18:18.220 --> 00:18:20.240
gave it to her, and then she wanted a divorce.

00:18:20.319 --> 00:18:22.339
They ended up getting back together. I don't

00:18:22.339 --> 00:18:23.880
know where they're at in their spiritual walk

00:18:23.880 --> 00:18:27.240
now, but I do know that was just an example of

00:18:27.240 --> 00:18:31.220
how women, we need to, even if we have that dominant

00:18:31.220 --> 00:18:34.000
personality, which I have that dominant personality.

00:18:34.539 --> 00:18:38.700
Stop. I know I do. I didn't know that. But how

00:18:38.700 --> 00:18:41.859
we need to be able to submit to the leadership

00:18:41.859 --> 00:18:46.920
that God puts on our husbands and not try to

00:18:46.920 --> 00:18:49.720
dumb them down or not. And we need to release

00:18:49.720 --> 00:18:53.140
them to God and let God work with them and not

00:18:53.140 --> 00:18:57.680
keep them from what God has for them. And so

00:18:57.680 --> 00:19:01.890
that was a real tough. situation we went through

00:19:01.890 --> 00:19:03.490
with that family for a long time. And it's happened

00:19:03.490 --> 00:19:05.869
more than once. That's one that was just on our

00:19:05.869 --> 00:19:08.529
mind. But we've seen this happen before. And

00:19:08.529 --> 00:19:11.309
our ladies will say, gosh, I really want my husband

00:19:11.309 --> 00:19:13.309
to be a spiritual leader. Then when he starts

00:19:13.309 --> 00:19:16.049
doing it, it's met with resistance. And so I

00:19:16.049 --> 00:19:18.829
just want to throw that out as a caution. If

00:19:18.829 --> 00:19:21.089
you've been frustrated with your husband, you

00:19:21.089 --> 00:19:23.809
may be setting him up for failure. So we have

00:19:23.809 --> 00:19:25.529
to work together. We have to put this before

00:19:25.529 --> 00:19:28.490
Jesus and say, all right, am I holding something

00:19:28.490 --> 00:19:30.789
back? Am I doing that because he didn't lead

00:19:30.789 --> 00:19:33.130
out early on? So I started leading out, and I've

00:19:33.130 --> 00:19:34.789
gotten used to doing that to the point where

00:19:34.789 --> 00:19:37.130
now I'm not willing to actually take a step and

00:19:37.130 --> 00:19:40.630
let him or come alongside one another. And we'll

00:19:40.630 --> 00:19:42.309
talk about that in just a minute. Listen to this.

00:19:42.369 --> 00:19:44.789
This is a quote from John Eldredge. You live

00:19:44.789 --> 00:19:49.380
in a world at war. Spiritual attack must be a

00:19:49.380 --> 00:19:52.880
category you think in or you will misunderstand

00:19:52.880 --> 00:19:55.980
more than half of what happens in your marriage.

00:19:56.240 --> 00:19:59.940
And I would add in family. Because really, we're

00:19:59.940 --> 00:20:03.180
under assault. The family is under attack. And

00:20:03.180 --> 00:20:05.950
if we don't have a category for that... then

00:20:05.950 --> 00:20:07.589
we're going to live blind, we're going to fly

00:20:07.589 --> 00:20:10.170
blind, and we're going to wonder why weird things

00:20:10.170 --> 00:20:13.769
keep happening, setbacks keep happening. And

00:20:13.769 --> 00:20:15.809
they are spiritual attacks because there's a

00:20:15.809 --> 00:20:18.789
scheme, a strategy against your marriage and

00:20:18.789 --> 00:20:21.829
against your family. And it's designed to take

00:20:21.829 --> 00:20:24.250
you out and your kids as well. 2 Corinthians

00:20:24.250 --> 00:20:27.109
10 .3, For though we walk in the flesh, we are

00:20:27.109 --> 00:20:30.549
not waging war according to the flesh. So there

00:20:30.549 --> 00:20:33.549
is no human we're fighting against. We don't

00:20:33.549 --> 00:20:36.829
have a human enemy. We have a creature, a created

00:20:36.829 --> 00:20:40.390
being that is an enemy named Satan and his hordes

00:20:40.390 --> 00:20:44.349
of demons. That's the real enemy. When we recognize

00:20:44.349 --> 00:20:47.410
that, we can navigate this a lot better. 1 Peter

00:20:47.410 --> 00:20:51.789
5, 8, and 9. Be sober -minded. That means be

00:20:51.789 --> 00:20:56.210
aware. Be watchful. Your adversary, the devil,

00:20:56.250 --> 00:20:59.349
prowls around like a roaring lion seeking someone

00:20:59.349 --> 00:21:05.720
to devour. Verse 9, he gives what to do. Resist

00:21:05.720 --> 00:21:09.559
him. It's amazing how the enemy has to flee when

00:21:09.559 --> 00:21:14.039
we stand and resist. Resist him. Firm in your

00:21:14.039 --> 00:21:16.599
faith, knowing that the same kinds of suffering

00:21:16.599 --> 00:21:19.799
are being experienced by your brotherhood throughout

00:21:19.799 --> 00:21:22.579
the world. So we want you to know, you are not

00:21:22.579 --> 00:21:24.740
alone in this. It's so funny. We think we're

00:21:24.740 --> 00:21:26.880
exceptional when we're getting attacked. It's

00:21:26.880 --> 00:21:30.180
like, oh. I'm so under attack right now. And

00:21:30.180 --> 00:21:31.960
then your best friend goes, yeah, me too. And

00:21:31.960 --> 00:21:33.960
then your other friend says, yeah, me too. I

00:21:33.960 --> 00:21:35.880
mean, if we start to compare notes, we realize

00:21:35.880 --> 00:21:38.819
the enemy is trying to destroy our families and

00:21:38.819 --> 00:21:41.920
our marriages. Can I get an amen? He's also trying

00:21:41.920 --> 00:21:46.140
to destroy your future family. And if you're

00:21:46.140 --> 00:21:48.779
not married right now, you're single. You wish

00:21:48.779 --> 00:21:50.819
you weren't, but you are now. It is what it is.

00:21:51.259 --> 00:21:55.180
But be praying. Begin to pray and sow the seeds

00:21:55.180 --> 00:21:58.880
for the relationship and the marriage that you

00:21:58.880 --> 00:22:00.799
will someday have and the family that you will

00:22:00.799 --> 00:22:03.619
someday have. And if you think it's too late

00:22:03.619 --> 00:22:05.859
for you, that maybe too much has gone bad, too

00:22:05.859 --> 00:22:08.440
much has gone wrong, we've got good news for

00:22:08.440 --> 00:22:14.339
you today. Yes. There was a story we didn't tell.

00:22:15.600 --> 00:22:17.740
So we're going to talk about our first vacation

00:22:17.740 --> 00:22:20.640
as a family. Do you all remember the movie Christmas

00:22:20.640 --> 00:22:24.160
Vacation? Yes, very similar to that one. So anyway,

00:22:24.220 --> 00:22:26.319
go ahead and tell that story. He's going to tell

00:22:26.319 --> 00:22:30.400
on himself. Yeah, this is bad. So we'd been married

00:22:30.400 --> 00:22:33.559
a few weeks, like a month. No, really? Was it?

00:22:33.660 --> 00:22:36.799
I don't know. She's the numbers person. I don't

00:22:36.799 --> 00:22:38.200
know. It was longer than that. Okay, we were

00:22:38.200 --> 00:22:39.559
married for a while. I don't know how long. It

00:22:39.559 --> 00:22:42.829
was in the first year for sure. Yes. So anyway,

00:22:43.210 --> 00:22:45.789
so I was working for Buckner Children's Home

00:22:45.789 --> 00:22:48.089
just raking in the dough. I'm telling you, we

00:22:48.089 --> 00:22:50.190
were broke. We were so broke. We were busted.

00:22:50.549 --> 00:22:53.250
We were just surviving at that point in time.

00:22:53.430 --> 00:22:56.630
And I just was blessed to inherit two cherubs,

00:22:56.630 --> 00:22:59.369
two little angels, an 11 and a 13 -year -old.

00:22:59.609 --> 00:23:01.750
They were angels until we got married. Then they

00:23:01.750 --> 00:23:04.710
grew horns and a tail. And so they began to push

00:23:04.710 --> 00:23:08.519
every boundary that we had. And that was all

00:23:08.519 --> 00:23:11.779
leading up to our first family vacation. So here's

00:23:11.779 --> 00:23:14.059
how the vacation happened. So because I was a

00:23:14.059 --> 00:23:15.900
caseworker and I had some time during the day,

00:23:16.000 --> 00:23:18.839
there was a radio station in Lubbock, Texas that

00:23:18.839 --> 00:23:21.519
were running these contests every day. And if

00:23:21.519 --> 00:23:23.279
you were the third caller, it would be the first

00:23:23.279 --> 00:23:25.579
caller, be the fifth caller. And I was just on

00:23:25.579 --> 00:23:29.779
speed dial. And I was winning. I was on a streak.

00:23:30.240 --> 00:23:32.500
The DJ was like. Yeah, they knew who we were.

00:23:32.579 --> 00:23:33.660
They were like, oh, it's Pruitt again. Okay,

00:23:33.660 --> 00:23:37.480
Jimmy Pruitt again wins. It was crazy. And what

00:23:37.480 --> 00:23:40.039
was it? We were winning food because we needed

00:23:40.039 --> 00:23:42.519
to eat. Oh, Derwiener's Snitzel, Taco Villa,

00:23:42.640 --> 00:23:45.279
McDonald's. I mean, we were high on the hog,

00:23:45.359 --> 00:23:49.559
folks. I mean, we ate really bad for a long time.

00:23:50.000 --> 00:23:52.980
But we were eating, right? I mean, you're just

00:23:52.980 --> 00:23:55.359
happy, right? Thank you, Lord, for providing

00:23:55.359 --> 00:23:58.000
Taco Villa today. I love this. Derwiener's Snitzel.

00:23:58.480 --> 00:24:01.259
So we were doing that, and I was just raking

00:24:01.259 --> 00:24:03.660
in. But then they had this big contest where

00:24:03.660 --> 00:24:06.579
they took all the winners from the past, they

00:24:06.579 --> 00:24:09.160
put them in a big thing, Tumblr, and they were

00:24:09.160 --> 00:24:11.440
going to draw a name, and you'd win a family

00:24:11.440 --> 00:24:15.059
vacation. And so we all met, and they invited

00:24:15.059 --> 00:24:16.720
everybody to come, and guess what? It was at

00:24:16.720 --> 00:24:19.700
Derwiener Schnitzel. This is high class, folks.

00:24:19.759 --> 00:24:23.299
I'm talking amazing. So we're at Derwiener Schnitzel

00:24:23.299 --> 00:24:25.920
with our family and a thousand other families.

00:24:26.660 --> 00:24:29.799
played things, and it was a big, fun thing. And

00:24:29.799 --> 00:24:31.839
they had the radio DJs show up, and they did

00:24:31.839 --> 00:24:33.539
a broadcast from there, and they were going to

00:24:33.539 --> 00:24:37.140
draw names. Well, my daughter was almost as prolific

00:24:37.140 --> 00:24:40.319
as I was, Alicia. Here she was, 13, 14 years

00:24:40.319 --> 00:24:42.660
old, and she's winning, too. She's doing well.

00:24:42.880 --> 00:24:45.140
So they do the name drawing, and we actually

00:24:45.140 --> 00:24:47.259
are going, we're going to win. I know we're going

00:24:47.259 --> 00:24:50.680
to win. We're going to win. And they called.

00:24:51.539 --> 00:24:54.140
Alicia's name. My daughter. We won. She won.

00:24:54.380 --> 00:24:56.720
And so she runs up. Yeah, yeah, yeah. You've

00:24:56.720 --> 00:24:59.720
won a family vacation. And, you know, you don't

00:24:59.720 --> 00:25:01.859
always get the details when they send you to

00:25:01.859 --> 00:25:05.460
these places. If you've ever won anything. There's

00:25:05.460 --> 00:25:07.259
some fine print down there that I should have.

00:25:07.500 --> 00:25:11.059
So here we go. It was a trip for four to fly

00:25:11.059 --> 00:25:14.759
to with Southwest to San Antonio and go to SeaWorld.

00:25:14.960 --> 00:25:16.779
I told you we're in a tall column right now.

00:25:17.540 --> 00:25:20.059
What? We were in tall cotton. Oh, yeah. We were

00:25:20.059 --> 00:25:21.680
excited. We were living high on the hog. Yes.

00:25:21.940 --> 00:25:23.980
But we were excited and happy. We get to take

00:25:23.980 --> 00:25:26.960
our first family. Flat busted, but now God's

00:25:26.960 --> 00:25:29.680
provided. Yeah, God's providing, right. So we're

00:25:29.680 --> 00:25:31.700
on the airplane. We fly. We get the rental car,

00:25:32.039 --> 00:25:34.759
blah, blah, blah. It's all happening. We're coming

00:25:34.759 --> 00:25:38.470
into San Antonio. Kind of exploring. And we're

00:25:38.470 --> 00:25:40.930
excited. This is great. What a cool thing. And

00:25:40.930 --> 00:25:43.130
the fine print we didn't read is there was no

00:25:43.130 --> 00:25:45.250
money. There was like, we had to pay for our

00:25:45.250 --> 00:25:47.009
food. We had to pay for all of our food, which

00:25:47.009 --> 00:25:49.289
we couldn't afford. The flight was free and the

00:25:49.289 --> 00:25:52.390
hotel and the tickets to SeaWorld. But other

00:25:52.390 --> 00:25:54.589
than that, you're on your own. So we were going

00:25:54.589 --> 00:25:57.109
to go, hey, remember that place in San Antonio

00:25:57.109 --> 00:25:59.470
called the Time Machine? Time Machine. Do you

00:25:59.470 --> 00:26:01.789
all remember that place? How many of y 'all have

00:26:01.789 --> 00:26:03.750
been there? Raise your hand. Okay, so y 'all

00:26:03.750 --> 00:26:07.150
understand. We were excited. I had been there

00:26:07.150 --> 00:26:09.549
before, years before. And you were telling us

00:26:09.549 --> 00:26:10.789
how amazing it was. And I was telling everybody

00:26:10.789 --> 00:26:13.029
how wonderful it is. And we've got to go. And

00:26:13.029 --> 00:26:15.710
you're going to experience these. Our kids are

00:26:15.710 --> 00:26:17.069
going to experience a lot of fun. So we drive

00:26:17.069 --> 00:26:20.329
from West. San Antonio, all the way back over,

00:26:20.450 --> 00:26:22.849
I think it's on 35, off the 35, we're over there.

00:26:23.150 --> 00:26:25.509
And our kids are excited. We go in there, we

00:26:25.509 --> 00:26:29.509
sit down, and somebody in a weird costume comes

00:26:29.509 --> 00:26:31.609
and waits on us, and he's in character, and we're

00:26:31.609 --> 00:26:34.549
like, okay. So he waits on us, he throws down

00:26:34.549 --> 00:26:36.809
the menu, and he says, I'll go get you some waters.

00:26:37.029 --> 00:26:40.990
And we open it, and the cost, the price was ridiculous.

00:26:41.210 --> 00:26:42.309
We could not afford it. Y 'all remember that

00:26:42.309 --> 00:26:44.349
part about that place? You're paying for all

00:26:44.349 --> 00:26:46.930
those costumes, I think. So I'm like, oh, man.

00:26:47.519 --> 00:26:49.579
I turned to Annette and I said, honey, we don't

00:26:49.579 --> 00:26:50.940
have this. We don't have the money. We've got

00:26:50.940 --> 00:26:54.299
to eat all weekend or wash dishes or something.

00:26:54.380 --> 00:26:56.680
I don't know. And she said, you're right. We

00:26:56.680 --> 00:26:59.200
need to go somewhere else. So we told the kids.

00:26:59.220 --> 00:27:01.619
We broke the news to the kids. Shut your menus.

00:27:01.779 --> 00:27:05.269
We're going to walk out. And you talk about...

00:27:05.269 --> 00:27:08.130
They were mortified. Mortified. I mean, mortified.

00:27:08.490 --> 00:27:11.210
That we did... As if everybody in the room knew

00:27:11.210 --> 00:27:13.329
who they were and we're going to make fun of

00:27:13.329 --> 00:27:15.430
them. I say, hey, nobody knows us. No, it doesn't

00:27:15.430 --> 00:27:18.069
matter. Oh, they were horrified. They were embarrassed.

00:27:18.509 --> 00:27:21.940
So we did the walk of shame. where when the waiter

00:27:21.940 --> 00:27:25.380
came up with the platter of just waters, I said,

00:27:25.420 --> 00:27:27.000
sir, I'm sorry, we're going to need to go right

00:27:27.000 --> 00:27:28.539
now. He goes, oh, you're okay? I said, oh, yeah,

00:27:28.539 --> 00:27:30.240
that's great. I'm sorry, we just need to go.

00:27:30.400 --> 00:27:32.660
I tried to be discreet as I could, and we did

00:27:32.660 --> 00:27:34.859
the walk of shame out the restaurant, and the

00:27:34.859 --> 00:27:37.019
kids felt like there were spotlights on us and

00:27:37.019 --> 00:27:39.400
an announcer going, hey, it's the new family,

00:27:39.480 --> 00:27:41.539
the Pruitts. They can't afford to eat here. I

00:27:41.539 --> 00:27:43.740
mean, I know they were feeling all of that, right?

00:27:44.319 --> 00:27:48.440
And so we left, and they were just tore up for

00:27:48.440 --> 00:27:53.170
the rest of the trip. So we end up going to SeaWorld

00:27:53.170 --> 00:27:54.970
the next day. So we're thinking, okay, it's going

00:27:54.970 --> 00:27:57.990
to be a new day. Lord, help us. I think we went

00:27:57.990 --> 00:27:59.410
down the street to Taco Bell. We're like, you

00:27:59.410 --> 00:28:01.769
cannot buy any food here because it's too expensive.

00:28:01.890 --> 00:28:04.410
Lord, help us. We'll go to 7 -Eleven and get

00:28:04.410 --> 00:28:06.009
some corn dogs. Just so you know, the kids are

00:28:06.009 --> 00:28:07.970
not in a good mood right now. I mean, they are

00:28:07.970 --> 00:28:10.930
tore up. It's got us all tense. I know none of

00:28:10.930 --> 00:28:13.369
this has ever happened to y 'all. So we're really

00:28:13.369 --> 00:28:16.150
exceptional. So we're in the rental car. We go

00:28:16.150 --> 00:28:19.700
to the park. It's a long day. It's hot. It's

00:28:19.700 --> 00:28:23.680
San Antonio. And so we get out of there. And

00:28:23.680 --> 00:28:26.039
this was back when West San Antonio wasn't quite

00:28:26.039 --> 00:28:28.160
as developed. And so we come up to a four -way

00:28:28.160 --> 00:28:30.440
stop sign. There's a lot of traffic. And like

00:28:30.440 --> 00:28:33.200
four cars are like converging at the same time.

00:28:33.279 --> 00:28:36.279
But I was first. So sitting there knowing that

00:28:36.279 --> 00:28:38.339
I was the first to arrive at the four -way, then

00:28:38.339 --> 00:28:40.759
I just assumed that I get the right of way. So

00:28:40.759 --> 00:28:43.220
I start to take off. And this guy just rudely

00:28:43.220 --> 00:28:46.720
takes off in front of me. And I'm like. I throw

00:28:46.720 --> 00:28:48.519
my hands up on the wheel because I need him to

00:28:48.519 --> 00:28:51.960
understand how he's just encroached upon my rights.

00:28:53.720 --> 00:28:56.420
We're so mature when we're 30, right? So I throw

00:28:56.420 --> 00:28:58.960
my hands up like, what? And the dude gives me

00:28:58.960 --> 00:29:04.059
the one -finger salute. You're number one. Well,

00:29:04.059 --> 00:29:05.900
it wasn't quite like that. Don't do it. You're

00:29:05.900 --> 00:29:08.559
number one. We had a preacher preach at our church

00:29:08.559 --> 00:29:12.269
in Abilene and tell a story and actually... used

00:29:12.269 --> 00:29:15.009
the finger man you want to suck the air we never

00:29:15.009 --> 00:29:20.589
let them come back that was not so i was so mad

00:29:20.589 --> 00:29:23.130
i mean and i was the kids were fighting in the

00:29:23.130 --> 00:29:25.210
back seat annette was fighting with the kids

00:29:25.210 --> 00:29:28.650
over the back seat and i'm just boiling and now

00:29:28.650 --> 00:29:35.369
this this trigger happens and i lost it y 'all

00:29:35.369 --> 00:29:39.130
wondering what i did so remember remember how

00:29:39.130 --> 00:29:42.049
in show sometimes if somebody says a Bad word,

00:29:42.109 --> 00:29:44.650
there's a beep. You know, it covers it. You know

00:29:44.650 --> 00:29:46.430
what I'm talking about? Some of y 'all are being

00:29:46.430 --> 00:29:48.309
way too spiritual right now. You need to ride

00:29:48.309 --> 00:29:51.710
with us a little bit. Calm down. The Holy Spirit

00:29:51.710 --> 00:29:53.750
will redeem all of this in a moment. So stay

00:29:53.750 --> 00:29:56.430
with us. It's like somebody had one and they

00:29:56.430 --> 00:30:05.670
went, beep, beep. I mean, I lost it. I think

00:30:05.670 --> 00:30:08.190
I made up words in that moment that I'd never

00:30:08.190 --> 00:30:12.170
said. And the room, it sucked the air out of

00:30:12.170 --> 00:30:15.569
the car. I mean, like a vacuum. I think the eyes

00:30:15.569 --> 00:30:18.329
of the kids were like, what? I didn't even look

00:30:18.329 --> 00:30:20.690
in the rearview mirror because it was so quiet.

00:30:22.390 --> 00:30:24.369
But let me tell you what happened after that.

00:30:25.049 --> 00:30:28.289
In a way, that finally broke the illusion that

00:30:28.289 --> 00:30:31.190
we were perfect. Definitely broke the illusion

00:30:31.190 --> 00:30:34.410
that I was. But it broke this, we were trying

00:30:34.410 --> 00:30:37.009
to be, because we were new, trying to do everything

00:30:37.009 --> 00:30:39.490
right. Anybody know what I'm talking about? Where

00:30:39.490 --> 00:30:41.930
you want to do it right. So you just sort of,

00:30:41.930 --> 00:30:44.869
you're more careful than normal and you're really

00:30:44.869 --> 00:30:48.670
not yourself. And I think it just all in that

00:30:48.670 --> 00:30:51.329
moment, it all came to a head for all four of

00:30:51.329 --> 00:30:55.289
us. And then after that moment, we were able

00:30:55.289 --> 00:30:57.210
to say, okay, it's all real now. The honeymoon

00:30:57.210 --> 00:31:02.150
is over. We never went on another family vacation

00:31:02.150 --> 00:31:05.329
either. Not anytime soon. That I can remember,

00:31:05.569 --> 00:31:09.970
honestly. So we got back to the hotel, and everybody's

00:31:09.970 --> 00:31:12.190
real quiet, especially around. They're scared.

00:31:12.410 --> 00:31:14.549
They're walking on eggshells. Yeah, everybody's

00:31:14.549 --> 00:31:16.829
tiptoeing. So I called the family together, and

00:31:16.829 --> 00:31:20.670
I said, guys, I am so sorry. I need to repent.

00:31:21.779 --> 00:31:24.279
And I'm going to ask you, I didn't say to them,

00:31:24.319 --> 00:31:26.599
I need your forgiveness, by the way, that makes

00:31:26.599 --> 00:31:30.319
it all about you. I said, will you forgive me

00:31:30.319 --> 00:31:34.339
for what I did? I lost my cool. I lost my temper.

00:31:34.440 --> 00:31:37.460
And it was wrong and it was ungodly. Will you

00:31:37.460 --> 00:31:40.839
forgive me? And they just sat there. First of

00:31:40.839 --> 00:31:42.900
all, I don't think an adult had ever apologized

00:31:42.900 --> 00:31:46.140
to them in their life. Especially their ex. I

00:31:46.140 --> 00:31:47.619
mean, I'm not going to say anything about him.

00:31:49.819 --> 00:31:53.400
They didn't know what to do. An adult had never

00:31:53.400 --> 00:31:56.980
actually repented to them before. And it started

00:31:56.980 --> 00:32:00.940
kind of a domino effect in our family of, okay,

00:32:01.000 --> 00:32:04.140
now we can be real. Now we can be honest. Now

00:32:04.140 --> 00:32:07.559
we can start doing life together. So what turned

00:32:07.559 --> 00:32:10.500
out to be really embarrassing and hard and all

00:32:10.500 --> 00:32:12.759
that actually was kind of the breakthrough that

00:32:12.759 --> 00:32:15.619
we needed to begin to be real with one another

00:32:15.619 --> 00:32:18.019
and actually get to know each other for real.

00:32:18.559 --> 00:32:22.200
And so while it wasn't my finest moment, I'm

00:32:22.200 --> 00:32:23.579
going to laugh about it now. We didn't for a

00:32:23.579 --> 00:32:27.960
couple of years. And I didn't hurt anybody. It

00:32:27.960 --> 00:32:31.539
was just the things I called that guy. What's

00:32:31.539 --> 00:32:34.140
funny is for years they would bring that up.

00:32:34.200 --> 00:32:36.720
Oh, yeah. We're like, really? Have you all had

00:32:36.720 --> 00:32:38.559
that where kids will bring something up and you're

00:32:38.559 --> 00:32:40.380
like, that was 10 years ago and you're still

00:32:40.380 --> 00:32:46.210
bringing it up? That was so 1992. 95. So that's

00:32:46.210 --> 00:32:52.309
our story. So we know it was 93. Anyway, so you're

00:32:52.309 --> 00:32:55.470
probably right. So what we'll do is just give

00:32:55.470 --> 00:32:57.329
some simple pillars for a godly home, because

00:32:57.329 --> 00:32:59.250
really what we're talking about is trying to

00:32:59.250 --> 00:33:02.490
build a family that's not perfect. There is no

00:33:02.490 --> 00:33:06.869
such thing. If there is a non -dysfunctional

00:33:06.869 --> 00:33:09.630
family in this room, please come talk to us.

00:33:09.730 --> 00:33:11.349
Tell us what you did. I need to sit at your feet.

00:33:11.470 --> 00:33:13.829
I need to take notes. I need you to disciple

00:33:13.829 --> 00:33:16.690
me. So we'll get this right. But in case there's

00:33:16.690 --> 00:33:19.710
a few that aren't, which I have a feeling, we

00:33:19.710 --> 00:33:20.970
just want to share some things that have been

00:33:20.970 --> 00:33:23.569
helpful to us and that we're continuing to learn

00:33:23.569 --> 00:33:26.269
in. We're in this together. Nobody's got this

00:33:26.269 --> 00:33:29.799
figured out. At least this side of heaven. So

00:33:29.799 --> 00:33:33.559
here we go. Five pillars of a godly home. Here's

00:33:33.559 --> 00:33:35.980
the first one. Number one, and this is so critical.

00:33:36.480 --> 00:33:38.940
Christ has to be the foundation of your family.

00:33:40.059 --> 00:33:43.759
It's interesting how I talk to families and we've

00:33:43.759 --> 00:33:45.759
talked to people through the years. And when

00:33:45.759 --> 00:33:49.299
you're in just casual conversation. Or you look

00:33:49.299 --> 00:33:52.480
at their social media feed and you never see

00:33:52.480 --> 00:33:54.700
anything about God, anything about the kingdom,

00:33:54.859 --> 00:33:57.880
anything about Jesus. It's all about their life,

00:33:57.940 --> 00:34:00.680
all about their stuff, all about their accomplishments,

00:34:01.000 --> 00:34:03.920
all about their selfies. It's all about their

00:34:03.920 --> 00:34:07.799
Insta life. And I always wonder, I'm like, gosh,

00:34:07.799 --> 00:34:09.920
is Jesus even in that life? I mean, they come

00:34:09.920 --> 00:34:12.900
to church. They dress up good and they smell

00:34:12.900 --> 00:34:16.780
really nice. Is Jesus even in that life? And

00:34:16.780 --> 00:34:21.539
we have to be real about this. Is Jesus the foundation

00:34:21.539 --> 00:34:27.360
of our family? And brothers, this one's not on

00:34:27.360 --> 00:34:31.900
mama. It's on us. We are responsible to carry

00:34:31.900 --> 00:34:34.320
the ball here. And I'm not getting on to anybody.

00:34:34.420 --> 00:34:36.239
I'm just talking to you like I'd talk to you

00:34:36.239 --> 00:34:38.519
if we were standing face to face. I'd say we

00:34:38.519 --> 00:34:41.760
have a responsibility. Everything that happens

00:34:41.760 --> 00:34:45.190
in your family, brothers, It's not your fault,

00:34:45.269 --> 00:34:48.389
but it is your responsibility. Let me say that

00:34:48.389 --> 00:34:51.010
again. Not everything that happens in your family

00:34:51.010 --> 00:34:53.289
is your fault, but it is your responsibility

00:34:53.289 --> 00:34:56.789
in terms of how you handle it, how you redeem

00:34:56.789 --> 00:35:01.389
it, how you turn it. With the help of the Holy

00:35:01.389 --> 00:35:04.590
Spirit, the help of God himself leading you,

00:35:04.630 --> 00:35:06.929
guiding you, ordering your steps, how you turn

00:35:06.929 --> 00:35:09.769
that into a positive and a learning moment as

00:35:09.769 --> 00:35:12.409
opposed to something that's destructive to your

00:35:12.409 --> 00:35:14.869
home, to your family. So while it may not be

00:35:14.869 --> 00:35:17.329
your fault, it is our responsibility. Can I get

00:35:17.329 --> 00:35:19.869
an amen? That's not to put more weight on you.

00:35:19.929 --> 00:35:21.909
That's just the reality of our assignment as

00:35:21.909 --> 00:35:25.550
men called by God. Listen to this. Psalm 127

00:35:25.550 --> 00:35:29.670
verse 1. Unless the Lord builds the house, those

00:35:29.670 --> 00:35:33.750
who build it labor in vain. So if we build a

00:35:33.750 --> 00:35:36.030
home, but it's not based on him, then what's

00:35:36.030 --> 00:35:39.469
the point? It doesn't reflect him. It doesn't

00:35:39.469 --> 00:35:42.570
radiate him. Matthew 7, 24 and 25. Go ahead,

00:35:42.610 --> 00:35:45.230
babe. Everyone then who hears these words of

00:35:45.230 --> 00:35:47.949
mine and does them will be like a wise man who

00:35:47.949 --> 00:35:51.190
built his house on the rock. What is that rock?

00:35:51.289 --> 00:35:53.610
The rock is a firm foundation. We see in the

00:35:53.610 --> 00:35:56.679
Bible that Jesus is... referred to as the cornerstone

00:35:56.679 --> 00:36:00.059
or the rock upon which it's built. And so we

00:36:00.059 --> 00:36:02.940
have to build our home upon God. Now listen,

00:36:03.119 --> 00:36:06.000
we don't want to have any illusions here. Tell

00:36:06.000 --> 00:36:07.760
them what you said in the first service about

00:36:07.760 --> 00:36:10.579
we're not the family of that. A lot of people

00:36:10.579 --> 00:36:12.760
think that we might be the family that get up

00:36:12.760 --> 00:36:14.880
in the morning, we have our kids all around us,

00:36:14.960 --> 00:36:16.900
and we're having a little prayer meeting before

00:36:16.900 --> 00:36:18.340
they go to school. Come children, I'm going to

00:36:18.340 --> 00:36:20.820
read from the book of Malachi. Come sit with

00:36:20.820 --> 00:36:25.989
us. And we're just like you. go to work. We have

00:36:25.989 --> 00:36:28.090
our responsibilities. We have to get the kids

00:36:28.090 --> 00:36:32.090
to school or whatever. And so we, we, but we

00:36:32.090 --> 00:36:35.650
have God in the center of our life in that everything

00:36:35.650 --> 00:36:39.190
we do, we want to make sure that it's pleasing

00:36:39.190 --> 00:36:42.050
to the Lord because God wants us to please him.

00:36:42.150 --> 00:36:47.750
I mean, he, that's, that's why we're here is

00:36:47.750 --> 00:36:52.570
to please him, to bring people to Christ so that

00:36:52.570 --> 00:36:56.000
they can get redeemed from their sins so that

00:36:56.000 --> 00:36:58.679
they can live a life of godliness so that we

00:36:58.679 --> 00:37:02.719
can procreate and have godly children. And so,

00:37:02.800 --> 00:37:06.260
but a lot of people think pastors just, we live

00:37:06.260 --> 00:37:09.679
in this bubble and we just read the Bible all

00:37:09.679 --> 00:37:12.099
day. Our dog got sick after staying at a kennel.

00:37:12.179 --> 00:37:15.340
We get home to a major blowout. That is not glorious

00:37:15.340 --> 00:37:18.960
or nice or cool. We're out there hosing his crate

00:37:18.960 --> 00:37:21.219
down and hosing him down and hosing each other

00:37:21.219 --> 00:37:24.219
down. Listen, real life happens to all of us.

00:37:24.230 --> 00:37:26.789
We have to deal with the stuff just like anybody

00:37:26.789 --> 00:37:29.269
else. I come home from a Sunday where I feel

00:37:29.269 --> 00:37:31.809
like, oh my gosh, that was amazing. God showed

00:37:31.809 --> 00:37:34.210
up and I got eight bags of trash I need to get

00:37:34.210 --> 00:37:36.510
together and get out. And then we've got, yeah,

00:37:36.590 --> 00:37:41.250
it's just real life. Just like you. And I want

00:37:41.250 --> 00:37:46.190
to harken back to something. Just QTR, QTR. What

00:37:46.190 --> 00:37:53.900
does QTR stand for? Quick to repent. QTR. if

00:37:53.900 --> 00:37:56.639
you will become that and begin to get that into

00:37:56.639 --> 00:37:59.440
your heart and work that into your life, that

00:37:59.440 --> 00:38:02.739
you become quick to repent, that means that though

00:38:02.739 --> 00:38:05.760
you do not live a perfect life, just like we

00:38:05.760 --> 00:38:08.780
don't, but you're quick to repent. Do you know

00:38:08.780 --> 00:38:11.880
that was one of the greatest character traits

00:38:11.880 --> 00:38:15.139
of King David? You know, we can easily go down

00:38:15.139 --> 00:38:17.760
the list on King David and go, and he did this,

00:38:17.780 --> 00:38:20.039
and he did this, and he watched her do that,

00:38:20.139 --> 00:38:21.940
and then he slept with her, and then he got her

00:38:21.940 --> 00:38:24.199
husband killed. And you can go down and you can

00:38:24.199 --> 00:38:27.159
read Psalm 51 and go, oh, my gosh, he was ready

00:38:27.159 --> 00:38:29.840
to slit his wrist there. I mean, he knew and

00:38:29.840 --> 00:38:33.719
understood that his sinfulness was dark, and

00:38:33.719 --> 00:38:35.739
he was trying to, he was doing everything he

00:38:35.739 --> 00:38:37.880
could to repent. But the thing that his quality

00:38:37.880 --> 00:38:42.110
was that he was quick to repent. When he realized

00:38:42.110 --> 00:38:44.889
he missed up, when he realized he missed God,

00:38:45.150 --> 00:38:48.469
he was quick to repent. But we do that with one

00:38:48.469 --> 00:38:51.889
another, with our kids. We do it with the Lord.

00:38:52.070 --> 00:38:54.829
I'm telling you, your imperfect life can become

00:38:54.829 --> 00:38:58.570
amazing just because you're vulnerable and open

00:38:58.570 --> 00:39:01.269
to correction and open to say, you know what,

00:39:01.309 --> 00:39:04.570
I missed it. That was a swing and a miss. Absolutely.

00:39:04.849 --> 00:39:08.829
That was a swing and a miss. Number two, if you're

00:39:08.829 --> 00:39:10.889
going through these, unity and order in the home.

00:39:11.010 --> 00:39:14.610
Now that sounds real pretty bland, but it's actually

00:39:14.610 --> 00:39:17.449
pretty awesome. This idea of unity, Ephesians

00:39:17.449 --> 00:39:19.789
5 .21. Go ahead and read that. Submitting to

00:39:19.789 --> 00:39:22.670
one another out of reverence for Christ. Y 'all

00:39:22.670 --> 00:39:25.469
know the other verse where Pastor Brian ran at

00:39:25.469 --> 00:39:31.000
home a couple weeks ago where men... Women, you're

00:39:31.000 --> 00:39:33.539
supposed to submit. And you're supposed to say,

00:39:33.619 --> 00:39:37.219
man, husband, you're supposed to die. So that

00:39:37.219 --> 00:39:41.039
is the reality of scripture. So it's been far

00:39:41.039 --> 00:39:43.400
too long where men have tried to subjugate women

00:39:43.400 --> 00:39:47.420
under this scriptural mandate when in fact the

00:39:47.420 --> 00:39:50.380
men aren't willing to die. You don't get one

00:39:50.380 --> 00:39:53.800
without the other, amen? And so this idea of

00:39:53.800 --> 00:39:57.320
submitting to one another where we are co -laboring

00:39:57.320 --> 00:40:00.559
in the home. And the mutual submission is she's

00:40:00.559 --> 00:40:03.719
submitting to Jesus and submitting to Paul's

00:40:03.719 --> 00:40:06.739
exhortation to submit. I'm submitting to Christ

00:40:06.739 --> 00:40:10.980
and to Paul's exhortation to die for her as Christ

00:40:10.980 --> 00:40:13.760
gave himself for the church. And so there's a

00:40:13.760 --> 00:40:16.239
mutual submission that happens. Here's another

00:40:16.239 --> 00:40:20.139
one, Colossians 3 .18. Oh, wait, wait. This is

00:40:20.139 --> 00:40:21.699
the cool verse. Can I read this? Okay, go ahead.

00:40:21.960 --> 00:40:24.780
All right. I just consolidated about four verses

00:40:24.780 --> 00:40:27.940
into a sentence. But it's a real simple recipe,

00:40:28.019 --> 00:40:30.380
and I love the simplicity of the gospel. Listen

00:40:30.380 --> 00:40:35.099
to this. Colossians 3, 18 to 21. Wives, submit

00:40:35.099 --> 00:40:38.400
to your husbands as is fitting in the Lord. Husbands,

00:40:38.619 --> 00:40:42.460
love your wives. Children, obey your parents.

00:40:42.599 --> 00:40:45.480
And all the parents said? Amen. Amen. Hallelujah.

00:40:46.500 --> 00:40:49.199
Fathers, do not provoke your children. There's

00:40:49.199 --> 00:40:52.360
just these steps given by Scripture. Simple,

00:40:52.480 --> 00:40:57.420
yes. Easy, oh no. Simple doesn't mean easy. It

00:40:57.420 --> 00:41:00.519
just means simple. But these are very clear directives

00:41:00.519 --> 00:41:03.119
on what we can do in our home. And it's amazing

00:41:03.119 --> 00:41:07.300
when you apply the clear, simple directives in

00:41:07.300 --> 00:41:09.880
the home, how the home finds order. And we're

00:41:09.880 --> 00:41:12.340
talking about order here. Christ is the foundation,

00:41:12.659 --> 00:41:15.559
the rock upon which our home is built. When we're

00:41:15.559 --> 00:41:17.780
walking in mutual submission to one another,

00:41:17.960 --> 00:41:22.139
unity happens. And that's that deferring to one

00:41:22.139 --> 00:41:26.719
another and giving each other space. And in a

00:41:26.719 --> 00:41:28.360
conversation with friends saying, I'm sorry,

00:41:28.400 --> 00:41:30.239
you were saying something and I interrupted you.

00:41:30.320 --> 00:41:33.269
I'm sorry about that. Do you feel awkward right

00:41:33.269 --> 00:41:35.150
now? Yes, very awkward. That's how we do it.

00:41:35.909 --> 00:41:37.409
It's because there wasn't anything to interrupt.

00:41:37.469 --> 00:41:39.349
I was giving an example. That was a metaphor.

00:41:39.610 --> 00:41:44.210
So listen to this. Number three, raising children

00:41:44.210 --> 00:41:46.690
in the faith. Why don't you talk on that one

00:41:46.690 --> 00:41:48.429
and read the scripture? Well, let's look at...

00:41:48.619 --> 00:41:55.719
Proverbs 22 .6, train up a child in a way he

00:41:55.719 --> 00:41:58.900
should go. Even when he is old, he will not depart

00:41:58.900 --> 00:42:02.920
from it. Now, in my first marriage, we went to

00:42:02.920 --> 00:42:05.539
church every Sunday, but that was about it. We

00:42:05.539 --> 00:42:09.599
didn't practice what we heard. There was no real

00:42:09.599 --> 00:42:12.039
revelation in my first marriage for about 13

00:42:12.039 --> 00:42:15.659
years. But our kids were in church every Sunday.

00:42:15.820 --> 00:42:19.530
Then I married Jimmy. He was a pastor and also

00:42:19.530 --> 00:42:22.269
worked at Buckner Children's Home. And he taught

00:42:22.269 --> 00:42:27.510
us how to live out our faith, not just go to

00:42:27.510 --> 00:42:30.070
church on Sundays, but to live it out. It was

00:42:30.070 --> 00:42:32.949
a discipleship moment for our whole family that

00:42:32.949 --> 00:42:37.900
they learned. By the time Chris... was in high

00:42:37.900 --> 00:42:39.900
school. We had moved to Southern California.

00:42:40.760 --> 00:42:43.400
We had changed churches. We had gone from a Baptist

00:42:43.400 --> 00:42:46.260
church while we were in Lubbock to a non -denominational

00:42:46.260 --> 00:42:48.099
church where people were raising their hands.

00:42:48.219 --> 00:42:50.099
They were not doing that in the Baptist church.

00:42:50.300 --> 00:42:53.519
But Chris was being discipled in this church

00:42:53.519 --> 00:42:56.920
by his youth pastor. And he seemed to be growing.

00:42:57.219 --> 00:43:01.019
But when we moved to this other church, Something

00:43:01.019 --> 00:43:04.719
happened. He was going through something internally

00:43:04.719 --> 00:43:07.519
where I know he was struggling with his faith.

00:43:07.780 --> 00:43:13.400
Here's the challenge. Kids will tend to have

00:43:13.400 --> 00:43:16.699
faith because of their parents, but they need

00:43:16.699 --> 00:43:19.900
to get to a point where they own their own faith.

00:43:20.260 --> 00:43:24.469
And this was a crisis of belief. that my son,

00:43:24.590 --> 00:43:27.829
Chris, our son, was going through. And we were

00:43:27.829 --> 00:43:29.809
watching him, and we were actually concerned

00:43:29.809 --> 00:43:32.550
that he wasn't even saved. Driving down Bear

00:43:32.550 --> 00:43:34.610
Valley Road, you leaned over and said, I don't

00:43:34.610 --> 00:43:37.369
even think he's saved. But even while we were

00:43:37.369 --> 00:43:40.289
in Lubbock, because he was being discipled, but

00:43:40.289 --> 00:43:44.989
something happened, probably going through puberty

00:43:44.989 --> 00:43:47.809
and all that mess, or hormones, doesn't help.

00:43:48.070 --> 00:43:51.030
But it was really hard because he would seem

00:43:51.030 --> 00:43:55.460
very... distant in church. Like he was not interested

00:43:55.460 --> 00:43:58.840
at all. And this was so contrary to what we had

00:43:58.840 --> 00:44:01.360
seen before. So when we did move to Southern

00:44:01.360 --> 00:44:03.960
California and we were driving down the road

00:44:03.960 --> 00:44:06.679
and I even said, I said, now I don't even know

00:44:06.679 --> 00:44:10.559
if my son is saved. And it, it scared us. As

00:44:10.559 --> 00:44:12.699
parents, you should be scared if you're a parent,

00:44:12.780 --> 00:44:15.659
if you feel like your kids aren't saved. And

00:44:15.659 --> 00:44:17.659
so we began to pray, and we're just like, Lord,

00:44:17.860 --> 00:44:21.400
we need you. We've got to contend for this because

00:44:21.400 --> 00:44:25.239
his soul is at risk of going to hell, and we

00:44:25.239 --> 00:44:28.000
wanted him to be saved. And I'll never forget,

00:44:28.199 --> 00:44:30.280
we had a church service. You want to go from

00:44:30.280 --> 00:44:32.679
there? Sure, yeah. We were doing altar ministry,

00:44:32.780 --> 00:44:34.820
just like we have here. People come up to the

00:44:34.820 --> 00:44:39.019
front, and we were doing that. Pastor Ron had

00:44:39.019 --> 00:44:40.960
ended his message, and we were up there waiting,

00:44:41.159 --> 00:44:44.099
and the music started, and then we saw Chris,

00:44:44.099 --> 00:44:46.340
like over kind of in a corner, get up, and he

00:44:46.340 --> 00:44:48.059
started walking to us, and then we just thought,

00:44:48.099 --> 00:44:50.960
this is odd. What's he doing? And he came up

00:44:50.960 --> 00:44:53.639
to us, and he had tears in his eyes, and he just

00:44:53.639 --> 00:44:57.079
grabbed us both, and he just repented to us,

00:44:57.179 --> 00:45:00.579
and he just said, you know, he said, I'm so sorry

00:45:00.579 --> 00:45:03.300
for how I've been to y 'all, how I've been angry.

00:45:03.739 --> 00:45:05.519
We didn't even really know he was angry. He was

00:45:05.519 --> 00:45:07.179
just distant, but he said, I've been angry, and

00:45:07.179 --> 00:45:09.579
he said, I realized something, and he said what?

00:45:09.739 --> 00:45:14.239
I'm ready to go all in. Because for him, he saw

00:45:14.239 --> 00:45:18.380
the hypocrisy of our life prior because of what

00:45:18.380 --> 00:45:21.179
was going on in the home and just going to church

00:45:21.179 --> 00:45:23.519
and acting like everything was fine. We wore

00:45:23.519 --> 00:45:26.639
our masks, just like a lot of people do, and

00:45:26.639 --> 00:45:30.519
he could not come to grips and to terms with

00:45:30.519 --> 00:45:33.960
his faith until he knew it was really real for

00:45:33.960 --> 00:45:37.320
him. And that was a turning point. turning point

00:45:37.320 --> 00:45:41.420
in our life to where we watched him grow exponentially.

00:45:41.500 --> 00:45:45.639
Now, it came with a lot of prayer, a lot of prayer.

00:45:45.780 --> 00:45:48.099
We had to pray for him. We were worried for him.

00:45:48.199 --> 00:45:51.739
Went through some horrific things with our daughter,

00:45:51.800 --> 00:45:54.880
but that's another sermon, actually. We won't

00:45:54.880 --> 00:46:02.989
do that here. But it was amazing how God We'll

00:46:02.989 --> 00:46:05.889
answer your prayers. When the Bible says pray

00:46:05.889 --> 00:46:09.530
without ceasing, I do believe he's talking about

00:46:09.530 --> 00:46:13.389
us as family, as parents praying for our kids.

00:46:13.710 --> 00:46:16.730
We should be praying and contending for their

00:46:16.730 --> 00:46:19.750
life because the enemy, if he can get those kids,

00:46:19.909 --> 00:46:22.630
he can get a whole generation. And I'm telling

00:46:22.630 --> 00:46:25.469
you, it was an answer to prayer. He ended up

00:46:25.469 --> 00:46:30.289
finishing high school. He became... the most

00:46:30.289 --> 00:46:33.070
popular kid in school, with the girls because

00:46:33.070 --> 00:46:37.010
he wasn't having sex with the girls. He was actually

00:46:37.010 --> 00:46:40.530
becoming friends with the girls. And I'll never

00:46:40.530 --> 00:46:42.849
forget girls saying, I love your son because

00:46:42.849 --> 00:46:45.510
he's not after one thing. Because that's what

00:46:45.510 --> 00:46:47.429
it was like. And we were in a Christian school.

00:46:47.969 --> 00:46:52.289
But he ended up going to the university that

00:46:52.289 --> 00:46:54.630
Jimmy, he said, I want to follow your trajectory.

00:46:54.829 --> 00:46:57.889
Whatever God did with you, I want to follow in

00:46:57.889 --> 00:47:02.079
that. And that was, Because you model to him

00:47:02.079 --> 00:47:06.199
what a godly man is supposed to look like. And

00:47:06.199 --> 00:47:08.440
he ended up becoming a preacher. Now he's been

00:47:08.440 --> 00:47:12.420
pastoring for, what, 15 years as a senior pastor,

00:47:12.559 --> 00:47:15.139
seven years as a youth pastor prior to that.

00:47:15.960 --> 00:47:18.460
It was amazing just to watch because he had to

00:47:18.460 --> 00:47:21.139
come to that on his own. And this is a thing

00:47:21.139 --> 00:47:23.480
that we can't do, parents. We can't make them

00:47:23.480 --> 00:47:26.840
make that decision. We want to. We're cheering

00:47:26.840 --> 00:47:29.179
for them. We try to set them up for success.

00:47:29.800 --> 00:47:32.820
But at the end of the day, they have to, and

00:47:32.820 --> 00:47:35.539
it's not wrong that they coast on our faith and

00:47:35.539 --> 00:47:38.039
they coast on our relationship with God. That's

00:47:38.039 --> 00:47:39.920
part of raising a family. That's part of being

00:47:39.920 --> 00:47:42.380
a godly family. We're pouring things into them.

00:47:42.440 --> 00:47:45.460
But at some point, they've got to make that switch

00:47:45.460 --> 00:47:49.099
to where now it becomes their faith, not my faith,

00:47:49.280 --> 00:47:51.860
not mama's faith, not their youth pastor's faith

00:47:51.860 --> 00:47:54.860
or their pastor's faith. It has to become theirs.

00:47:55.179 --> 00:47:58.639
And that can be a real tenuous, wholehearted,

00:47:58.440 --> 00:48:03.260
hard, tense season. Sometimes it involves prodigal

00:48:03.260 --> 00:48:06.119
moments. You think about it. Scripture says if

00:48:06.119 --> 00:48:07.920
you train up a child in the way they should go,

00:48:07.980 --> 00:48:10.500
when they are old, they will not depart. Well,

00:48:10.519 --> 00:48:12.800
there's a lot of space between training them

00:48:12.800 --> 00:48:15.099
up and when they're old. There's a lot of life

00:48:15.099 --> 00:48:17.920
in between there, right? And so this is where

00:48:17.920 --> 00:48:21.219
exactly what Annette said, and that is we pray

00:48:21.219 --> 00:48:23.960
without ceasing. I'm telling you, if you don't

00:48:23.960 --> 00:48:26.099
have a good prayer life, then just start praying

00:48:26.099 --> 00:48:29.960
for your kids. You will burn the carpet up with

00:48:29.960 --> 00:48:32.420
your knees because our kids brought us to our

00:48:32.420 --> 00:48:35.860
knees. Our kids, because as we saw things they

00:48:35.860 --> 00:48:38.539
were experiencing and going through, we knew

00:48:38.539 --> 00:48:41.940
there were things we could not fix for them that

00:48:41.940 --> 00:48:44.300
had to be done in their own relationship with

00:48:44.300 --> 00:48:48.139
God and praise God they they've walked that out

00:48:48.139 --> 00:48:52.099
you may have a grandchild you may have a child

00:48:52.099 --> 00:48:55.239
you may have adult kids in your family that have

00:48:55.239 --> 00:48:57.880
walked away or maybe they didn't know Christ

00:48:57.880 --> 00:49:00.320
at all because you didn't know Christ to a later

00:49:00.320 --> 00:49:04.280
date I want to tell you that This is why we have

00:49:04.280 --> 00:49:07.099
to keep praying because we have two grandchildren

00:49:07.099 --> 00:49:13.179
that were raised in church. They were, one of

00:49:13.179 --> 00:49:15.440
our grandchildren would stand up like in the

00:49:15.440 --> 00:49:17.260
middle of a service while the preacher was about

00:49:17.260 --> 00:49:19.480
to preach and she would stand up and sing a hymn.

00:49:19.699 --> 00:49:22.039
This was how much she loved God. She would just

00:49:22.039 --> 00:49:25.300
interrupt the whole service. The other one was

00:49:25.300 --> 00:49:27.940
just constantly reading the Bible and teaching

00:49:27.940 --> 00:49:31.690
people. the Bible, but they both had experiences.

00:49:31.929 --> 00:49:35.309
One was at the end of high school and going into

00:49:35.309 --> 00:49:38.150
college that indoctrinated her into the world's

00:49:38.150 --> 00:49:42.030
way of thinking. The other one was a bad marriage.

00:49:42.050 --> 00:49:45.150
She got married to someone that was godly, who

00:49:45.150 --> 00:49:48.929
she met in church, and then he began to live

00:49:48.929 --> 00:49:51.989
a double life, much like what happened with me

00:49:51.989 --> 00:49:55.829
and my first husband. And she watched that, and

00:49:55.829 --> 00:49:58.760
they ended up in a divorce about A year ago,

00:49:58.920 --> 00:50:02.440
two years ago, faith knows. And now she has walked

00:50:02.440 --> 00:50:06.659
away from God, church, everything, because of

00:50:06.659 --> 00:50:10.179
him. This is why it's so important to model it.

00:50:10.460 --> 00:50:14.739
Don't be a hypocrite. Actually model it. Pursue

00:50:14.739 --> 00:50:17.500
God with everything you have. But what we've

00:50:17.500 --> 00:50:19.880
had to do with both of our grandchildren that

00:50:19.880 --> 00:50:24.360
are away from the Lord is pray and just we will

00:50:24.360 --> 00:50:27.480
not give up. We just will not give up. We see

00:50:27.480 --> 00:50:31.639
some strides in one of the girls. Don't see it

00:50:31.639 --> 00:50:33.519
in the other. But you know what? It doesn't matter.

00:50:33.599 --> 00:50:36.079
I have to have the eyes of faith to believe God.

00:50:39.349 --> 00:50:42.250
Biblical principles were formed in them when

00:50:42.250 --> 00:50:44.550
they were small. They're not going to depart

00:50:44.550 --> 00:50:46.809
from it. They're just in that middle stages.

00:50:46.969 --> 00:50:50.389
And I just pray that God will save their life

00:50:50.389 --> 00:50:53.489
so that they will come to know Him. I pray every

00:50:53.489 --> 00:50:56.469
single day that God will bring people around

00:50:56.469 --> 00:50:58.769
them. And this is another thing. A lot of times

00:50:58.769 --> 00:51:00.989
we think we're the ones who have to be the one

00:51:00.989 --> 00:51:04.530
to... struck the deal for them to come to know

00:51:04.530 --> 00:51:07.190
Christ. No, typically it's going to be someone

00:51:07.190 --> 00:51:09.550
in their sphere of influence. So I pray for their

00:51:09.550 --> 00:51:12.329
friends. I pray for their acquaintances. I pray

00:51:12.329 --> 00:51:15.210
for their workers, the people that are around

00:51:15.210 --> 00:51:18.250
them, that are there with them on a daily basis,

00:51:18.309 --> 00:51:20.769
that they come to know Christ so then they can

00:51:20.769 --> 00:51:23.630
share it with them. And that's key. That is good.

00:51:23.670 --> 00:51:25.829
That's spot on. And that's just the reality of

00:51:25.829 --> 00:51:28.090
what we've had to do with our family. The scripture,

00:51:28.250 --> 00:51:30.190
the promise is when they are old, they will not

00:51:30.190 --> 00:51:32.050
depart from it. So again, we're in the end. between

00:51:32.050 --> 00:51:34.429
right now with them. But we're not going to give

00:51:34.429 --> 00:51:37.269
up. We use the word contend because contend means

00:51:37.269 --> 00:51:39.940
to fight for. We're not fighting against God.

00:51:40.019 --> 00:51:42.340
We're fighting with God for their soul, for their

00:51:42.340 --> 00:51:44.880
life. And we want to encourage you. You have

00:51:44.880 --> 00:51:47.940
adult children, grandkids. These are our grandkids.

00:51:48.119 --> 00:51:50.659
Our children are actually doing really well.

00:51:50.840 --> 00:51:53.059
They're in a good place, but we've had to contend

00:51:53.059 --> 00:51:55.659
for them through the years. But now our grandchildren,

00:51:55.840 --> 00:51:58.440
it's the next generation. And I thank God for

00:51:58.440 --> 00:52:00.659
praying grannies and praying papas. You know

00:52:00.659 --> 00:52:03.219
what I'm saying? My grandmothers were prayer

00:52:03.219 --> 00:52:05.380
warriors, especially the one on my dad's side.

00:52:05.519 --> 00:52:07.320
I think I'm pretty sure she prayed us all into

00:52:07.320 --> 00:52:10.840
heaven. I'm certain of it she fought she contended

00:52:10.840 --> 00:52:14.780
for us our entire life and so I know one of the

00:52:14.780 --> 00:52:17.179
reasons why I ended up following Jesus It was

00:52:17.179 --> 00:52:19.039
because of her example, because she lived it,

00:52:19.099 --> 00:52:21.659
but also because of her prayers, wearing out

00:52:21.659 --> 00:52:25.199
her bedside on her knees. And so we want to encourage

00:52:25.199 --> 00:52:29.519
you to not give up, no matter how bad it looks.

00:52:29.840 --> 00:52:32.539
No matter if there's animosity from them towards

00:52:32.539 --> 00:52:35.039
you. There was a point when we got together with

00:52:35.039 --> 00:52:36.739
one of our granddaughters, and she wouldn't even

00:52:36.739 --> 00:52:39.920
look at us. Because she assumed we were angry

00:52:39.920 --> 00:52:43.139
with her for her chosen lifestyle. We weren't.

00:52:43.139 --> 00:52:45.849
We just loved her. And we ended up having to

00:52:45.849 --> 00:52:48.050
kind of just break up into her space physically,

00:52:48.050 --> 00:52:50.309
just give her a hug and say, hey, it's so good

00:52:50.309 --> 00:52:52.909
to see you. Just trying to be as normal and real

00:52:52.909 --> 00:52:56.610
and open as possible, not to the decisions she's

00:52:56.610 --> 00:52:58.889
made, because we're fighting for that. And by

00:52:58.889 --> 00:53:00.670
the way, that's the thing that got turned. That's

00:53:00.670 --> 00:53:03.829
a huge thing. But also praying for her relationship

00:53:03.829 --> 00:53:09.849
with Jesus. And so while we're... We can't condone

00:53:09.849 --> 00:53:12.690
the door stays open for reconciliation always.

00:53:12.969 --> 00:53:15.750
We continue to contend. So don't give up on your

00:53:15.750 --> 00:53:17.929
kids or your grandkids. And for those of you

00:53:17.929 --> 00:53:21.289
who have greats, way to go. We've got some hopefully

00:53:21.289 --> 00:53:24.929
coming, you know, at some point. And we will

00:53:24.929 --> 00:53:27.210
contend for them in the same way because real

00:53:27.210 --> 00:53:29.789
discipleship, God is generational in nature.

00:53:29.969 --> 00:53:34.170
He's the God of Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. And

00:53:34.170 --> 00:53:37.929
so he sees generationally we need to as well.

00:53:38.070 --> 00:53:40.909
We'll land on this. I mentioned this, so I won't

00:53:40.909 --> 00:53:43.610
take long on it. The family's mission, that's

00:53:43.610 --> 00:53:45.769
number four, is to reflect Christ to the world.

00:53:45.849 --> 00:53:48.489
This is what we do. This is why it's important,

00:53:48.710 --> 00:53:52.489
not that we do it perfectly, not that we do everything

00:53:52.489 --> 00:53:55.530
just right, but that we show the power of redemption

00:53:55.530 --> 00:53:59.070
and the power of redemptive relationships instead

00:53:59.070 --> 00:54:01.889
of punitive relationships. We're not here to

00:54:01.889 --> 00:54:04.050
punish. We're here to redeem. Can I get an amen?

00:54:04.309 --> 00:54:06.730
We want to redeem what the enemy has stolen.

00:54:06.750 --> 00:54:09.530
We want to redeem what's broken, not punish it.

00:54:09.710 --> 00:54:12.889
And so we walk with a redemptive heart. But as

00:54:12.889 --> 00:54:14.690
for me and my house, we will serve the Lord,

00:54:14.769 --> 00:54:18.849
Joshua 24, 15. Matthew 5, 14. You are the light

00:54:18.849 --> 00:54:21.690
of the world. Let your light shine before others

00:54:21.690 --> 00:54:24.110
so that they may see your good works and give

00:54:24.110 --> 00:54:27.130
glory to your Father who is in heaven. And that

00:54:27.130 --> 00:54:30.219
is exactly what we're seeking to do. is to shine

00:54:30.219 --> 00:54:33.539
bright. The last one, don't you believe that?

00:54:33.539 --> 00:54:37.820
Prayer and presence of the Holy Spirit. Acts

00:54:37.820 --> 00:54:41.159
2 .39, for the promise is for you and your children

00:54:41.159 --> 00:54:45.179
and for all who are far off. I love that. For

00:54:45.179 --> 00:54:49.000
you and your children. Romans 12 .12, rejoice

00:54:49.000 --> 00:54:52.920
in hope, be patient in tribulation, be, there

00:54:52.920 --> 00:54:56.780
it is, constant in prayer. So let's end with

00:54:56.780 --> 00:54:58.539
this, because you mentioned this in the first

00:54:58.539 --> 00:55:01.829
service, Last week, we ended on this thing of

00:55:01.829 --> 00:55:04.329
radical forgiveness, and a lot of people pray

00:55:04.329 --> 00:55:07.650
to really let go and release things. The thing

00:55:07.650 --> 00:55:09.789
I want to end with today is still radical forgiveness,

00:55:10.050 --> 00:55:12.510
but now it's radical forgiveness for yourself.

00:55:13.550 --> 00:55:15.590
It's easy to sit through and hear stories like

00:55:15.590 --> 00:55:18.829
this or hear a message and think, man, it's all

00:55:18.829 --> 00:55:20.889
worked out great for them. Woo -hoo. Well, we're

00:55:20.889 --> 00:55:23.329
not there yet. We're still a work in progress,

00:55:23.369 --> 00:55:26.750
just like you are. So it isn't all right. It's

00:55:26.750 --> 00:55:29.610
not as it should be. There are things that still

00:55:29.610 --> 00:55:31.829
keep us up at night regarding our families. We

00:55:31.829 --> 00:55:34.880
try to fight for them and contend. But one of

00:55:34.880 --> 00:55:36.619
the things we have to do when you hear things

00:55:36.619 --> 00:55:39.219
like this, you can either get really discouraged

00:55:39.219 --> 00:55:41.900
or get really inspired. I mean, it almost doesn't

00:55:41.900 --> 00:55:44.260
seem like there's a middle ground, but our heart

00:55:44.260 --> 00:55:46.940
is to help you get inspired and get excited about

00:55:46.940 --> 00:55:49.000
praying for your family and contending for them,

00:55:49.039 --> 00:55:52.260
but also about forgiveness, radical forgiveness.

00:55:52.639 --> 00:55:55.280
And today, radical forgiveness for yourself,

00:55:55.599 --> 00:55:59.070
for you. And isn't it weird how it's so much

00:55:59.070 --> 00:56:01.329
easier to extend forgiveness to others than it

00:56:01.329 --> 00:56:03.929
is to ourselves? We're the hardest on ourselves.

00:56:04.309 --> 00:56:05.869
I mean, people don't have to beat me up. I do

00:56:05.869 --> 00:56:08.150
a really good job. Hey, give me that whip. Give

00:56:08.150 --> 00:56:12.670
me that flog. We do it ourselves. And that's

00:56:12.670 --> 00:56:15.349
well -meaning, well -intended, but it doesn't

00:56:15.349 --> 00:56:18.170
help anything. It keeps you locked. It keeps

00:56:18.170 --> 00:56:20.570
you in a prison of your own making. So we want

00:56:20.570 --> 00:56:23.989
to ask you and invite you to take a moment, and

00:56:23.989 --> 00:56:28.480
we're going to release forgiveness. The power

00:56:28.480 --> 00:56:31.320
of words, our words are power containers. What

00:56:31.320 --> 00:56:34.260
we say matters. And there's a reason why I like

00:56:34.260 --> 00:56:37.380
to pray out loud and why I like to contend and

00:56:37.380 --> 00:56:40.719
do spiritual warfare out loud. And the reason

00:56:40.719 --> 00:56:44.019
why I want to pray for forgiveness out loud is

00:56:44.019 --> 00:56:46.739
because, A, I need to hear it. Faith comes by

00:56:46.739 --> 00:56:48.480
hearing, and hearing by the word of the Lord,

00:56:48.500 --> 00:56:51.440
the message of Christ. And one of the messages

00:56:51.440 --> 00:56:54.239
of Christ is redemption, is forgiveness. And

00:56:54.239 --> 00:56:56.420
so I need to hear it because faith comes by hearing.

00:56:57.079 --> 00:57:00.579
The second thing is, is I need heaven to hear

00:57:00.579 --> 00:57:03.300
it. I need God and his angels who are going to

00:57:03.300 --> 00:57:05.519
go to work to make this thing happen. I need

00:57:05.519 --> 00:57:07.320
them to hear the orders. I need them to hear

00:57:07.320 --> 00:57:10.260
so they'll know their assignments. Third thing,

00:57:10.440 --> 00:57:13.900
I need hell to hear it. I need the devil to hear

00:57:13.900 --> 00:57:16.760
it. I need him to hear my intent to fight for

00:57:16.760 --> 00:57:19.599
my family. My intent to fight for my own sanity

00:57:19.599 --> 00:57:22.380
in the terms of forgiveness and releasing myself

00:57:22.380 --> 00:57:24.980
from the guilt, shame, and condemnation that

00:57:24.980 --> 00:57:27.440
he's tried to keep us in for all these years.

00:57:27.599 --> 00:57:31.139
He needs to hear you mean business. Because you've

00:57:31.139 --> 00:57:33.900
been given authority by Jesus himself. Conferred

00:57:33.900 --> 00:57:37.239
authority. It's funny how we want to call the

00:57:37.239 --> 00:57:40.300
Calvary in. Tommy's not here to defend himself.

00:57:40.320 --> 00:57:43.539
Tommy Hayes here today? Okay, I can say it. He's

00:57:43.539 --> 00:57:46.230
not here. It's so easy to reach out to Tommy

00:57:46.230 --> 00:57:49.309
and go get a prayer. But God has given you the

00:57:49.309 --> 00:57:52.670
same authority. He's given you the same authority

00:57:52.670 --> 00:57:54.750
He's given Victor Marks or Billy Graham. You

00:57:54.750 --> 00:57:57.530
have the same Holy Spirit. There is no junior

00:57:57.530 --> 00:58:01.329
Holy Spirit. There's no B team Holy Spirit. Billy

00:58:01.329 --> 00:58:04.030
Graham didn't get A team and you got C or D or

00:58:04.030 --> 00:58:08.170
E. You have the same Spirit dwelling in you that

00:58:08.170 --> 00:58:10.550
saw millions come to Christ. That same Spirit's

00:58:10.550 --> 00:58:14.340
in you. So you have what it takes. To forgive

00:58:14.340 --> 00:58:18.539
and release yourself. And quit living in condemnation.

00:58:19.179 --> 00:58:22.400
Romans 8 .1. I love it because it's short. I

00:58:22.400 --> 00:58:25.039
can remember it. But I love it for what it says.

00:58:25.480 --> 00:58:29.079
There is therefore now no condemnation for those

00:58:29.079 --> 00:58:33.440
who are in Christ Jesus. No condemnation. Turn

00:58:33.440 --> 00:58:37.699
to your neighbor and say no condemnation. None.

00:58:37.699 --> 00:58:39.980
None whatsoever. So would you bow your heads

00:58:39.980 --> 00:58:43.000
and close your eyes. Father, in Jesus' name,

00:58:43.059 --> 00:58:45.360
I lift up my friends, my family, our friends

00:58:45.360 --> 00:58:48.900
that are online with us. Lord, I'm asking, I

00:58:48.900 --> 00:58:51.960
thank you that you give us the grace to forgive

00:58:51.960 --> 00:58:54.639
others. Why? Because we've received grace from

00:58:54.639 --> 00:58:58.099
you to forgive. You've forgiven us, therefore

00:58:58.099 --> 00:59:00.840
we're able to forgive others. But Lord, even

00:59:00.840 --> 00:59:04.079
in that you've forgiven us, I'm asking you now

00:59:04.079 --> 00:59:06.420
for the grace, the power, the strength, the ability,

00:59:06.519 --> 00:59:09.079
the favor, the authority to forgive ourselves.

00:59:11.760 --> 00:59:14.440
So this morning, if you're here and this is resonating

00:59:14.440 --> 00:59:18.820
in your heart, maybe if it's not, maybe that's

00:59:18.820 --> 00:59:21.360
just as much of an impetus to do this. But I'm

00:59:21.360 --> 00:59:22.639
going to ask everyone together, we're going to

00:59:22.639 --> 00:59:25.000
pray this prayer out loud. Simple, but to the

00:59:25.000 --> 00:59:28.440
point. But for those of you who really need it,

00:59:28.460 --> 00:59:31.820
really mean it, please internalize this for yourself.

00:59:32.280 --> 00:59:38.920
To say, dear Jesus, I confess to you that I have

00:59:38.920 --> 00:59:45.400
a hard time forgiving myself. Right now in faith.

00:59:46.880 --> 00:59:51.420
And because you give me the power. I choose.

00:59:52.440 --> 01:00:02.039
To forgive myself. I forgive me. I let go of

01:00:02.039 --> 01:00:09.519
the condemnation. I let go of the shame. I let

01:00:09.519 --> 01:00:14.679
go of the guilt. And I release myself because

01:00:14.679 --> 01:00:21.219
you have already forgiven me. I do this in Jesus'

01:00:21.320 --> 01:00:26.159
name. God's people said, amen. Congratulations.

01:00:26.260 --> 01:00:28.980
Some of you just released a big truckload of

01:00:28.980 --> 01:00:30.780
stuff. Yeah, you can give the Lord a hand for

01:00:30.780 --> 01:00:30.980
that.