The Foundation For Favor (Holly Furtick)

0:00:02.160 --> 0:00:04.720 Hey, this is Stephen Ferdick. I'm the pastor of Elevation 0:00:04.960 --> 0:00:07.200 Church and this is our podcast. I wanted to thank 0:00:07.240 --> 0:00:10.560 you for joining us today. Hope this inspires you. Hope 0:00:10.560 --> 0:00:12.600 it builds your faith. Hope it gives your perspective to 0:00:12.600 --> 0:00:15.320 see God is moving in your life. Enjoy the message. 0:00:17.280 --> 0:00:21.079 And now would you welcome our very own Christmas Angel 0:00:21.560 --> 0:00:26.000 as she shares Cook's word, we love you. Here comes Heaven, 0:00:26.480 --> 0:00:30.240 Here comes Holly. Let's put our hands together, e fam 0:00:30.240 --> 0:00:50.000 all over the world. Well, Merry Christmas. I knew he 0:00:50.040 --> 0:00:51.839 was going to say, here comes Holly. I could just 0:00:51.920 --> 0:00:55.600 feel it. You guys can have a seat. I just 0:00:55.640 --> 0:01:07.399 want to say, God, I love our church. I really do. 0:01:07.520 --> 0:01:10.880 I love our church. I love our pastor, I love 0:01:10.880 --> 0:01:13.760 our worship team. I love the songs that are coming 0:01:13.800 --> 0:01:18.120 out of this house. And I just can't believe that 0:01:19.360 --> 0:01:21.160 I get to be a part of this. And it's 0:01:21.200 --> 0:01:23.480 good in the room, and it's good in your house 0:01:23.600 --> 0:01:27.000 and good on your computer, and this is great. So 0:01:27.120 --> 0:01:31.560 Merry Christmas. And I just want to say to everyone watching, 0:01:31.720 --> 0:01:36.200 thank you for prioritizing the word of God in your 0:01:36.319 --> 0:01:42.560 home today. This is possibly the most insane week of 0:01:42.640 --> 0:01:46.399 the year for many of us, during the most insane 0:01:46.680 --> 0:01:51.559 year ever, and there's only a handful of days left 0:01:51.920 --> 0:01:57.160 before Christmas, and we're all running around frantic like we're 0:01:57.240 --> 0:02:02.800 paying just god knows how much money and exorbitant prices 0:02:02.800 --> 0:02:06.080 for shipping to hopefully get our gifts on time, which 0:02:06.160 --> 0:02:09.440 just leves pause here and say to everyone in my family, 0:02:09.520 --> 0:02:11.640 I think everybody has at least one gift that's not 0:02:11.680 --> 0:02:15.079 gonna make it in on time. Okay, so just heads up. 0:02:15.120 --> 0:02:18.040 But we're stressing, and we're trying to get to the 0:02:18.120 --> 0:02:20.960 stores and figure out what the COVID hours of the 0:02:21.040 --> 0:02:24.160 stores are and figuring out our plans, and some of 0:02:24.200 --> 0:02:26.560 us are stressing about how we're going to pay for 0:02:26.639 --> 0:02:29.120 Christmas this year, and thinking about how it won't be 0:02:29.200 --> 0:02:32.480 the same without being with our grandparents, and wondering if 0:02:32.480 --> 0:02:37.120 we should risk being around family. I mean, it's a lot. 0:02:39.040 --> 0:02:41.800 And my prayer is that in the midst of all 0:02:41.880 --> 0:02:45.560 of this, that we would stop and that we would 0:02:45.600 --> 0:02:50.080 realize that the most important thing in this season is 0:02:50.200 --> 0:02:53.399 not about what we give, but it's about what we 0:02:53.480 --> 0:03:00.560 receive from God. Jesus Christ, Emmanuel, God with us. He 0:03:00.680 --> 0:03:03.480 stands by, ready to give us the grace and the 0:03:03.520 --> 0:03:06.240 peace and the joy in the middle of our chaos 0:03:06.320 --> 0:03:09.359 and our anxiety. But we have to pause, and we 0:03:09.440 --> 0:03:12.520 have to accept, and we have to allow him to 0:03:12.639 --> 0:03:15.079 do so. And that is what I feel like this 0:03:15.240 --> 0:03:19.160 moment is you're setting aside time, You're putting all of 0:03:19.200 --> 0:03:21.400 those things out of your mind for just an hour 0:03:21.560 --> 0:03:24.680 or so you can just let God speak to your 0:03:24.760 --> 0:03:27.919 soul and you can worship him and you can hear 0:03:28.480 --> 0:03:29.920 a word for him. So I just want to take 0:03:30.000 --> 0:03:31.440 him in. I want to pray so that we can 0:03:31.560 --> 0:03:36.120 just really center our thoughts and our focus and our 0:03:36.160 --> 0:03:40.760 attention on Jesus in this moment, Lord, in the midst 0:03:40.840 --> 0:03:43.200 of all of the worries and all the anxiety and 0:03:43.280 --> 0:03:48.400 all of the chaos. God, you are Emmanuel, You are 0:03:48.720 --> 0:03:52.680 right here with us. Make us aware of your presence. 0:03:52.760 --> 0:03:56.520 Open up our eyes to see that you are quietly 0:03:57.400 --> 0:04:04.640 standing by, ready to speak peace to our souls. And God, 0:04:04.720 --> 0:04:07.680 Christmas is all about how you come to us, and 0:04:07.760 --> 0:04:11.320 so we want to receive from you right now. You 0:04:11.560 --> 0:04:16.440 are water for our thirsty souls. In this moment, we 0:04:16.480 --> 0:04:20.520 are longing for you. Lord. Would you speak to us 0:04:20.600 --> 0:04:24.320 just like you always do Lord, you speak and pray 0:04:24.400 --> 0:04:27.919 that you would just do what you do. It's in 0:04:28.000 --> 0:04:34.040 Jesus name. Amen. So I got into a little debate 0:04:34.080 --> 0:04:37.280 the other night on my book club on Instagram Live 0:04:37.360 --> 0:04:40.280 shameless plug. Those of you who enjoy reading fiction, Holly 0:04:40.320 --> 0:04:42.440 Fredic book Club, we would love to have you. You 0:04:42.560 --> 0:04:45.120 just google it find us. We're there on Instagram Live 0:04:45.160 --> 0:04:49.279 once a week anyway. So we started talking about real 0:04:49.400 --> 0:04:52.840 trees versus fake trees. We do talk about the book too, 0:04:52.880 --> 0:04:55.719 but it's Christmas time and I'm not trying to start 0:04:55.760 --> 0:04:58.479 another argument because God knows we do not need another 0:04:58.480 --> 0:05:01.280 thing to debate about in twenty twenty. But just let 0:05:01.279 --> 0:05:03.679 me know in the chat if you were a real 0:05:03.800 --> 0:05:08.360 tree or a fake tree. Family. Speaking of real trees, 0:05:09.279 --> 0:05:13.840 did anybody see the Rockefeller Christmas tree this year? So 0:05:15.080 --> 0:05:19.400 there was this seventy four foot Christmas tree that was 0:05:19.600 --> 0:05:22.440 donated by a family in upstate New York. I didn't 0:05:22.440 --> 0:05:24.640 know the tree was always donated, but they went to 0:05:24.680 --> 0:05:28.000 this family's like front yard and they wrapped the tree 0:05:28.120 --> 0:05:30.240 up and they cut it down, they put it on 0:05:30.320 --> 0:05:34.479 a truck and when they set it up in Rockefeller Center. 0:05:35.000 --> 0:05:36.920 I have a picture for you because I just want 0:05:36.960 --> 0:05:42.640 to say it fit right in with twenty twenty. That 0:05:42.760 --> 0:05:46.240 is the Rockefeller Christmas Tree, and if you look at 0:05:46.279 --> 0:05:48.480 it now, it looks amazing because I read that they 0:05:48.600 --> 0:05:52.680 actually took branches from another tree. I don't know what 0:05:52.760 --> 0:05:55.800 you call it, like when you I read a fiction 0:05:55.839 --> 0:05:57.960 book about it one time, you like fay, like paste 0:05:58.000 --> 0:06:00.840 a branch onto the tree trunk of the tree. I'm 0:06:00.839 --> 0:06:03.640 sure Amy knows what it's called. It's like hair extensions 0:06:04.000 --> 0:06:06.960 for the tree. Can I get an amen from the lady. 0:06:06.960 --> 0:06:09.880 It's nothing wrong with a couple of extra strants, make 0:06:09.920 --> 0:06:13.240 your hair look fuller, go the whole way. It's all good. 0:06:13.480 --> 0:06:16.760 So then my friend Ashley, she posted this picture of 0:06:16.800 --> 0:06:20.159 her real Christmas tree. She said, if this isn't the 0:06:20.160 --> 0:06:22.640 most accurate picture of twenty twenty, I don't know what is. 0:06:23.960 --> 0:06:26.280 Anyone have their tree fall over yet? You can let 0:06:26.320 --> 0:06:27.960 me know in the chat. Just you know, I'm sorry 0:06:28.080 --> 0:06:33.000 we did. There is this thing, the tree falling over 0:06:33.080 --> 0:06:35.600 and the tree not looking perfect. These are just one 0:06:35.600 --> 0:06:39.960 of the many reasons why the Fredick family is a 0:06:39.960 --> 0:06:45.760 fake tree family. Steven and Ali Ferdick have only had 0:06:45.880 --> 0:06:49.800 one real tree in all of the eighteen years of 0:06:49.880 --> 0:06:52.360 Christmases that we have celebrated together, and that's just because 0:06:52.400 --> 0:06:54.800 that was all we can afford. And I bought a 0:06:54.839 --> 0:06:58.719 tree like December twenty sixth, the fake tree for the 0:06:58.800 --> 0:07:01.359 following year, and we've had fake trees ever since. I 0:07:01.400 --> 0:07:05.280 know some people really love the smell of a real 0:07:05.400 --> 0:07:08.240 Christmas tree in their home, and some families love the 0:07:08.360 --> 0:07:12.600 experience of going to a tree farm and cutting down 0:07:12.640 --> 0:07:15.160 their own tree. And listen, if that's you, I am 0:07:15.480 --> 0:07:19.200 so happy for you. We're just not really like the 0:07:19.240 --> 0:07:22.720 outdoorsy type family and we don't really need to go 0:07:23.120 --> 0:07:26.400 outside to find the perfect tree. We have the perfect 0:07:26.440 --> 0:07:28.920 tree in our attic. I bought it at Sam's Club. 0:07:31.440 --> 0:07:33.960 If you ask me, it's just real trees are such 0:07:33.960 --> 0:07:38.200 a hassle. They're so messy and imperfect, and they have 0:07:38.600 --> 0:07:42.240 holes that you have to hide the you know, turn 0:07:42.360 --> 0:07:44.600 and hide the branches and need to be trimmed. And 0:07:44.600 --> 0:07:46.960 then did you know, I mean, I'm sure you know 0:07:47.320 --> 0:07:49.600 you have to water them. I didn't when we got 0:07:49.600 --> 0:07:52.360 our first real Christmas tree, I didn't know that you 0:07:52.400 --> 0:07:54.800 had to water it, and it died really fast. And 0:07:55.080 --> 0:07:58.200 you know, sometimes their website you get sap on your hands. 0:07:58.320 --> 0:08:01.440 I hate getting sap on my hands. It's just fake trees. 0:08:01.480 --> 0:08:04.960 You just plug them in and fluff them up and 0:08:05.000 --> 0:08:10.560 then you're ready to go. It's it's the best thing ever. Okay, 0:08:10.640 --> 0:08:13.040 I see there's a lot of fake tree families out there. 0:08:14.920 --> 0:08:17.280 So for the past several weeks, we've been learning from 0:08:17.320 --> 0:08:21.320 our pastor about God's favor and how many of you 0:08:21.320 --> 0:08:24.000 would agree that just the sermons of the truth of 0:08:24.720 --> 0:08:29.360 this year that just gotten you through, it has gotten through. 0:08:31.200 --> 0:08:33.440 I asked, I asked Elijah last night. I was like, 0:08:33.440 --> 0:08:35.120 do I say that every time that I preach? It 0:08:35.200 --> 0:08:37.960 was like, yeah, but it's true, it's true. It's just 0:08:38.080 --> 0:08:40.960 they I mean, it's just our pastor is so prophetic 0:08:41.000 --> 0:08:44.280 and his words have just gotten us through. And so anyway, 0:08:44.320 --> 0:08:49.360 we've been reframing the idea of God's favor and gaining 0:08:49.400 --> 0:08:54.800 this new perspective because this year twenty twenty, with all 0:08:54.960 --> 0:08:58.360 that has come along with it, this year is the 0:08:58.480 --> 0:09:02.960 year of God's favor. And we've been learning that favor 0:09:03.440 --> 0:09:06.760 doesn't always come when we expect it to comment, it 0:09:06.760 --> 0:09:10.280 doesn't always look the way we expected to look. And 0:09:10.760 --> 0:09:13.760 last week, Pastor Stephen took us to the life of Mary, 0:09:13.840 --> 0:09:18.480 my absolute favorite Bible character, and we saw in Luke 0:09:18.559 --> 0:09:21.920 chapter one that the Angel told Mary that she had 0:09:22.360 --> 0:09:27.959 found favor with God. And we learned that oftentimes true 0:09:28.520 --> 0:09:35.120 favor feels like inconvenience and interruption, and it brings on insecurity, 0:09:35.200 --> 0:09:40.320 and that favor is almost always accompanied by fear. And 0:09:40.360 --> 0:09:43.800 as I've been processing these teachings, I'm learning that I 0:09:43.920 --> 0:09:48.000 have to learn to let go of what I expected 0:09:48.160 --> 0:09:51.280 favor to look like in my life so that I 0:09:51.320 --> 0:09:55.400 can take hold of the amazing things that God is 0:09:55.480 --> 0:10:01.559 calling me to do. But like my fact, fake Christmas 0:10:01.559 --> 0:10:05.600 tree that doesn't require doesn't make a mess, it doesn't 0:10:05.840 --> 0:10:08.880 require a ton of work and water. And I think 0:10:08.960 --> 0:10:13.320 sometimes it's just easier if I could just have fake favor, too, right, 0:10:15.400 --> 0:10:20.320 I want a favor that looks good without requiring anything 0:10:20.400 --> 0:10:26.800 of me. I want to favor that's beautiful and does 0:10:26.840 --> 0:10:31.640 it make me uncomfortable in any way. Fake favor is 0:10:31.720 --> 0:10:36.760 focused on the outward appearance. It's focused on other people's 0:10:36.840 --> 0:10:41.680 perceptions of me, and fake favor just stays on the 0:10:41.760 --> 0:10:45.160 surface because the surface is safe, and so it's safe 0:10:45.160 --> 0:10:48.240 for me to just tell everyone, yeah, I'm fine. I'm fine, 0:10:48.240 --> 0:10:51.079 We're doing great. I'm good because I don't want anyone 0:10:51.200 --> 0:10:55.120 to know what maybe is really going on in my life. 0:10:55.280 --> 0:10:58.280 I want when people look at me and my family 0:10:58.400 --> 0:11:00.880 to think that we have it all together, because if 0:11:00.920 --> 0:11:04.840 I share my fears and my frustrations and my struggles, 0:11:04.960 --> 0:11:07.600 how will you think that God's favor could possibly be 0:11:07.679 --> 0:11:12.439 on my life. You don't have to share everything with everyone, 0:11:12.480 --> 0:11:14.520 but you got to share some things with some people. 0:11:16.720 --> 0:11:25.079 Fake favor also centers around stuff, and until recently, until 0:11:25.120 --> 0:11:28.760 our pastors started preaching these messages messages, I think that 0:11:28.840 --> 0:11:33.120 I think that I have always equated the favor of 0:11:33.240 --> 0:11:40.320 God with the stuff that I have. Now, don't get 0:11:40.320 --> 0:11:45.480 me wrong, I love stuff. I love stuff more than 0:11:45.480 --> 0:11:49.200 the average person. I promise you, especially this time of year. 0:11:49.280 --> 0:11:53.000 I love stuff. And Stephen Ferdick is on the front 0:11:53.080 --> 0:11:57.280 row going, yes, she does. I'm sorry, I'm working on it. 0:11:57.960 --> 0:12:01.520 I have nothing against stuff, and I believe that every 0:12:01.920 --> 0:12:04.320 blessing that I have, every good and perfect gift, comes 0:12:04.320 --> 0:12:08.520 from our Father above. But if when you think about 0:12:08.559 --> 0:12:11.240 all the ways that God has blessed you, the only 0:12:11.320 --> 0:12:15.720 things that you can think about are stuff, oriented you 0:12:15.800 --> 0:12:18.880 have a very limited view of a very big God. 0:12:21.200 --> 0:12:25.600 Stuff is fun, it's fun, but it has a very 0:12:26.040 --> 0:12:29.880 very short shelf life in the realm of faith. And 0:12:29.960 --> 0:12:32.080 I know a lot of people who have a lot 0:12:32.120 --> 0:12:36.480 of stuff and a little faith. Type it in the 0:12:36.559 --> 0:12:41.360 chat right now, No more fake favor, No more fake favor. 0:12:42.480 --> 0:12:48.599 How did Mary find true favor with God? There was 0:12:48.640 --> 0:12:53.120 something special about her that set her apart from every 0:12:53.280 --> 0:12:57.480 other woman in her generation. There had to be. Mary 0:12:57.559 --> 0:12:59.800 was not a random lottery pick. God didn't do a 0:12:59.800 --> 0:13:03.840 lot and just pick a girl. I believe that Mary 0:13:03.920 --> 0:13:09.720 had a foundation for favor. That's the title of my 0:13:09.800 --> 0:13:14.280 message today, the foundation for favor. And I want you 0:13:14.400 --> 0:13:23.000 to look with me Jeremiah seventeen, verse seven. But blessed 0:13:23.080 --> 0:13:25.880 is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence 0:13:25.960 --> 0:13:28.800 isn't him. They will be like a tree planted by 0:13:28.800 --> 0:13:31.679 the water that sends out its roots by the stream. 0:13:32.280 --> 0:13:35.839 It does not fear when he comes. Its leaves are 0:13:35.920 --> 0:13:39.680 always green, It has no worries in a year of drought, 0:13:39.960 --> 0:13:45.520 and it never fails to bear fruit. I love this 0:13:45.679 --> 0:13:51.480 picture of this tree. This tree is solid, This tree 0:13:51.559 --> 0:13:57.319 has weathered some storms. This is not a fake tree. 0:13:57.600 --> 0:14:01.280 This tree shows me that having a relationship with God 0:14:01.800 --> 0:14:07.280 does not make me exempt from difficulties and struggles. It 0:14:07.480 --> 0:14:11.800 simply gives us a foundation that we can draw from 0:14:11.840 --> 0:14:16.080 when those hard times come, and it enables us not 0:14:16.240 --> 0:14:22.240 just to survive, but to actually bear fruit during the 0:14:22.280 --> 0:14:27.920 most difficult seasons, during the drought, during the storm. See 0:14:28.000 --> 0:14:33.840 fake trees look good, but fake trees can't bear fruit. 0:14:39.520 --> 0:14:42.960 I know that everyone is glad to see twenty twenty 0:14:43.080 --> 0:14:46.000 come to an end, right, but we all know that 0:14:46.120 --> 0:14:49.040 twenty twenty one is coming right around the corner and 0:14:49.120 --> 0:14:52.080 it's gonna hit us with its own set of challenges. 0:14:52.120 --> 0:14:56.920 Because this is life, and my goal is to be ready, 0:14:57.680 --> 0:15:03.520 not perfect. I want to have a foundation that is 0:15:03.560 --> 0:15:07.760 going to allow me to bear fruit. Fruit in every 0:15:08.120 --> 0:15:13.120 season drought, storm, summer, winter, I can bear fruit because 0:15:13.200 --> 0:15:23.640 my life is rooted in my relationship with Jesus. Blessed 0:15:23.840 --> 0:15:27.640 is the one who trusts in the Lord, whose confidence 0:15:28.040 --> 0:15:32.320 is in him. We all know people who seem to 0:15:32.600 --> 0:15:37.680 weather the most incredible storms and still keep their faith intact. 0:15:38.240 --> 0:15:40.160 I'm sure you have someone who comes to your mind 0:15:40.200 --> 0:15:43.200 like this person who just personifies strength, and when you 0:15:43.200 --> 0:15:45.600 look at their life, you just wonder how are they 0:15:45.680 --> 0:15:48.560 making it through that? I could never make it through that. 0:15:48.600 --> 0:15:50.320 But have you if you've ever noticed that, there's some 0:15:50.320 --> 0:15:52.920 people that don't actually make it through. Like there are 0:15:52.960 --> 0:15:56.800 those people who come through a storm. They weather the storm, 0:15:56.840 --> 0:16:00.240 and they come through it. They're battered, they're bruised, and 0:16:00.280 --> 0:16:02.920 they're stronger, right, But there are also those people who 0:16:02.960 --> 0:16:08.720 are badder and bruised and bitter. And I can tell 0:16:08.720 --> 0:16:13.720 you right now that strong people don't happen by accident. 0:16:15.480 --> 0:16:19.680 Strength is not developed in the dry season. It just 0:16:19.800 --> 0:16:22.880 reveals itself there. So if you get to the dry 0:16:22.920 --> 0:16:25.000 season and you don't have any strength, you're in trouble. 0:16:27.120 --> 0:16:30.560 The other day, I had a very short window to 0:16:30.680 --> 0:16:34.320 get my workout in. I have a certain number of workouts. 0:16:34.360 --> 0:16:36.560 I'm trying to get to the end of the year. 0:16:36.960 --> 0:16:38.640 I'm not going to make it to my goal, but 0:16:39.080 --> 0:16:41.240 I'm because I was going to. I literally have to 0:16:41.320 --> 0:16:42.760 work out every day for the rest of the year 0:16:42.800 --> 0:16:44.360 to make my goal. But that's okay. I'm close to 0:16:44.400 --> 0:16:50.240 the goal anyway. Normally, that's the point, right, I've got close. Normally, 0:16:50.440 --> 0:16:56.800 I that's my definition of a goal. Okay, So normally 0:16:57.320 --> 0:16:59.840 I have a peloton bike and I do the peloton ride, 0:16:59.840 --> 0:17:01.760 and to be honest, this particular day, I didn't want 0:17:01.800 --> 0:17:06.320 to get my hair sweaty, and so I selected a 0:17:06.359 --> 0:17:09.680 twenty minute intermediate strength training workout. I was like, twenty 0:17:09.680 --> 0:17:12.439 minutes intermediate. I'm intermediate. I think I can do this, 0:17:13.080 --> 0:17:15.679 and so everything was going along just fine, and there 0:17:15.760 --> 0:17:19.560 was this one exercise that I never do, and it 0:17:19.680 --> 0:17:21.680 was called well, I don't actually know what it was 0:17:21.720 --> 0:17:24.399 called because I never do it, but it was the 0:17:24.400 --> 0:17:28.520 one where you hold the weights. It looks really easy, 0:17:28.760 --> 0:17:31.680 and so you hold the weights and you've been down 0:17:32.280 --> 0:17:34.399 and then you come up and you pull them up, 0:17:35.000 --> 0:17:40.239 and the instructor said, that kind of hurt my legs there. 0:17:40.320 --> 0:17:43.800 I didn't even have the weights. The instructor said, she said, 0:17:44.040 --> 0:17:47.399 get heavier weights, and I didn't want to get too sore, 0:17:47.680 --> 0:17:49.679 and so I thought I was being smart and at 0:17:49.720 --> 0:17:52.080 the risk of you understanding how little I lift weights, 0:17:52.480 --> 0:17:53.679 I'm just going to go ahead and tell you. I 0:17:53.720 --> 0:17:58.000 stuck with my tens and I still got sore. I 0:17:58.040 --> 0:18:02.960 got so sore that I could barely walk for two days. 0:18:03.000 --> 0:18:07.160 I was like shuffling, you know, and I haven't done 0:18:07.160 --> 0:18:10.199 that exercise. Since then, of course not. I don't want 0:18:10.200 --> 0:18:14.679 to be sure again. But the soreness is an indication 0:18:15.680 --> 0:18:19.520 that you are, that you're getting stronger, if, if, and 0:18:19.640 --> 0:18:24.320 only if you keep doing that exercise. Do you remember 0:18:24.359 --> 0:18:27.560 what pastor Steven so prophetically said to us at the 0:18:27.600 --> 0:18:31.320 beginning of twenty twenty, He said, time under tension. We 0:18:31.400 --> 0:18:34.080 had no idea how much tension was coming. Time under 0:18:34.119 --> 0:18:40.080 tension creates strength. Strength is built over time, little by little, 0:18:40.520 --> 0:18:44.439 day by day, exercise after exercise. A tree does not 0:18:44.680 --> 0:18:50.840 grow overnight. A tree takes time to put down roots. 0:18:51.440 --> 0:18:53.879 And if you want to be a strong person, a 0:18:53.920 --> 0:18:58.320 person who never fails to bear fruit, a person who 0:18:58.359 --> 0:19:01.840 has found favor with God, you're going to have to 0:19:01.840 --> 0:19:09.480 have a foundation that can sustain you through Jeremiah says 0:19:09.720 --> 0:19:13.439 that the tree is planted by water, and that it 0:19:13.680 --> 0:19:19.159 sends out its roots. So the most important part of 0:19:19.200 --> 0:19:24.879 the tree happens below the surface. It's not the blooms, 0:19:24.960 --> 0:19:28.480 it's not the beautiful fall leaves. The most important part 0:19:28.520 --> 0:19:33.320 of the tree happens in the places that we can't see. 0:19:33.440 --> 0:19:35.480 So I want to go back and look at Luke 0:19:35.560 --> 0:19:38.680 one again this week, and I want to look at 0:19:38.680 --> 0:19:42.600 Mary and I want to see how did she find 0:19:42.800 --> 0:19:47.280 favor with God? How did God know that she would 0:19:47.320 --> 0:19:52.240 be strong enough to press on when people didn't believe 0:19:52.320 --> 0:19:55.240 that she was carrying God's child? How did he know 0:19:55.400 --> 0:19:58.760 that she would not crumble under the weight of disappointment 0:19:58.920 --> 0:20:02.560 and grief, the the immense grief she must have had 0:20:02.680 --> 0:20:07.360 when she watched her firstborn son die a gruesome martyrs 0:20:07.440 --> 0:20:10.760 dad at age thirty three. And yet still that woman 0:20:10.840 --> 0:20:13.280 had the faith to be sitting there in the upper 0:20:13.359 --> 0:20:17.520 room with the disciples at Pentecost. How did God know 0:20:18.119 --> 0:20:21.080 that she'd be strong enough to make it through all 0:20:21.119 --> 0:20:23.639 of that. If twenty twenty is the year of the 0:20:23.720 --> 0:20:26.960 Lord's favor, I want to have fresh eyes to look 0:20:27.000 --> 0:20:30.720 at it. I want to see that every difficult thing 0:20:30.800 --> 0:20:34.159 that I faced was actually making me stronger for the 0:20:34.240 --> 0:20:39.960 journey ahead in twenty twenty one. We've been building for 0:20:40.000 --> 0:20:42.840 this all along. God, how do I do this? I 0:20:42.880 --> 0:20:45.760 want to look at Luke one and I'm going to 0:20:45.840 --> 0:20:49.200 show you five things about Mary that gave her a 0:20:49.240 --> 0:20:53.880 foundation to receive the favor of God. And these are 0:20:53.880 --> 0:20:56.159 the same things that we need in our lives to 0:20:56.280 --> 0:20:59.760 prepare us for the blessings that God wants to bring 0:20:59.880 --> 0:21:03.720 us this year, not the stuff the blessings. Here we 0:21:03.760 --> 0:21:08.080 go Luke one, Starting in verse twenty six, in the 0:21:08.160 --> 0:21:12.080 sixth month of Elizabeth's pregnancy, God sent the angel Gabriel 0:21:12.119 --> 0:21:15.320 to Nazareth, a town in Galilee, to a virgin pledged 0:21:15.359 --> 0:21:17.360 to be married to a man named Joseph, a descendant 0:21:17.400 --> 0:21:20.640 of David. The virgin's name was Mary. The angel said 0:21:20.640 --> 0:21:24.919 to her, greetings, you, who are highly favored. The Lord 0:21:25.320 --> 0:21:28.239 is with you. And Mary was greatly troubled at his 0:21:28.280 --> 0:21:31.000 words and wondered what kind of greeting this might be. 0:21:31.640 --> 0:21:35.840 But the Angel said to her, do not be afraid, Mary, 0:21:36.400 --> 0:21:41.040 you have found favor with God. You will conceive and 0:21:41.080 --> 0:21:43.600 give birth to a son, and you are to call 0:21:43.720 --> 0:21:46.760 him Jesus. He will be great, and he will be 0:21:46.800 --> 0:21:49.160 called the Son of the Most High. The Lord will 0:21:49.160 --> 0:21:51.119 give him the throne of his father David, and he 0:21:51.200 --> 0:21:56.400 will reign over Jacob's descendants forever. His kingdom will never end. 0:21:57.680 --> 0:22:01.439 How will this be, Mary asked the angel, since I 0:22:01.440 --> 0:22:05.680 am a virgin. The angel answered, the Holy Spirit will 0:22:05.680 --> 0:22:08.120 come on you, and the power of the Most High 0:22:08.160 --> 0:22:10.760 will overshadow you. So the Holy One to be born 0:22:10.840 --> 0:22:14.520 will be called the Son of God. Even Elizabeth, your relative, 0:22:14.560 --> 0:22:16.280 is going to have a child in her own age, 0:22:16.480 --> 0:22:18.600 and she who was said to be unable to conceive 0:22:18.640 --> 0:22:22.960 and is in her six month for no word from 0:22:23.080 --> 0:22:27.840 God will ever fail. I am the Lord's servant. Mary answered, 0:22:28.200 --> 0:22:32.200 may your word to me be fulfilled? And then the 0:22:32.240 --> 0:22:40.840 angel left her. So Mary has this massive calling on 0:22:40.960 --> 0:22:45.399 her life. She is going to be the mother of 0:22:45.440 --> 0:22:53.480 the Messiah. She's going to raise God. And we know 0:22:53.600 --> 0:22:57.240 nothing about her prior to this passage of scripture. But 0:22:57.320 --> 0:22:59.719 as the story unfolds, we find out that she's a 0:22:59.760 --> 0:23:03.960 girl from Nazareth. She's engaged to be married. The Angel 0:23:04.040 --> 0:23:08.520 comes to her and says, greetings. Have you ever thought 0:23:08.520 --> 0:23:11.560 about all the ways that God spoke to people in 0:23:11.560 --> 0:23:14.600 the Bible up until this point? It's pretty cool. He 0:23:14.640 --> 0:23:18.720 spoke through dreams, he spoke to Moses in a burning bush, 0:23:18.880 --> 0:23:22.280 he spoke through a talking donkey one time, the writing 0:23:22.320 --> 0:23:24.840 on the wall, and oftentimes God spoke to people in 0:23:25.000 --> 0:23:30.760 out loud, audible voices. Where was Mary when the Angel 0:23:30.800 --> 0:23:34.840 came to her? What was she doing? The passage doesn't say, 0:23:34.960 --> 0:23:37.679 doesn't say that she was in church or that she 0:23:37.840 --> 0:23:40.560 was kneeling in prayer, or even that she was sleeping 0:23:40.600 --> 0:23:42.040 and that the Angel came to her in a dream. 0:23:42.080 --> 0:23:46.919 It simply says that the angel came to her and 0:23:47.000 --> 0:23:51.800 got me wondering if God knew that he could just 0:23:52.200 --> 0:23:56.720 interrupt any old day in Mary's life, that she had 0:23:56.840 --> 0:24:01.800 such an awareness of God's presence that she was ready 0:24:01.840 --> 0:24:06.920 to receive from him during her everyday life. The first 0:24:06.920 --> 0:24:13.240 foundation for Mary's favor is awareness. Are you aware of 0:24:13.320 --> 0:24:17.760 God's presence in your everyday life? Or is your life 0:24:18.160 --> 0:24:22.119 so loud and so crowded and so back to back 0:24:22.280 --> 0:24:25.479 to back that God would have to strike lightning to 0:24:25.600 --> 0:24:29.760 get your attention because you are so busy. If you 0:24:29.920 --> 0:24:33.679 think that being aware of God's presence means that, well, 0:24:33.720 --> 0:24:37.080 maybe I just get up at five am. That's wonderful. 0:24:37.160 --> 0:24:38.840 You should do it. If that's what you think, it 0:24:38.880 --> 0:24:42.000 is great. I think getting up early is awesome. I 0:24:42.160 --> 0:24:47.480 just can't do it. And yes, I do think that 0:24:47.560 --> 0:24:51.399 it's important to set aside time to read and to 0:24:51.440 --> 0:24:54.760 study God's word, and to pray and to listen to music. 0:24:54.800 --> 0:24:58.919 It's essential to my growth and to my strength. But 0:24:59.040 --> 0:25:02.720 I can't get up early, and I live a very 0:25:02.840 --> 0:25:05.600 full life. And so I told the ladies that reflect 0:25:05.600 --> 0:25:07.879 that one of the things that I do is I 0:25:07.920 --> 0:25:11.000 look for pockets, look at the person next to you, 0:25:11.160 --> 0:25:13.080 or put it in the chat. What's in your pockets. 0:25:15.720 --> 0:25:19.840 You may not have an hour of time to spend 0:25:20.080 --> 0:25:24.919 each day, but I bet you have pockets, Like what 0:25:24.960 --> 0:25:28.159 do you do during your commute to work? What do 0:25:28.160 --> 0:25:30.840 you do when you're sitting at your kids' sports practice. 0:25:30.880 --> 0:25:33.680 What's playing in the background while you're mowing the lawn 0:25:33.800 --> 0:25:35.679 or doing the laundry, or what do you do on 0:25:35.720 --> 0:25:38.439 your lunch break at work? What's the last thing that 0:25:38.560 --> 0:25:42.679 you do before you fall asleep at night. These are pockets. 0:25:43.760 --> 0:25:48.920 Mary had space in her life for God. And we 0:25:49.000 --> 0:25:52.840 live in a day and time where this one little device, 0:25:53.119 --> 0:25:56.040 actually have my phone in my pocket, this one little 0:25:56.080 --> 0:25:59.440 device can enable us to fill the space in our 0:25:59.520 --> 0:26:04.600 life with sermons and worship music and audio books and podcasts. 0:26:04.640 --> 0:26:10.000 But if you don't have a plan, you just start scrolling, 0:26:11.800 --> 0:26:16.600 and you'll scroll feeds during every extra second that you 0:26:16.760 --> 0:26:21.919 have in your day. And if you spend your day scrolling, 0:26:22.960 --> 0:26:30.520 you're gonna end it starving, starving for encouragement. Because you 0:26:30.520 --> 0:26:35.320 were looking in the wrong place, starving for purpose because 0:26:35.320 --> 0:26:40.720 you are comparing your calling to someone else's calling, lacking 0:26:40.840 --> 0:26:45.280 the peace and the joy that are hours for the taking. 0:26:45.560 --> 0:26:49.080 But we wasted that precious pocket of time that could 0:26:49.080 --> 0:26:52.480 have been used for God's just Whisper a word of encouragement. 0:26:52.840 --> 0:26:56.600 Fill that little empty space in your life. Some of 0:26:56.680 --> 0:27:00.359 us are starving right now because we've let church just 0:27:00.720 --> 0:27:07.960 slip between our fingers. When we went into quarantine. You 0:27:08.080 --> 0:27:10.840 got up, you got your family up, you got the 0:27:10.960 --> 0:27:13.960 TV on, you were watching the pre show. You got 0:27:14.000 --> 0:27:16.359 out of bed and sat up at your kitchen table 0:27:16.400 --> 0:27:19.080 and gave God your full attention. And now you're like, 0:27:19.480 --> 0:27:24.360 we'll just catch it later on YouTube. I know it's 0:27:24.440 --> 0:27:28.160 Christmas time. I know the numbers are going up all 0:27:28.200 --> 0:27:32.520 over our country, But as we look toward twenty twenty one, 0:27:33.240 --> 0:27:38.160 are we going to prioritize church in our homes. This 0:27:38.400 --> 0:27:42.439 virus has taken a lot from us. But I just 0:27:42.480 --> 0:27:46.399 want you to know me and my house we're gonna 0:27:46.440 --> 0:27:50.639 take away We're going to take the time to worship God. 0:27:51.400 --> 0:27:54.080 We're not gonna let the enemy take away church from us. 0:27:54.880 --> 0:27:58.720 I'm not. And if it's safe for you to actually 0:27:58.760 --> 0:28:01.080 go to church. If it's safe for me to actually 0:28:01.160 --> 0:28:04.240 be in these seats, you better bet my kids butts 0:28:04.320 --> 0:28:07.119 are gonna be in these seats as much as possible. 0:28:12.960 --> 0:28:16.800 If you're not careful, if we're not if we're not diligent, 0:28:16.920 --> 0:28:21.560 we will let the important things just slip, and then 0:28:21.640 --> 0:28:25.680 we find ourselves in a difficult storm and we don't 0:28:25.680 --> 0:28:28.399 have the roots to get us through because we haven't 0:28:28.400 --> 0:28:30.800 made the presence of God a priority in our lives. 0:28:32.600 --> 0:28:38.200 It's time to wake up and position yourself to hear 0:28:38.320 --> 0:28:41.160 God speak. Wherever God speaks to you, you get yourself 0:28:41.200 --> 0:28:44.600 there because the strength that you need for the next 0:28:44.640 --> 0:28:47.160 season is in the things that God wants to speak 0:28:47.160 --> 0:28:51.360 to you right now. Are you aware? Are you listening? 0:28:51.720 --> 0:28:54.840 Mary was aware, and the Angel comes to her and 0:28:54.880 --> 0:28:57.920 he tells her, you have found favor with God. You're 0:28:57.920 --> 0:29:00.720 gonna give birth to the son of the Most hi God, 0:29:00.720 --> 0:29:03.640 and the power of the Holy Spirit is gonna come 0:29:03.720 --> 0:29:06.600 upon you. And I got to read to you Mary's 0:29:06.640 --> 0:29:10.840 response from the Passion translation. I love a Passion translation. 0:29:10.920 --> 0:29:12.960 Sometimes I just go to it to see a little 0:29:13.000 --> 0:29:16.600 bit different way it that it says this. This is 0:29:16.640 --> 0:29:19.200 my favorite verse in the whole Bible, and I love 0:29:19.240 --> 0:29:21.520 to read it in a different translation, because sometimes when 0:29:21.520 --> 0:29:24.640 you switch up your translations, GOT will show you something new. 0:29:25.480 --> 0:29:28.320 So this is uh Luke one thirty eight. Then Mary 0:29:28.400 --> 0:29:33.640 responded saying, this is amazing. I will be the mother 0:29:33.840 --> 0:29:37.640 for our Lord. That's a message for some of the 0:29:37.640 --> 0:29:39.920 moms out there. I think I'll be the mother for 0:29:40.000 --> 0:29:42.840 our I'm gonna Lord, I'm gonna be the mother for 0:29:42.880 --> 0:29:48.920 these these people. Sorry, this is amazing. I will be 0:29:48.960 --> 0:29:53.719 the mother for the Lord as his servant. I accept 0:29:54.240 --> 0:29:59.080 whatever he has for me. May everything you have told 0:29:59.120 --> 0:30:03.440 me come to pass? And the angel left her. Second 0:30:03.480 --> 0:30:09.080 foundation that Mary had was acceptance. See if this were me, 0:30:10.000 --> 0:30:13.120 I don't think I would have said this is amazing. 0:30:14.680 --> 0:30:17.760 I would have been like, Okay, God, this sounds I'm 0:30:17.800 --> 0:30:22.000 getting there. I have a few questions before I accept 0:30:22.000 --> 0:30:25.760 this assignment. God, you do know that I'm just a 0:30:25.800 --> 0:30:29.560 girl and I don't know nothing about babies, right, just checking? 0:30:30.040 --> 0:30:34.360 And God, have you thought about how nobody's going to 0:30:34.440 --> 0:30:38.760 believe me? God? Like, are you sure I'm the right person? 0:30:38.800 --> 0:30:41.800 Are you sure I'm good enough to embrace your son? 0:30:41.880 --> 0:30:45.160 Are you sure I'm smart enough? And what about my past? 0:30:45.200 --> 0:30:47.280 What about the mistakes that are made? What about what 0:30:47.360 --> 0:30:51.200 about the things that I've done? And God, you know, 0:30:52.360 --> 0:30:55.479 are you sure? Like I was thinking I could have 0:30:55.560 --> 0:30:57.800 more of like an upfront calling than a behind the 0:30:57.840 --> 0:31:01.719 scenes one, Like maybe I could be a prophetess instead 0:31:01.760 --> 0:31:09.720 of a diaper changer. Mary simply accepted the calling that 0:31:09.800 --> 0:31:13.200 God had placed on her life. And if you don't 0:31:13.200 --> 0:31:17.200 have the foundation of acceptance in your life, you're gonna 0:31:17.240 --> 0:31:21.479 abandon your calling at the first sign of trouble, and 0:31:21.520 --> 0:31:25.840 then you're gonna miss out on living a life full 0:31:26.280 --> 0:31:30.480 of purpose. The thing about a calling is it's like 0:31:30.640 --> 0:31:33.720 a gift that is exclusively for you, Like a gift 0:31:33.720 --> 0:31:37.120 that has your initials in it. You can't trade it 0:31:37.160 --> 0:31:40.680 with someone else, you can't return it for a different one. 0:31:41.160 --> 0:31:45.120 You can either reject it or accept it. And let 0:31:45.200 --> 0:31:48.080 me just say, you don't have to accept God's calling 0:31:48.120 --> 0:31:51.400 on your life. He has someone else that he can use, 0:31:51.720 --> 0:31:59.760 he does, but he picked you. And I'm just gonna 0:31:59.760 --> 0:32:03.440 say I've been guilty of just rejecting the calling that 0:32:03.480 --> 0:32:06.000 God has placed on my life at times. Not outright, 0:32:06.000 --> 0:32:08.760 of course, I mean I would never be like Jonah 0:32:08.800 --> 0:32:11.440 and go in the opposite direction. Of what God told 0:32:11.480 --> 0:32:13.760 me to do. It's just a little more subtle, you know, 0:32:13.880 --> 0:32:17.360 like maybe I get a little stuck, and some days 0:32:17.400 --> 0:32:21.360 I'm just unwilling to put in the work required to 0:32:21.480 --> 0:32:23.960 accomplish the things that God wants me to do. I'm 0:32:23.960 --> 0:32:28.080 just gonna say I'm lazy, and I'd rather watch YouTube 0:32:28.160 --> 0:32:31.320 videos of someone else's day in the life than actually 0:32:31.400 --> 0:32:34.760 live mine with the purpose that God has given me. 0:32:36.800 --> 0:32:38.920 Since I'm up here being honest with thousands of my 0:32:38.960 --> 0:32:43.520 closest friends, I'll just tell you that there were years, 0:32:43.960 --> 0:32:48.000 years where I was simply unwilling to put in the 0:32:48.040 --> 0:32:51.760 work required to do the things that God was calling 0:32:51.800 --> 0:32:55.560 me to do, because living in the favor of God 0:32:56.280 --> 0:33:02.840 requires work on my part. So like it takes a 0:33:02.960 --> 0:33:07.280 lot of work to write a good sermon, you know 0:33:07.320 --> 0:33:10.480 what else it takes to write a good sermon, Like 0:33:10.600 --> 0:33:14.640 knowing your Bible, reading it. You got to hear from 0:33:14.680 --> 0:33:17.200 God for yourself before you can just pass it on 0:33:17.680 --> 0:33:20.880 to other people. And there were years where I hid 0:33:20.920 --> 0:33:23.840 behind the idea that I wasn't good enough, that I 0:33:23.880 --> 0:33:26.400 didn't have the intelligence or the talent or the charisma 0:33:26.400 --> 0:33:28.959 that it takes to minister to people from a stage, 0:33:28.960 --> 0:33:33.320 and the reality is I wasn't willing to put in 0:33:33.360 --> 0:33:36.840 the work to live up to the calling that God 0:33:36.880 --> 0:33:44.360 had placed right in my lap. You are enough and 0:33:44.400 --> 0:33:50.000 you have everything you need. If God called you, you're enough, 0:33:50.400 --> 0:33:54.440 and it's time for you to accept that. But that 0:33:54.480 --> 0:33:57.520 doesn't mean it won't be hard, and that doesn't mean 0:33:57.560 --> 0:33:59.479 you won't have to put in a lot of work, 0:34:00.080 --> 0:34:02.760 and that doesn't mean that sometimes you won't like it. 0:34:04.520 --> 0:34:10.240 Repetition over time creates strength. And you might be thinking, well, 0:34:10.960 --> 0:34:13.480 that's easy for you to say, you're Stephen Verdick's wife. 0:34:14.200 --> 0:34:18.000 How do I know what I'm called to do? I 0:34:18.000 --> 0:34:21.840 have an answer for you. You're called to do whatever 0:34:21.880 --> 0:34:26.080 God has placed in your life right now, this moment, 0:34:27.760 --> 0:34:30.839 not one day when you get married, or one day 0:34:30.880 --> 0:34:33.520 when you have more money, or one day when you 0:34:33.560 --> 0:34:36.160 own your own home. Then I'll have and then I'll 0:34:36.160 --> 0:34:38.960 help people in my home. Then I'll I'll be hospitable. 0:34:39.000 --> 0:34:42.120 And I said to the ladies last month, and I'm 0:34:42.160 --> 0:34:45.200 gonna say it again to everybody under the sound of 0:34:45.239 --> 0:34:51.360 my voice. The best person to raise your kids is you, mom, dad, 0:34:51.400 --> 0:34:56.360 It's you. The best person to do your job, the 0:34:56.520 --> 0:34:59.120 job that you have today. Thank God that you have 0:34:59.160 --> 0:35:02.680 a job. The best person to do that job? Is 0:35:02.760 --> 0:35:07.200 you the best person to speak up for that cause 0:35:07.239 --> 0:35:10.680 it's just burning in your heart that that's the Holy 0:35:10.760 --> 0:35:15.799 Spirit calling you, calling you out to speak out for 0:35:15.920 --> 0:35:20.560 that organization, for those overlooked people. You are called to 0:35:20.600 --> 0:35:25.160 the place where you are right now. Your high school, 0:35:25.680 --> 0:35:30.960 your neighborhood, your coworkers, all of these people need to 0:35:31.120 --> 0:35:35.440 see you confidently walking in the calling that God has 0:35:35.520 --> 0:35:39.160 given you. And when you do go through something hard, 0:35:39.320 --> 0:35:43.319 because you will, they're going to see your strength and 0:35:43.360 --> 0:35:46.799 your resilience and your dependence on God and your relationship 0:35:46.840 --> 0:35:50.279 with Him as you go through whatever your challenges are. 0:35:50.840 --> 0:35:52.960 And we like to think of Mary when the Angel 0:35:53.360 --> 0:35:56.040 visited her, But what about Mary when no one believed 0:35:56.040 --> 0:35:58.960 her that she was a pregnant virgin? That would be hard. 0:35:59.800 --> 0:36:01.960 About Mary when she had to ride on a donkey 0:36:01.960 --> 0:36:04.880 when she was nine months pregnant, that would be hard. 0:36:06.040 --> 0:36:07.800 What about Mary when she stood at the foot of 0:36:07.840 --> 0:36:15.440 the cross the most unimaginable pain and rejection that was 0:36:15.480 --> 0:36:17.879 as much a parting her part of her calling as 0:36:17.920 --> 0:36:20.800 anything else. Those are the things that we celebrate today 0:36:21.960 --> 0:36:25.840 about her, And I think It was in those moments, 0:36:25.960 --> 0:36:30.920 those those difficult moments, that Mary had to come back 0:36:31.320 --> 0:36:35.880 to that encounter with the angel and remember that she 0:36:36.040 --> 0:36:42.240 was chosen for this. She was chosen for this task, 0:36:42.320 --> 0:36:46.080 no matter how hard it is, You're chosen for this. 0:36:46.760 --> 0:36:49.120 And I want to tell you today you can do 0:36:49.360 --> 0:36:55.360 hard things. You can. In the minute that she accepted 0:36:55.360 --> 0:37:01.000 her calling, she went into action. That's the third one. 0:37:01.200 --> 0:37:04.920 Look what Mary said, So we're back at Luke one 0:37:05.040 --> 0:37:09.520 thirty eight. I am the Lord's servant. Mary answered, May 0:37:09.560 --> 0:37:13.200 your word to me be fulfilled. Then the angel left her. 0:37:13.920 --> 0:37:16.120 At that time, Mary got ready and hurried to a 0:37:16.160 --> 0:37:19.320 town in the hill country of Judea, where she entered 0:37:19.520 --> 0:37:23.560 Zechariah's home and greeted, Elizabeth. Let me ask you this, 0:37:25.600 --> 0:37:30.719 What do you do when the angel leaves? Think about this. 0:37:33.200 --> 0:37:37.839 An angel comes to her and tells her all these 0:37:37.880 --> 0:37:42.480 amazing three things. Don't be afraid. God has chosen you. 0:37:42.480 --> 0:37:45.600 You're gonna bear the hiss Son, and you're gonna call 0:37:45.680 --> 0:37:50.240 him Jesus. And when Mary asked her one clarifying question, 0:37:51.040 --> 0:37:55.040 she said, how my husband pointed this out last week. 0:37:55.120 --> 0:38:00.640 Mary said how. The answer she got was who the 0:38:00.760 --> 0:38:04.080 power of the Holy spirit will come upon you. And 0:38:04.200 --> 0:38:07.360 also your cousin Elizabeth is pregnant, and then the angel left. 0:38:08.400 --> 0:38:13.960 See God doesn't always spell everything out for us. Now, 0:38:14.440 --> 0:38:18.680 He's with us every step of the way, but he's 0:38:18.719 --> 0:38:24.600 not gonna move your feet for you. Favor requires action 0:38:25.239 --> 0:38:29.880 on your partner. When God gives you a direction, what 0:38:30.160 --> 0:38:35.560 is your response time? Because Mary, she went quick. God 0:38:35.840 --> 0:38:42.200 uses people who hear and move. Now, he may give 0:38:42.239 --> 0:38:47.759 you a big calling, but usually every calling starts with 0:38:47.840 --> 0:38:52.240 a small step. Because if you can't hear and act 0:38:52.320 --> 0:38:54.960 in the small things, you won't do it in the 0:38:54.960 --> 0:38:57.200 big things. I know you think you will, but you won't. 0:38:58.520 --> 0:39:01.360 And sometimes I think it's so funny that the small 0:39:01.400 --> 0:39:06.440 things are what hold up our progress. But why wouldn't 0:39:06.600 --> 0:39:09.520 Why would God give you more direction when you have 0:39:09.640 --> 0:39:12.520 not done the simplest things that He's asked you to do. 0:39:14.000 --> 0:39:16.440 I mean little things like maybe he asked you to 0:39:17.040 --> 0:39:19.920 apologize to someone, to admit that you were wrong and 0:39:19.960 --> 0:39:22.200 say you were sorry. Did you do it? Maybe he 0:39:22.280 --> 0:39:26.480 asked you to begin the process of forgiving. I know 0:39:26.560 --> 0:39:28.799 that's a big thing, that's a big deal, but did 0:39:28.840 --> 0:39:33.280 you start. Maybe he asked you to do something seemingly easy, 0:39:33.440 --> 0:39:35.760 like join an E group or start an EE group. 0:39:37.080 --> 0:39:43.280 Did you do it? God is good. God is very patient, 0:39:43.920 --> 0:39:47.319 Thank you Lord, but he is not going to give 0:39:47.360 --> 0:39:52.080 you step two before you do step one. Now, the 0:39:52.200 --> 0:39:56.040 good news is that step one is still right there 0:39:56.080 --> 0:39:59.800 waiting for you right now, because better is it something 0:40:00.040 --> 0:40:04.359 out there? Calling isn't out there, it's here, it's now. 0:40:05.160 --> 0:40:08.880 It's in the very next step. And becoming a person 0:40:09.200 --> 0:40:14.319 of action takes practice, but the absolute best gift that 0:40:14.400 --> 0:40:16.719 you can give to the people in your life this 0:40:16.840 --> 0:40:20.160 Christmas is for you to make space for Christ in 0:40:20.200 --> 0:40:23.399 your life, for you to receive the words that He's 0:40:23.440 --> 0:40:25.879 speaking to you, and for you to act on them, 0:40:26.320 --> 0:40:31.160 even if that is the smallest thing. I love to 0:40:31.200 --> 0:40:37.800 imagine this scenario. Okay again, An angel comes to Mary 0:40:39.160 --> 0:40:43.480 and he tells her that she's blessed and she's highly favored, 0:40:44.080 --> 0:40:46.000 and he gives her, you know, the details, like what 0:40:46.120 --> 0:40:48.520 she's gonna name the baby and how the power of 0:40:48.520 --> 0:40:50.520 the Holy Spirit will come upon her, and then he 0:40:50.600 --> 0:40:55.560 leaves and can you just imagine Mary in just the 0:40:55.680 --> 0:40:58.920 moments right after he left, like what she was thinking, 0:41:00.160 --> 0:41:04.759 Did that really just happen? Did I dream? That did 0:41:04.760 --> 0:41:08.520 I make that up in my head? And now I 0:41:08.520 --> 0:41:11.160 think I really did. So then she decides to Okay, 0:41:11.200 --> 0:41:14.200 that did happen, and I bet all of a sudden, 0:41:15.080 --> 0:41:19.319 she's alone with her thoughts. I don't really like to 0:41:19.320 --> 0:41:23.680 be alone with my thoughts. Can you imagine how her 0:41:23.760 --> 0:41:28.600 thoughts just started going insane, you know, like thoughts of 0:41:28.719 --> 0:41:34.080 doubt and fear and discouragement, like you could get stoned 0:41:34.200 --> 0:41:37.960 for being pregnant out of marriage, right, So she's thinking 0:41:38.040 --> 0:41:41.560 about all of that, and she's on the verge of 0:41:41.760 --> 0:41:45.840 just her mind just going off. And then I like 0:41:45.920 --> 0:41:49.240 to think, like maybe she just remembered this one little 0:41:49.280 --> 0:41:54.919 detail that the angel said to her, Your cousin Elizabeth 0:41:56.200 --> 0:41:59.040 in her old age is going to bear a son. 0:41:59.120 --> 0:42:02.000 And that was all she needed to figure out what 0:42:02.080 --> 0:42:05.799 her next step was. The Angel didn't just give her 0:42:05.960 --> 0:42:10.920 one who he gave her two. He said, the Holy 0:42:10.960 --> 0:42:14.240 Spirit will bring forth the baby, but also, your cousin 0:42:14.280 --> 0:42:18.720 Elizabeth is gonna show you how. The Angel didn't stay 0:42:18.760 --> 0:42:22.680 with her and coach her through the process. He pointed 0:42:22.719 --> 0:42:27.600 her to a person, and the Bible says she got 0:42:27.640 --> 0:42:30.160 ready and she hurried down to the town of Judea 0:42:30.360 --> 0:42:35.040 where Elizabeth was. Is there a person God is pointing 0:42:35.120 --> 0:42:37.760 you to who can help you through the hard things? 0:42:41.200 --> 0:42:43.600 You know when we talk about stuff God, you know 0:42:43.760 --> 0:42:46.840 the favor of God and how it's not just about stuff. 0:42:46.880 --> 0:42:49.319 Sometimes the favor of God is about the people that 0:42:49.400 --> 0:42:53.279 He has placed in your life. And Mary understood that 0:42:53.360 --> 0:42:56.640 part of her strength would come from the people that 0:42:56.719 --> 0:43:01.319 she surrounded herself with. So this is the fourth It's attachment. 0:43:02.719 --> 0:43:06.399 When I am confident in my calling, I don't need 0:43:06.440 --> 0:43:11.400 to compete with other people or compare myself to other people, 0:43:11.680 --> 0:43:15.640 but I do need to align myself with those who 0:43:15.719 --> 0:43:21.719 will confirm what is already placed inside of me. You 0:43:22.120 --> 0:43:27.880 were never intended to live out your calling alone. You 0:43:28.000 --> 0:43:31.680 do have to get the order right. It is not people. First. 0:43:32.520 --> 0:43:35.560 Mary was aware she was ready to hear God when 0:43:35.640 --> 0:43:39.319 God spoke to her, not another person. She accepted the 0:43:39.360 --> 0:43:44.240 calling that God placed on her life, not her mama. 0:43:44.840 --> 0:43:49.200 Then she acted quickly because she realized she was going 0:43:49.239 --> 0:43:52.040 to have a baby. She needed to get herself around 0:43:52.080 --> 0:43:54.359 someone who was a little bit farther down the road 0:43:54.400 --> 0:44:01.840 from her. We need each other. This is the body 0:44:02.120 --> 0:44:07.040 of Christ and it is beautiful. And that's another thing 0:44:07.040 --> 0:44:09.320 that I feel like the enemy has tried to steal 0:44:09.360 --> 0:44:13.520 from us in twenty twenty. I need you and you 0:44:13.719 --> 0:44:16.960 need me. And I'm not talking about marriage. I'm talking 0:44:17.000 --> 0:44:21.480 about friendship, because when the favor of God is on 0:44:21.600 --> 0:44:25.839 your life, you are going to meet the support of others. 0:44:26.320 --> 0:44:28.920 And yes, yes, yes, I know there are dramatic people 0:44:28.960 --> 0:44:33.120 out there. There are crazy people out there. And I 0:44:33.239 --> 0:44:36.560 told the youth girls mean girls don't go away when 0:44:36.600 --> 0:44:42.960 you graduate high school. But perhaps you are using the 0:44:42.960 --> 0:44:47.719 wrong criteria for your support system. What you want to 0:44:47.760 --> 0:44:51.759 do is get yourself around someone who's a little bit 0:44:51.800 --> 0:44:53.839 farther down the road from you, like Mary is, maybe 0:44:53.880 --> 0:44:59.759 not in age, maybe in maturity or experience, someone that 0:45:00.120 --> 0:45:05.520 you look up to, not for what they wear, but 0:45:05.600 --> 0:45:12.359 for who they are, Someone that you admire. I want 0:45:12.360 --> 0:45:14.360 you to just think about it. Someone that you admire 0:45:14.520 --> 0:45:17.680 for the way that they treat their wife, not the 0:45:17.760 --> 0:45:22.440 kind of car that they drive. Someone who has walked 0:45:23.200 --> 0:45:27.440 where you are about to walk and can help you 0:45:27.640 --> 0:45:30.960 prepare for some of the twists and turns that could 0:45:31.040 --> 0:45:35.960 knock you off course. When Mary got to Elizabeth, Elizabeth 0:45:36.040 --> 0:45:41.959 immediately confirmed what was already happening inside of Mary, She said, 0:45:41.960 --> 0:45:45.000 look at this. In the ESV. It says, blessed are 0:45:45.080 --> 0:45:49.120 you among women, and blessed is the fruit. Here's our 0:45:49.160 --> 0:45:54.160 word again, the fruit of your womb. We all need 0:45:54.200 --> 0:45:58.200 people in our lives that will confirm what God has 0:45:58.280 --> 0:46:00.560 placed on us, people who will call all out the 0:46:00.640 --> 0:46:03.959 fruit that isn't even there yet. And I think about 0:46:03.960 --> 0:46:05.640 the people that have come alongside me and that have 0:46:05.719 --> 0:46:09.359 come alongside my husband and have called fruit out in us. 0:46:09.400 --> 0:46:12.239 And we wouldn't be where we are today without those 0:46:12.360 --> 0:46:15.120 people in our lives. And God has those people in 0:46:15.160 --> 0:46:20.440 your life too. Elizabeth celebrated Mary and then she brought 0:46:20.480 --> 0:46:23.640 her into her life. And the Bible tells us that 0:46:23.680 --> 0:46:27.440 Elizabeth was six months pregnant and that Mary stayed with 0:46:27.520 --> 0:46:30.520 Elizabeth for three months. I don't know if you can 0:46:30.560 --> 0:46:32.480 do the math on that, but I can do that math. 0:46:33.520 --> 0:46:39.480 Mary said, with Elizabeth until Elizabeth gave birth. And when 0:46:39.480 --> 0:46:42.839 it came time for Mary to give birth to her 0:46:42.880 --> 0:46:47.880 own child in a barn alone, well, she had her husband. 0:46:47.880 --> 0:46:54.759 But you know whose voice. Whose voice do you think 0:46:54.920 --> 0:47:06.000 was in her head? Elizabeth? The favor of God is 0:47:06.080 --> 0:47:09.640 ultimately built on the foundation of our relationships and our 0:47:09.680 --> 0:47:13.000 relationship with God, our relationship with others, and our relationship 0:47:13.040 --> 0:47:18.120 with God. That's the foundation. And you can't leave out 0:47:18.160 --> 0:47:20.799 the people part. And men if you think that this 0:47:21.000 --> 0:47:24.359 isn't for you, there's more in the Bible about men 0:47:24.520 --> 0:47:27.120 friendships than there are about women. Trust me, I've looked. 0:47:27.719 --> 0:47:31.839 David had, Jonathan, Paul had Silas. Jesus even had the Disciples, 0:47:31.840 --> 0:47:34.560 although sometimes he probably wish that he didn't. It's okay. 0:47:34.719 --> 0:47:39.000 Friends make you feel that way. Sometimes it's okay. Who 0:47:39.960 --> 0:47:45.040 is around you, who is cheering you on, who has 0:47:45.160 --> 0:47:49.319 fought with you and grieved with you. Those are the 0:47:49.360 --> 0:47:52.080 people that God has placed on your life, on your journey, 0:47:52.200 --> 0:47:55.319 And if you don't build it now, you won't have 0:47:55.400 --> 0:47:59.719 it when you need it. And you know what, because 0:47:59.719 --> 0:48:02.879 I know some people think like, oh, I'm good, I'm good. 0:48:02.880 --> 0:48:04.880 I don't really need a lot of people. But you 0:48:04.920 --> 0:48:08.799 know what, else, it's an amazing thing to feel the 0:48:08.840 --> 0:48:11.560 support of people in your life during a difficult time. 0:48:11.640 --> 0:48:14.640 It's a beautiful thing to experience, but it is also 0:48:15.320 --> 0:48:19.239 a privilege to do it for someone that you love. 0:48:20.640 --> 0:48:25.520 And if you've ever walked with someone, walked alongside a 0:48:25.520 --> 0:48:29.680 friend through a divorce, or a loss or a sickness. 0:48:30.920 --> 0:48:34.319 You experience a level of friendship that's only found in 0:48:34.400 --> 0:48:41.160 the struggle. That's a beautiful gift that God has for us, 0:48:42.719 --> 0:48:48.759 Sue Elizabeth confirms. She says, blessed is the one who 0:48:48.800 --> 0:48:55.560 has believed that the Lord would fulfill his promises to her. 0:48:56.320 --> 0:49:01.160 And then Mary begins her prayer, this beautiful prayer that 0:49:01.239 --> 0:49:06.520 she prays, and she says, my soul glorifies the Lord, 0:49:06.960 --> 0:49:10.600 and my spirit rejoices in God, my Savior, for he 0:49:10.680 --> 0:49:14.520 has been mindful of the humble state of his servant. 0:49:14.840 --> 0:49:18.920 From now on, Mary says, all generations will call me blessed, 0:49:19.120 --> 0:49:22.600 for the Mighty One has done great things for me. 0:49:23.040 --> 0:49:28.320 Holy is his name. The last foundation is affirmation, because 0:49:28.360 --> 0:49:30.680 you see, it was good for Mary to have Elizabeth 0:49:30.680 --> 0:49:33.359 to confirm what God had called Mary to do. But 0:49:33.400 --> 0:49:35.920 there also comes a time when the affirmation that you 0:49:36.120 --> 0:49:41.560 need has to come from within yourself with your own mouth. 0:49:42.080 --> 0:49:46.400 You begin to worship. And before Mary saw any fruit 0:49:46.880 --> 0:49:49.680 that the Angel told her that she would see, she 0:49:49.960 --> 0:49:55.840 centered her focus on who God was to her, her savior, 0:49:56.680 --> 0:49:59.920 the Mighty One Who's done great things. Worship like this 0:50:00.400 --> 0:50:05.200 only flows from someone who has a living, breathing relationship 0:50:05.320 --> 0:50:10.000 with her heavenly Father. She goes on to quote scripture 0:50:10.080 --> 0:50:12.560 and scripture that she had planted it in her heart 0:50:12.840 --> 0:50:15.480 as a child just started to pour out of her mouth, 0:50:15.960 --> 0:50:19.279 because long before she was visited by an angel, she 0:50:19.400 --> 0:50:23.840 was building the foundation that she would draw from. Mary 0:50:23.960 --> 0:50:26.200 focused her faith on the one who had called her, 0:50:26.239 --> 0:50:29.000 the one who had chosen her. She didn't list out 0:50:29.000 --> 0:50:31.160 all the things that could go wrong, She didn't think 0:50:31.200 --> 0:50:33.520 about all the hardships that would lay ahead for her. 0:50:33.960 --> 0:50:38.000 She say focused on who God was and who she 0:50:38.239 --> 0:50:42.640 was in Christ. And this makes sense when you read 0:50:42.800 --> 0:50:47.920 about Mary the Mother of Jesus. But these are things 0:50:47.960 --> 0:50:51.840 that we have to put into action in our own lives. 0:50:53.719 --> 0:50:56.480 Affirmation this is the root that you draw from on 0:50:56.520 --> 0:51:00.520 the days when you feel weak, you feel like you 0:51:00.560 --> 0:51:04.560 don't have what it takes, and on those days where 0:51:05.560 --> 0:51:10.319 maybe nobody knows exactly what you're going through because you 0:51:10.400 --> 0:51:14.359 just can't. Sometimes you just can't tell people. Yet that 0:51:14.440 --> 0:51:19.880 kind of affirmation can only come from within. And I 0:51:19.920 --> 0:51:21.960 told the ladies that reflect this it's kind of like 0:51:22.000 --> 0:51:26.919 a little embarrassing story. But several weeks ago I woke 0:51:27.000 --> 0:51:31.440 up to the start of a really long day. I had, truly, 0:51:31.520 --> 0:51:33.839 it felt like a million and one things to do. 0:51:33.920 --> 0:51:37.520 Some of them were big and some of them were small. 0:51:37.600 --> 0:51:41.239 And already told you, I'm not a morning person. And 0:51:41.280 --> 0:51:46.239 so when my alarm went off at six am, I 0:51:46.440 --> 0:51:54.879 was overwhelmed and just feeling like, there's no way could 0:51:54.880 --> 0:51:57.240 I could do all of this? And I dragged myself 0:51:57.280 --> 0:52:00.719 out of bed and I kind of shrudged towards the 0:52:00.719 --> 0:52:04.960 bathroom and I thought to myself, I can do this. 0:52:06.280 --> 0:52:10.480 And my husband sat up and he said, what can 0:52:10.520 --> 0:52:14.680 you do? Honestly, I was shocked, and I was a 0:52:14.719 --> 0:52:17.960 little bit embarrassed, like did the angel come to me? 0:52:19.040 --> 0:52:23.560 And I didn't realize that I'd actually spoken that out loud. 0:52:24.440 --> 0:52:27.799 And so he says, what can you do? And I said, 0:52:28.480 --> 0:52:33.040 all of it, everything I have to do today, I 0:52:33.080 --> 0:52:38.880 can do it. And I promise you, ninety nine mornings 0:52:38.880 --> 0:52:41.440 out of one hundred, I do not get this right, 0:52:41.960 --> 0:52:45.680 I don't do this, but on that particular day I did. 0:52:46.440 --> 0:52:52.040 It was like in the darkness, my soul tapped those 0:52:52.160 --> 0:52:57.080 roots that I have and reminded me Philippians four thirteen. 0:52:57.480 --> 0:53:02.319 I can do all things through Christ, who strengthens me. 0:53:03.320 --> 0:53:06.920 And if you hear me say nothing else today. I 0:53:06.960 --> 0:53:12.359 want you to know you can do this, all of it, 0:53:14.560 --> 0:53:16.439 all that you were called to do, and not one 0:53:16.480 --> 0:53:21.040 thing extra. You don't have to let fear and anxiety 0:53:21.440 --> 0:53:24.600 occupy the space in your soul that was meant for Christ. 0:53:25.280 --> 0:53:28.680 You are a chosen child of the Most High God, 0:53:28.880 --> 0:53:33.080 and you're not operating in your own power. Not by power, 0:53:33.120 --> 0:53:36.239 but by My spirit, says the Lord. You don't have 0:53:36.280 --> 0:53:38.719 to force it, you don't have to manipulate it. You 0:53:39.000 --> 0:53:41.560 have a foundation for the favor that God has placed 0:53:41.600 --> 0:53:45.120 on your life, and that foundation is the Holy Spirit 0:53:45.200 --> 0:53:50.360 within you. Jesus, Christ and Manuel. You are never alone. 0:53:52.000 --> 0:53:54.000 And as I close today, I just want to pray 0:53:54.040 --> 0:53:56.359 for us. You just want to take a minute and 0:53:56.440 --> 0:54:01.440 pray over you. So wherever you are, just close your 0:54:01.480 --> 0:54:10.680 eyes and foixsh your attention on Christ, Jesus Emmanuel, we 0:54:10.840 --> 0:54:15.840 come to you in this moment. Pray for the person 0:54:15.880 --> 0:54:20.080 that is overwhelmed everything they have to get done. God, 0:54:20.080 --> 0:54:25.759 would you just stop and whisper at your peace. Pray 0:54:25.800 --> 0:54:30.160 for the person who's lonely. God, would you just whisper 0:54:30.280 --> 0:54:34.319 to them Here I am right here with you. You're 0:54:34.360 --> 0:54:41.920 not alone. Thank you God, Thank you for being with us, 0:54:44.960 --> 0:54:48.960 thank you for showing us the way. Thank you for 0:54:49.000 --> 0:54:52.960 the people that you've placed in our lives. Lord, we 0:54:53.080 --> 0:54:59.319 are so grateful. We are so grateful that we never 0:54:59.400 --> 0:55:04.960 have to walk. Help us to fight, God, make us strong, 0:55:06.400 --> 0:55:10.680 Make us aware of your presence so we can see 0:55:10.840 --> 0:55:19.360 that you are there with us. Thank you for this word, 0:55:19.400 --> 0:55:21.640 thank you for these words that you've spoken of our 0:55:21.760 --> 0:55:27.760 over our lives in this time. We're ready. We're ready 0:55:28.560 --> 0:55:33.200 for whatever you have for us. We accept your calling 0:55:33.239 --> 0:55:37.480 on our lives in this moment. Thank you for picking me, 0:55:39.440 --> 0:55:44.680 Thank you for picking us. Since Jesus name, I pray, Amen, 0:55:47.400 --> 0:55:50.200 were you blessed by that? I want to thank all 0:55:50.200 --> 0:55:52.719 of you who pray for me and Holly and for 0:55:52.800 --> 0:55:56.879 our church and for the great and awesome outreach that's 0:55:56.880 --> 0:55:59.840 happening this time of year. So many people rely on 0:56:00.080 --> 0:56:03.279 us to be the light of Jesus Christ, and I'm 0:56:03.280 --> 0:56:06.560 so thankful. I'm so thankful that you're a part of 0:56:06.560 --> 0:56:10.040 this move of God. Make sure you subscribe and like 0:56:10.080 --> 0:56:12.360 and all of that stuff. But don't forget. This is 0:56:12.400 --> 0:56:14.720 the year of the Lord's favor and there are great 0:56:14.760 --> 0:56:16.560 things ahead for you. I just wanted to tell you 0:56:16.600 --> 0:56:19.360 that we're praying for you, believe in God for great 0:56:19.360 --> 0:56:22.000 things in your life. We love you, God bless