The God Of Answers (Holly Furtick)

0:00:05.040 --> 0:00:06.280 Hey, this is Stephen Ferdick. 0:00:06.320 --> 0:00:09.360 I'm the pastor of Elevation Church and this is our podcast. 0:00:09.520 --> 0:00:11.639 Be sure to subscribe so we can get you these 0:00:11.680 --> 0:00:13.760 new sermons every week. 0:00:13.880 --> 0:00:19.560 I hope you're blessed today. 0:00:20.440 --> 0:00:25.160 Earlier this fall, we had our annual Ladies event. 0:00:25.360 --> 0:00:27.560 Here at Elevation is called reflect. 0:00:28.160 --> 0:00:30.920 A lot of the ladies were here from all of 0:00:30.960 --> 0:00:33.920 our campuses. We joined together and online and it was 0:00:34.400 --> 0:00:37.040 incredible and I got to share a word with the 0:00:37.120 --> 0:00:40.280 ladies of our church that really ministered. And as Stephen 0:00:40.320 --> 0:00:43.239 and I were talking, we decided that I needed to 0:00:43.360 --> 0:00:46.919 share from that same passage with you today. 0:00:46.960 --> 0:00:50.280 Are you ready for the Word? All right? I am 0:00:50.320 --> 0:00:51.120 so excited. 0:00:51.479 --> 0:00:53.840 God really spoke to me through this passage and I'm 0:00:53.840 --> 0:00:56.240 really excited to share it with you today. Would you 0:00:56.280 --> 0:00:59.520 turn in your Bibles to Acts chapter one, and we're 0:00:59.520 --> 0:01:00.520 going to jump right. 0:01:00.520 --> 0:01:02.840 In with the first verse. 0:01:02.840 --> 0:01:06.039 It says this in my first book, I told you 0:01:06.120 --> 0:01:10.280 Theophilus about everything Jesus began to do and teach until 0:01:10.400 --> 0:01:13.240 the day he was taken up to heaven after giving 0:01:13.280 --> 0:01:17.960 his chosen apostles further instructions through the Holy Spirit. During 0:01:18.000 --> 0:01:21.120 the forty days after he suffered and died. He appeared 0:01:21.120 --> 0:01:24.480 to the apostles from time to time, and he proved. 0:01:24.240 --> 0:01:25.360 To them in many. 0:01:25.240 --> 0:01:28.160 Ways that he was actually alive, and he talked to 0:01:28.200 --> 0:01:29.760 them about the Kingdom of God. 0:01:30.640 --> 0:01:31.360 Once, when he was. 0:01:31.360 --> 0:01:34.839 Eating with them, he commanded them, do not leave Jerusalem 0:01:34.880 --> 0:01:37.640 until the Father sends you the gift. He promised, as 0:01:37.640 --> 0:01:41.360 I told you before, John baptized with water, But in 0:01:41.520 --> 0:01:44.000 just a few days you will be baptized with the 0:01:44.000 --> 0:01:47.560 Holy Spirit. So when the apostles were with Jesus, they 0:01:47.640 --> 0:01:51.680 kept asking him, Lord, has the time come for you 0:01:51.800 --> 0:01:55.680 to free Israel and restore our kingdom? And he replied, 0:01:56.080 --> 0:01:58.560 the Father alone has the authority to set those dates 0:01:58.560 --> 0:02:00.600 in times, and they are not for you to know. 0:02:01.120 --> 0:02:05.559 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes 0:02:05.600 --> 0:02:08.520 on you, and you will be my witnesses, telling people 0:02:08.600 --> 0:02:12.040 about me everywhere in Jerusalem, throughout Jidea, in. 0:02:12.120 --> 0:02:14.520 Samaria, and to the ends of the earth. 0:02:14.560 --> 0:02:18.040 After saying this, he was taken up into a cloud 0:02:18.120 --> 0:02:20.680 while they were watching, and they could no longer see him. 0:02:21.120 --> 0:02:23.840 As they strained to see him rising into heaven, two 0:02:23.919 --> 0:02:27.360 white robed men suddenly stood among them, men of Galilee. 0:02:27.360 --> 0:02:30.359 They said, why are you standing here staring into heaven. 0:02:30.639 --> 0:02:33.800 Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday 0:02:34.000 --> 0:02:35.799 he will return from heaven in. 0:02:35.760 --> 0:02:37.040 The same way you saw him go. 0:02:37.760 --> 0:02:41.919 Then the Apostles return to Jerusalem from the Mount of Olives, 0:02:42.040 --> 0:02:43.520 a distance of half a mile. 0:02:43.919 --> 0:02:46.959 When they arrived, they went to the upstairs. 0:02:46.440 --> 0:02:49.200 Room of the house where they were staying. Let's pray 0:02:49.200 --> 0:02:53.320 one more time, Lord, would you bless this word today? 0:02:54.120 --> 0:02:56.760 Would you speak through me now? We want to hear 0:02:56.840 --> 0:03:03.000 from you in Jesus name, we pray Amen. I'm not 0:03:03.040 --> 0:03:04.799 sure if it's just me, but. 0:03:05.960 --> 0:03:11.079 Has anyone else noticed how it is getting increasingly hard 0:03:11.639 --> 0:03:18.079 to speak with a customer service representative like an actual person. 0:03:19.960 --> 0:03:21.600 Okay, good, I'm not alone. 0:03:21.760 --> 0:03:24.560 So, as many of you know, we sent our son 0:03:24.720 --> 0:03:28.359 off to college this fall. We filled out the applications 0:03:28.440 --> 0:03:33.560 and we submitted all the required information, and Elijah received 0:03:33.680 --> 0:03:35.240 his acceptance letter. 0:03:35.360 --> 0:03:35.560 Well. 0:03:35.840 --> 0:03:38.480 At the beginning of June, I got an email from 0:03:38.480 --> 0:03:41.720 the university saying that they had not yet received his 0:03:41.840 --> 0:03:43.040 high school transcripts. 0:03:43.280 --> 0:03:46.720 And I thought that was strange, because he got accepted 0:03:46.800 --> 0:03:49.880 into the school. I thought I'd. 0:03:49.840 --> 0:03:53.600 Taken care of everything, but I just found the transcript, 0:03:53.680 --> 0:03:55.800 submitted it, and went on about our summer. 0:03:56.280 --> 0:03:56.440 Well. 0:03:56.480 --> 0:03:57.680 About a month later. 0:03:58.240 --> 0:04:02.880 Beginning of July, I got another email saying the same 0:04:02.960 --> 0:04:06.240 exact same thing. It was obviously an automated email, and 0:04:06.280 --> 0:04:09.760 it was stating that they had not received Elijah's transcripts. 0:04:10.440 --> 0:04:13.920 So I thought, well, I must have submitted it in 0:04:13.960 --> 0:04:19.400 the wrong format, and so I sent it again. But 0:04:19.520 --> 0:04:22.760 this time when I submitted it, I wrote a little 0:04:22.800 --> 0:04:26.760 note and I said, can somebody please confirm that you 0:04:26.880 --> 0:04:32.880 have received this information? And I like, I'm a busy person, 0:04:33.000 --> 0:04:34.960 you know, And I'm one of those people that once 0:04:35.000 --> 0:04:36.200 I send it, it's kind. 0:04:36.080 --> 0:04:37.839 Of like done. 0:04:38.080 --> 0:04:41.560 So I forgot all about it, and then August came around. Now, 0:04:41.600 --> 0:04:47.359 remember we're dropping him off in two weeks, and I 0:04:47.400 --> 0:04:48.800 get the email again. 0:04:49.440 --> 0:04:50.880 So now I realized I. 0:04:50.920 --> 0:04:56.400 Need to speak to a customer service representative here. And 0:04:56.440 --> 0:04:58.760 I don't know if you've ever tried to call an 0:04:58.760 --> 0:05:02.880 admissions office to weeks before school starts, but I don't 0:05:02.920 --> 0:05:07.880 recommend it, And so I waited for thirty minutes for 0:05:08.000 --> 0:05:10.760 someone to answer, only to tell me. 0:05:10.920 --> 0:05:13.320 She's, oh, hello, missus, Okay, let me look that up. 0:05:13.760 --> 0:05:17.880 And she says, oh, well, what appears to have happened, 0:05:17.920 --> 0:05:22.799 is that the form that you have submitted doesn't confirm 0:05:22.960 --> 0:05:28.159 that he has actually graduated from high school. And she said, 0:05:28.240 --> 0:05:30.600 so you need to call his school and have them 0:05:30.680 --> 0:05:35.919 submit the transcript that confirms that he graduated. Now, I 0:05:35.960 --> 0:05:37.640 don't know if you've ever tried to call a. 0:05:37.600 --> 0:05:40.120 School two weeks before school starts. 0:05:41.200 --> 0:05:45.480 I don't recommend it, especially if your child graduated from 0:05:45.520 --> 0:05:46.960 a very large. 0:05:46.880 --> 0:05:50.680 Virtual high school. So I knew it was going. 0:05:50.640 --> 0:05:53.760 To be a few minutes, and I called, and I 0:05:53.920 --> 0:05:57.120 just settled in and I put my phone on speakerphone, 0:05:57.200 --> 0:06:00.279 and I'm like deleting email. 0:06:00.400 --> 0:06:02.280 And cleaning up my office. 0:06:02.760 --> 0:06:07.400 And thirty minutes went by, and the automated message that 0:06:07.640 --> 0:06:11.760 was on repeat like every three minutes was really starting 0:06:11.800 --> 0:06:16.520 to grade on me. So you can imagine my state 0:06:16.560 --> 0:06:21.479 of mind when one hour later, I swear to you 0:06:21.520 --> 0:06:24.680 every bit of this story is true, a very young 0:06:24.760 --> 0:06:29.320 girl answered, and she heard me out, and she said, 0:06:30.040 --> 0:06:32.400 let me transfer you to our such and such department. 0:06:33.040 --> 0:06:33.320 Click. 0:06:33.520 --> 0:06:38.440 I was like, oh god, so here comes the automated 0:06:38.520 --> 0:06:43.720 message again. Twenty minutes later. I'm not sure if you're 0:06:43.760 --> 0:06:45.800 adding all this up. I've been on the phone for 0:06:45.839 --> 0:06:50.520 an hour and fifty minutes. I unleashed on this poor 0:06:50.560 --> 0:06:55.200 young man that answered me. Today, I want to talk 0:06:55.240 --> 0:06:57.440 to the person who feels like they are on hold 0:06:57.600 --> 0:07:03.000 with Heaven. You need to know why, you need to 0:07:03.080 --> 0:07:06.560 know when, you need to know which or how, and 0:07:06.640 --> 0:07:10.400 you feel like you've emailed Heaven. You feel like you've called, 0:07:10.440 --> 0:07:13.480 You feel like you've listened to the worship music while 0:07:13.520 --> 0:07:17.600 you're waiting, and you have tried so hard to be patient, 0:07:17.880 --> 0:07:20.400 but you've been on hold for a really long time, 0:07:20.600 --> 0:07:24.160 and you need someone to answer you ever been there? 0:07:25.960 --> 0:07:31.480 This summer, our pastor brought us the most incredible spontaneous series. 0:07:31.560 --> 0:07:32.360 Do you remember it. 0:07:32.440 --> 0:07:35.320 I think the first message that he taught about was 0:07:36.240 --> 0:07:39.920 the God of also, and then we got the God 0:07:39.920 --> 0:07:42.440 of again, and then we got the God of after, 0:07:42.600 --> 0:07:45.520 and the Holy Spirit was just gushing out of him. 0:07:45.640 --> 0:07:48.480 Every week he kept going, he give us the God 0:07:48.520 --> 0:07:50.240 of already and the God. 0:07:49.960 --> 0:07:52.280 Of a way. If you miss this series, you have 0:07:52.360 --> 0:07:55.960 to go back and watch it. It was powerful for 0:07:56.120 --> 0:07:56.720 our church. 0:07:56.880 --> 0:07:59.920 And so today I was wondering if you would like 0:08:00.160 --> 0:08:05.440 me be fashionably late to the sermons series, because I 0:08:05.480 --> 0:08:08.400 want to talk to you about the God of answers. 0:08:10.520 --> 0:08:12.520 When I was a little girl in Sunday School, I 0:08:12.560 --> 0:08:15.880 remember learning that when you ask God for something, he 0:08:15.960 --> 0:08:19.560 always answers one of three ways. He says yes, no, 0:08:20.480 --> 0:08:23.600 or wait. Was anybody else taught this? And I get 0:08:23.640 --> 0:08:27.680 the sentiment. I understand the concept, but I think I 0:08:27.720 --> 0:08:31.480 took it too literally because as an adult, when I 0:08:31.480 --> 0:08:33.480 started to process that, I was like, wait a minute. 0:08:33.840 --> 0:08:37.640 The God of the universe, who created every language, he 0:08:37.679 --> 0:08:41.400 has a very vast vocabulary and it is certainly not 0:08:41.520 --> 0:08:43.960 limited to three words when we come to him with 0:08:44.040 --> 0:08:44.560 a question. 0:08:45.200 --> 0:08:46.839 So I want to get practical, and. 0:08:46.800 --> 0:08:48.640 I want to look at this story that we just read, 0:08:48.640 --> 0:08:50.719 and I want to show you how to evaluate your 0:08:50.760 --> 0:08:53.079 own situation when you feel like. 0:08:53.160 --> 0:08:56.280 You are waiting on an answer from God. 0:08:57.480 --> 0:09:00.240 In our passage that we've just read, we're coming to 0:09:00.320 --> 0:09:05.079 the very end of Jesus's ministry on Earth. Jesus has 0:09:05.120 --> 0:09:07.800 died on the cross, He's raised from the dead, and 0:09:07.880 --> 0:09:10.640 over the past forty days or so, he's been appearing 0:09:10.679 --> 0:09:13.400 to the disciples and they don't know it, but this 0:09:13.559 --> 0:09:17.960 is actually their last time on earth with Jesus, and 0:09:18.080 --> 0:09:22.240 Jesus is giving them some really important instructions but they 0:09:22.240 --> 0:09:25.320 don't know how important it is because they've taken his 0:09:25.480 --> 0:09:28.640 presence for granted, and they don't know that this is 0:09:28.679 --> 0:09:32.880 their last in person conversation with him. Look at what 0:09:33.160 --> 0:09:35.240 he tells them. 0:09:36.480 --> 0:09:37.760 He says, this is verse four. 0:09:38.320 --> 0:09:42.080 Do not leave Jerusalem until the Father sends you the 0:09:42.120 --> 0:09:46.160 gift he promised. As I told you before, John baptized 0:09:46.200 --> 0:09:49.319 with water, But in just a few days you will be. 0:09:49.320 --> 0:09:51.520 Baptized with the Holy Spirit. 0:09:52.920 --> 0:09:56.240 Have you ever tried to give someone some really important 0:09:56.280 --> 0:10:01.839 instructions but that person didn't see the importance of the instructions. 0:10:02.200 --> 0:10:05.559 Okay, not to compare myself to Jesus, but. 0:10:07.480 --> 0:10:10.680 I did finally get everything squared away with the admissions department, 0:10:10.880 --> 0:10:12.760 with the university, and in August we. 0:10:12.760 --> 0:10:15.400 Dropped Elijah off at college and. 0:10:15.360 --> 0:10:18.640 We were helping him move into his dorm room and 0:10:19.000 --> 0:10:22.920 I was making his bed. You can judge me if 0:10:22.960 --> 0:10:27.400 you want, but putting sheets on his bed was not one. 0:10:27.200 --> 0:10:29.160 Of his chores at home. 0:10:29.280 --> 0:10:33.960 So here I was, hours before leaving him, and I'm 0:10:34.000 --> 0:10:37.720 trying to show him how to make a bed. You know, 0:10:37.720 --> 0:10:41.000 I'm like, Okay, Elijah, this is the mattress cover, and 0:10:41.120 --> 0:10:43.160 it goes on, goes on first, and then this is 0:10:43.200 --> 0:10:44.320 the the one with the old. 0:10:44.320 --> 0:10:47.360 This is the fitted sheet, and he doesn't care. 0:10:48.240 --> 0:10:51.439 He's way more engraced with an engrossed with a much 0:10:51.480 --> 0:10:55.679 more important task, which is setting up his speakers. And 0:10:55.720 --> 0:10:58.800 I wanted to say, hey, you're gonna need this later, 0:10:59.040 --> 0:11:00.720 but I didn't want to. But you know, we're trying 0:11:00.720 --> 0:11:02.920 to like keep a good vibe in the room, and 0:11:03.559 --> 0:11:06.520 you know, like trying to make sure this ends well. 0:11:07.080 --> 0:11:08.559 And so I made the. 0:11:08.520 --> 0:11:11.240 Bed and I decided to let him figure it out 0:11:11.280 --> 0:11:11.760 on his own. 0:11:11.800 --> 0:11:16.480 Should he even decide to change his sheets? I kid 0:11:16.559 --> 0:11:21.200 you not. This boy face timed me two weeks later. 0:11:21.559 --> 0:11:24.520 Because all the sheets and covers had fallen off of 0:11:24.559 --> 0:11:27.160 his bed and he was trying to remake it and 0:11:27.200 --> 0:11:29.199 he couldn't remember how. 0:11:29.040 --> 0:11:31.600 To do it. I sent him a YouTube video. 0:11:34.720 --> 0:11:38.120 I wonder if the disciples would have listened more closely 0:11:39.000 --> 0:11:40.080 if they had. 0:11:40.000 --> 0:11:41.840 Known that this was their. 0:11:41.880 --> 0:11:46.319 Last time seeing Jesus face to face, Like would Peter 0:11:46.640 --> 0:11:51.199 have maybe taken notes, you know, okay, don't leave Jerusalem, 0:11:51.440 --> 0:11:54.640 got it, the Holy Spirit coming, okay? 0:11:54.720 --> 0:11:57.240 And then maybe they would have asked better questions, like. 0:11:58.960 --> 0:12:03.200 Jesus, what does the Holy Spirit look like, do we 0:12:03.240 --> 0:12:06.720 need to do anything to prepare? Should we get everybody together? 0:12:06.800 --> 0:12:10.600 But the Disciples were caught up on this one question 0:12:11.240 --> 0:12:15.480 that they have been asking Jesus for the past three years, 0:12:16.040 --> 0:12:18.760 and Jesus had still not answered it the way that 0:12:18.840 --> 0:12:23.280 they wanted. So they kept asking, and essentially it was this, 0:12:23.920 --> 0:12:28.480 when will you restore the Kingdom of Israel? This was 0:12:28.520 --> 0:12:31.400 the thing that they had been wanting to know because 0:12:31.480 --> 0:12:35.120 they thought, based on ancient prophecies about Israel, that Jesus 0:12:35.240 --> 0:12:38.959 was going to have a physical takeover of the Kingdom 0:12:39.200 --> 0:12:42.960 of Israel, that Jesus would overthrow the Roman government and 0:12:43.000 --> 0:12:46.760 he was going to establish himself as the earthly king, and. 0:12:46.760 --> 0:12:49.480 The Disciples thought they were going to be his government leaders. 0:12:49.520 --> 0:12:50.959 That's why they were always arguing about. 0:12:50.760 --> 0:12:52.960 Who would be first in the kingdom. They weren't talking 0:12:52.960 --> 0:12:55.840 about the Kingdom of Heaven. They were talking about earth, 0:12:56.400 --> 0:12:59.679 and they wanted to know, Hey, Jesus, when you become president, 0:13:00.120 --> 0:13:02.040 who you going to pick for your vice president? 0:13:02.840 --> 0:13:05.240 Who are you going to put in the cabinet seats? 0:13:05.720 --> 0:13:09.560 And so this is their last conversation with Jesus. 0:13:09.800 --> 0:13:13.080 And look at verse six. So when the apostles where 0:13:13.120 --> 0:13:13.800 with Jesus. 0:13:13.840 --> 0:13:18.480 They kept asking him, Lord, has the time come for 0:13:18.520 --> 0:13:23.160 you to free Israel and restore our kingdom? They kept 0:13:23.720 --> 0:13:27.000 asking him like little kids on a road trip. 0:13:27.400 --> 0:13:30.520 Are we there yet, Jesus? Is it time yet? Jesus? 0:13:30.800 --> 0:13:34.120 One version that I read said every time they were 0:13:34.160 --> 0:13:39.800 gathered together, they asked Jesus this. And Here's the thing 0:13:39.800 --> 0:13:44.320 that I've noticed in my life. God is always speaking 0:13:44.360 --> 0:13:49.000 to me. But a lot of times what I equate 0:13:49.120 --> 0:13:54.160 as feeling blocked is actually me not wanting to hear 0:13:54.280 --> 0:13:57.640 what He is saying to me, and I miss the 0:13:57.800 --> 0:14:01.720 message or I ignore the instruction because I'm so focused on 0:14:01.800 --> 0:14:05.880 the answer I want him to give me. I remember 0:14:05.920 --> 0:14:08.520 when I was in middle school, I wanted my mom 0:14:09.440 --> 0:14:12.600 to drop me off at the mall alone with my 0:14:12.720 --> 0:14:16.439 friends so we could walk around. And I asked her 0:14:16.760 --> 0:14:20.680 over and over and over. I was trying to wear 0:14:20.720 --> 0:14:23.720 her down, and my mom was not having it. 0:14:23.760 --> 0:14:26.520 She was like, absolutely not. 0:14:27.800 --> 0:14:30.880 She did not care that everyone else's mom's were dropping 0:14:30.920 --> 0:14:33.520 them off, which probably wasn't true. She did not care 0:14:33.600 --> 0:14:37.200 that I was missing out on all the fun over 0:14:37.320 --> 0:14:41.960 her dead body. Was she going to drop my thirteen 0:14:42.040 --> 0:14:44.080 year old self at Dadland? 0:14:44.120 --> 0:14:45.880 Mall in Miami, Florida. 0:14:46.320 --> 0:14:50.520 And I was so mad. I hit her with everything. 0:14:50.760 --> 0:14:56.320 You don't trust me, you don't think I can handle it. 0:14:57.600 --> 0:14:59.760 I came at her with every angland she would not 0:14:59.840 --> 0:15:02.600 mind budge and I remember saying to her. 0:15:02.960 --> 0:15:04.760 Why won't you answer me? 0:15:05.800 --> 0:15:09.160 And she replied, I have answered you. 0:15:09.160 --> 0:15:15.360 You just don't like my answer. And listen, I don't 0:15:15.360 --> 0:15:18.120 want to diminish anything that you're going through. 0:15:18.360 --> 0:15:20.560 And I want to make it very clear to you 0:15:21.280 --> 0:15:26.320 that as God's child, you can and you should ask 0:15:26.400 --> 0:15:30.520 Him for everything that you want. You can, and you 0:15:30.600 --> 0:15:34.160 should have the faith to believe that God can heal you. 0:15:34.480 --> 0:15:37.640 God can save your marriage. God can provide for your 0:15:37.680 --> 0:15:40.760 every need. God can give you the job, the man, 0:15:41.080 --> 0:15:46.720 the baby. God desires to give you the desires of 0:15:46.760 --> 0:15:51.520 your heart. He is a good father and he loves 0:15:51.760 --> 0:15:55.760 to give good gifts to his children. And sometimes you 0:15:55.920 --> 0:15:59.520 need to have the faith to keep asking, to keep 0:15:59.680 --> 0:16:03.240 visual the thing that you are believing God for in 0:16:03.280 --> 0:16:03.800 your life. 0:16:03.960 --> 0:16:07.200 Be persistent. God, here's you. 0:16:07.920 --> 0:16:12.360 But when you feel like he's not answering you, when 0:16:12.400 --> 0:16:17.440 you feel like he's keeping you on hold, know. 0:16:17.480 --> 0:16:19.000 That he's not ignoring you. 0:16:20.680 --> 0:16:26.000 But as a good Father, he is considering so much 0:16:26.520 --> 0:16:32.120 more than what you want. Sometimes he's making sure the 0:16:32.160 --> 0:16:36.880 timing is right. Sometimes he has to say no or 0:16:37.120 --> 0:16:40.160 not now, because as all the parents in the room 0:16:40.160 --> 0:16:43.000 would agree, just like my mom, who would not drop 0:16:43.080 --> 0:16:44.120 me off at the mall. 0:16:44.520 --> 0:16:48.240 That's not the mark of a good father is not 0:16:48.360 --> 0:16:50.400 how happy his children are. 0:16:52.360 --> 0:16:55.200 The mark of a good father is that he knows 0:16:55.440 --> 0:17:00.160 what is best for his child at the time. And 0:17:00.240 --> 0:17:03.800 sometimes you have to wait because there's something that God. 0:17:03.640 --> 0:17:06.359 Needs to put in you before he gives you what 0:17:06.400 --> 0:17:10.800 you're asking for. Sometimes there's something that he needs to 0:17:10.880 --> 0:17:12.960 work out of you first. 0:17:13.600 --> 0:17:16.879 Sometimes he has something better down the road than you 0:17:16.920 --> 0:17:21.639 could ever ask or imagine. And look what Jesus says 0:17:21.680 --> 0:17:27.000 back to the disciples. He says, the Father alone has 0:17:27.040 --> 0:17:30.400 the authority to set those dates and times. 0:17:30.320 --> 0:17:32.040 And they are not for you to know. 0:17:32.840 --> 0:17:37.480 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes 0:17:37.480 --> 0:17:40.359 on you, and you will be my witnesses telling people 0:17:40.600 --> 0:17:44.760 about me everywhere in Jerusalem, throughout Judean, Samaria, and to the. 0:17:44.760 --> 0:17:46.200 Ends of the earth. 0:17:47.200 --> 0:17:49.560 I told you that God can say a lot more 0:17:49.680 --> 0:17:54.359 than yes, no, and wait. And in this case, perhaps 0:17:55.080 --> 0:18:00.080 one of the hardest answers to receive from God is 0:18:00.119 --> 0:18:04.600 not for you to know. Stephen was preaching about this 0:18:04.760 --> 0:18:09.160 verse one time, and he said that Jesus was inviting 0:18:09.200 --> 0:18:12.479 them in to the mystery of God. 0:18:13.320 --> 0:18:15.359 This might not be the message that you came to 0:18:15.440 --> 0:18:16.679 church to hear today. 0:18:16.400 --> 0:18:18.840 But if you've been waiting on God for an answer 0:18:18.920 --> 0:18:23.360 about something, especially if your question starts with why or 0:18:23.440 --> 0:18:28.159 when or how much longer, God's answer to you today 0:18:28.400 --> 0:18:32.960 might be this is not for you to know. So 0:18:33.040 --> 0:18:37.879 here's my question for you. If God answered all of 0:18:37.920 --> 0:18:40.560 your questions, when would. 0:18:40.359 --> 0:18:44.280 You need to have faith. I know you want to know. 0:18:44.560 --> 0:18:48.919 I want to know too, but I'm learning that not knowing. 0:18:48.960 --> 0:18:52.399 Is the faith part. If you're taking notes, write this down. 0:18:53.160 --> 0:18:57.680 What if I'm not supposed to know? Earlier this year 0:18:57.920 --> 0:19:00.600 in our Bible reading club, remember I got an initiated 0:19:00.640 --> 0:19:04.240 into the Bible Reading club and I came in in Deuteronomy, which, 0:19:04.280 --> 0:19:06.800 by the way, it is so awesome to be in 0:19:06.840 --> 0:19:11.560 a Bible reading club with Stephen Verdick, and I came 0:19:11.600 --> 0:19:15.240 across this verse in Deuteronomy and I have to show 0:19:15.240 --> 0:19:17.800 it to you. It's Deuteronomy twenty nine, twenty nine. It 0:19:17.840 --> 0:19:22.440 says this The secret things belong to the Lord, our God, 0:19:23.200 --> 0:19:26.399 but the things that are revealed belong to us and 0:19:26.440 --> 0:19:30.199 to our children forever that we may do all the 0:19:30.240 --> 0:19:31.760 words of this law. 0:19:33.280 --> 0:19:41.320 God has secrets. There are things about God. There are 0:19:41.320 --> 0:19:42.960 things about this world. 0:19:43.040 --> 0:19:47.400 There are things about the Bible that we are simply 0:19:47.920 --> 0:19:56.880 not meant to know the answers to if we understood everything, 0:19:58.160 --> 0:20:02.280 that would make us God. And I'm learning to accept 0:20:02.320 --> 0:20:05.320 that there are things in life that on this side 0:20:05.320 --> 0:20:10.520 of Heaven I will never understand. And a huge part 0:20:10.680 --> 0:20:14.800 of walking in a relationship with God is learning to 0:20:14.920 --> 0:20:17.560 trust him when you don't understand. 0:20:17.880 --> 0:20:21.560 I know that you want answers, but can you accept 0:20:21.960 --> 0:20:24.040 an invitation to mystery? 0:20:25.320 --> 0:20:28.919 Can you stand firm on the belief that our God 0:20:29.240 --> 0:20:32.399 is a good God. And if he's not answering you, 0:20:33.400 --> 0:20:37.480 can you trust that he has a reason. When you 0:20:37.560 --> 0:20:40.800 feel like God has you on hold, you've got to 0:20:40.880 --> 0:20:42.240 change your question. 0:20:43.640 --> 0:20:47.400 Will you give me faithful show the verse again? 0:20:48.200 --> 0:20:54.800 The secret things belong to God, but the revealed things 0:20:55.160 --> 0:20:56.720 belong to us. 0:20:57.600 --> 0:21:01.720 Yes, God has secrets. We ask him for the faith. 0:21:01.640 --> 0:21:05.879 To accept the things that we don't understand, But He 0:21:06.080 --> 0:21:11.320 has revealed a lot of things to us, And sometimes 0:21:11.400 --> 0:21:13.520 I get so caught up in the things that He 0:21:13.680 --> 0:21:17.480 hasn't revealed that I miss what is right in front 0:21:17.520 --> 0:21:21.600 of me. And the revealed things are the things that 0:21:21.800 --> 0:21:24.800 enable us to do They're the things that enable us 0:21:24.840 --> 0:21:26.120 to live out. 0:21:26.240 --> 0:21:31.600 The revealed things are the directions. So sometimes you got 0:21:31.720 --> 0:21:35.399 to look for the butt the ladies. I reflect really 0:21:35.440 --> 0:21:39.200 like this point. Let's go back to. 0:21:39.200 --> 0:21:43.280 What Jesus said to the disciples and look for the butt. 0:21:44.840 --> 0:21:47.880 He replied, the Father alone has the authority to set 0:21:47.920 --> 0:21:48.720 those dates. 0:21:48.440 --> 0:21:50.520 In times, and they are not for you to know. 0:21:51.000 --> 0:21:56.960 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes 0:21:57.040 --> 0:21:58.880 upon you, and you will be my witnesses telling people 0:21:58.880 --> 0:22:02.840 about me everywhere Jerusalem, throughout Jadea, in Samaria, and to 0:22:02.920 --> 0:22:06.040 the ends of the earth. He's giving them the answer. 0:22:07.359 --> 0:22:12.200 The disciples wanted positions, but God wanted to give them 0:22:12.240 --> 0:22:16.000 a different kind of power. They wanted to overthrow Rome, 0:22:16.040 --> 0:22:20.840 but Jesus wanted them to change the world, literally, the 0:22:21.000 --> 0:22:24.320 entire world, to the ends of the earth. The Disciples 0:22:24.359 --> 0:22:26.960 today are not men that we may or may not 0:22:27.040 --> 0:22:29.600 learn about in world history class if we're paying attention. 0:22:29.880 --> 0:22:32.480 These are men that we are still talking about. 0:22:32.320 --> 0:22:37.520 And learning from They're powerful, God breathed Holy Spirit writings 0:22:37.760 --> 0:22:39.720 two thousand years. 0:22:39.560 --> 0:22:44.360 Later, where's your butt? I have a friend. 0:22:44.400 --> 0:22:47.160 Her name is Brandy, and she thought that she would 0:22:47.200 --> 0:22:50.040 be married to the same man her whole life, But 0:22:51.080 --> 0:22:54.760 now she has a ministry to divorce women all over 0:22:54.800 --> 0:22:58.280 the country. She's a coach of another friend who thought 0:22:58.320 --> 0:23:01.600 that he would be a youth minister, but God has 0:23:01.600 --> 0:23:05.800 given him a ministry in corporate America. To bankers, you 0:23:05.880 --> 0:23:07.879 thought you'd be married by now. You thought you'd have 0:23:07.960 --> 0:23:10.480 kids by now. You thought you'd have a certain career 0:23:10.640 --> 0:23:14.119 by now. When you aren't getting the answer you hoped for, 0:23:14.600 --> 0:23:17.880 can you have the faith to find your butt? 0:23:19.720 --> 0:23:21.320 Okay, watch what happens next. 0:23:22.040 --> 0:23:24.639 After saying this, he was taken up into a cloud 0:23:24.680 --> 0:23:26.760 while they were watching, and they could no longer see him. 0:23:27.280 --> 0:23:29.680 And as they strained to see him rising into. 0:23:29.520 --> 0:23:33.000 Heaven, two white robed men suddenly stood among them, Men 0:23:33.040 --> 0:23:36.359 of Galilee, Why are you standing here staring into heaven. 0:23:36.600 --> 0:23:40.000 Jesus has been taken from you into heaven, but someday 0:23:40.160 --> 0:23:42.480 he will return from heaven in the same way. 0:23:42.359 --> 0:23:43.080 You saw him go. 0:23:43.480 --> 0:23:47.880 Jesus gets taken up into heaven right before their eyes, 0:23:48.000 --> 0:23:50.520 and rightfully, so let's give him a little bit of credit. 0:23:50.920 --> 0:23:56.080 They stand there straining and staring, like when you were 0:23:56.119 --> 0:23:58.800 a little kid, did you ever release a balloon into 0:23:58.840 --> 0:24:01.120 the air. I know that's bad for the planet now, 0:24:01.200 --> 0:24:05.240 but we didn't know in the eighties. And I remember 0:24:05.520 --> 0:24:08.280 I have a very vivid memory of letting go of 0:24:08.320 --> 0:24:10.920 a balloon and telling myself, I'm gonna watch it until 0:24:11.000 --> 0:24:12.120 it till it goes away. 0:24:12.119 --> 0:24:14.520 I'm gonna see where it goes. And I watched. 0:24:14.240 --> 0:24:16.400 It become a speck and then disappear. 0:24:16.440 --> 0:24:18.879 And there's what the disciples are doing. Only it's not 0:24:18.960 --> 0:24:20.320 a balloon. It's Jesus. 0:24:21.000 --> 0:24:24.600 And I would I would do if a man went 0:24:24.680 --> 0:24:25.280 up in the heaven. 0:24:25.320 --> 0:24:28.879 I'd stand there and I'd be like, waiting, is he 0:24:28.960 --> 0:24:30.680 coming back? You know what's happening? 0:24:30.720 --> 0:24:33.399 And so God sends a couple of angels and the 0:24:33.440 --> 0:24:38.040 angels go snap out of it, Guys, Jesus has gone 0:24:38.040 --> 0:24:41.159 in the heaven and he is gonna return someday. And 0:24:41.200 --> 0:24:45.000 the disciples look around, and I can just imagine that 0:24:45.040 --> 0:24:45.680 they're all. 0:24:45.520 --> 0:24:50.919 Like, what do we do next? Like what did Jesus 0:24:50.920 --> 0:24:51.399 say to us? 0:24:52.600 --> 0:24:54.440 And what if Peter had really taken notes, and he 0:24:54.520 --> 0:24:59.080 pulled out his notebook and he was like, Duellie Jerusalem, guys, 0:24:59.119 --> 0:25:02.280 we gotta go back to Jerusalem. 0:25:02.560 --> 0:25:05.480 And I'm not an angel in a white robe. But 0:25:05.560 --> 0:25:07.640 I wonder if God sent me. 0:25:08.119 --> 0:25:14.199 To tell you today, stop staring, Stop waiting for the 0:25:14.240 --> 0:25:18.320 pain to go away, stop waiting for an explanation. 0:25:18.800 --> 0:25:23.920 Go back to the last thing he told you. What 0:25:24.080 --> 0:25:27.199 was the last thing that God spoke to you. I 0:25:27.240 --> 0:25:30.760 know it's complicated when we as Christians talk about God 0:25:30.800 --> 0:25:33.239 speaking to us and God doesn't speak to me in 0:25:33.280 --> 0:25:36.760 an out loud voice. And I know that some of 0:25:36.800 --> 0:25:39.359 you are waiting on God to speak to you about 0:25:39.600 --> 0:25:45.680 your specific situation. But might I suggest that while you're 0:25:45.720 --> 0:25:51.280 waiting on an answer, think back and do the last 0:25:51.320 --> 0:25:54.640 thing that He told you to do. 0:26:00.280 --> 0:26:05.119 Things? Remember the secret things. The secret things belong to 0:26:05.200 --> 0:26:06.119 the Lord, our God. 0:26:06.800 --> 0:26:12.040 But the things that are revealed belong to us and 0:26:12.080 --> 0:26:15.919 to our children forever that we may What do you 0:26:15.920 --> 0:26:18.520 remember what it said that we may do. 0:26:20.440 --> 0:26:26.880 The words of His law? What has God revealed to you? 0:26:28.320 --> 0:26:32.439 I told the ladies that reflect that Jesus had already 0:26:32.560 --> 0:26:37.800 given the disciples so many answers right here. 0:26:37.720 --> 0:26:39.879 In just these verses that we read. 0:26:40.000 --> 0:26:43.399 He gave them a place to be, right, He said, 0:26:43.680 --> 0:26:46.359 in Jerusalem, Judeas, Maria, and the ends of the earth. 0:26:46.720 --> 0:26:51.880 Everything God was going to do through them had to 0:26:51.960 --> 0:26:58.160 start in Jerusalem, a familiar place. So if you're wondering 0:26:58.560 --> 0:27:00.720 what the next thing is you're supposed to do, what 0:27:00.880 --> 0:27:04.960 is your Jerusalem? What is the place where you need 0:27:05.000 --> 0:27:09.040 to go and wait? Because I believe that God does 0:27:09.119 --> 0:27:12.399 want to do a new thing in your life, but 0:27:12.520 --> 0:27:14.680 I think he wants to do it in the same 0:27:14.720 --> 0:27:18.439 old place. He didn't send them to a new place 0:27:18.600 --> 0:27:20.359 because I don't think they could have handled it. It 0:27:20.400 --> 0:27:23.600 would have been too much new. He sent them back 0:27:23.960 --> 0:27:27.879 to a familiar place. So maybe what you need to 0:27:27.920 --> 0:27:30.080 do is go back to the place where you have 0:27:30.160 --> 0:27:31.520 been assigned. 0:27:31.240 --> 0:27:33.720 Until you receive further instructions. 0:27:34.600 --> 0:27:38.639 So the job that you have now today is the 0:27:38.680 --> 0:27:42.520 place where God wants you to be. Serve Him there 0:27:42.920 --> 0:27:45.960 with all your heart, all your soul, all your mind, 0:27:46.240 --> 0:27:48.840 all your strength. Their marriage that you're in, the one 0:27:48.880 --> 0:27:53.240 that you're in right now, the family are in right now, 0:27:53.520 --> 0:27:55.639 the neighborhood you live in right now. I know you 0:27:55.680 --> 0:27:57.560 want to move, Okay, I know your house is on 0:27:57.560 --> 0:28:00.679 the market. But the neighborhood you live in right now, 0:28:01.520 --> 0:28:05.760 your church. The power of the Holy Spirit is coming 0:28:05.760 --> 0:28:10.480 to you. There, the last place God told you to be. 0:28:10.880 --> 0:28:14.879 Everything launches from that place. So get yourself back in 0:28:14.960 --> 0:28:18.879 position and serve God there with one hundred percent of 0:28:18.920 --> 0:28:24.560 your heart. He gave them a place to be. He 0:28:24.640 --> 0:28:27.840 also gave them a person to become. He said, you 0:28:27.960 --> 0:28:30.120 will be my witnesses. 0:28:31.800 --> 0:28:34.320 Who is God calling you to become. 0:28:35.400 --> 0:28:38.680 I was reading this book about anxiety and teens. 0:28:39.080 --> 0:28:39.840 Of course I was. 0:28:40.400 --> 0:28:43.080 And I don't know if you ever read parenting books. 0:28:43.120 --> 0:28:45.280 To all the parents out there, I don't recommend them. 0:28:46.560 --> 0:28:52.480 I hate them because every time I read them, I 0:28:53.760 --> 0:28:57.880 get overwhelmed and I feel like, oh, I did I 0:28:57.920 --> 0:28:59.880 did every I have screwed up my kids. 0:29:00.360 --> 0:29:03.560 It's too late, and I don't know. It's too late 0:29:03.600 --> 0:29:05.120 for me. I shouldn't even be reading. 0:29:05.680 --> 0:29:09.360 But this book actually had a line that really helped me. 0:29:10.400 --> 0:29:13.160 It said this, the best thing that you can do 0:29:13.240 --> 0:29:16.640 for your child's anxiety is handle your own. 0:29:18.440 --> 0:29:18.720 Wow. 0:29:20.760 --> 0:29:24.160 And I think so many times I get everything backwards. 0:29:25.040 --> 0:29:29.280 I want to focus on who God is calling them 0:29:29.400 --> 0:29:29.680 to be. 0:29:29.840 --> 0:29:30.080 Come. 0:29:31.520 --> 0:29:35.280 Oh, I have so many ideas on who God is 0:29:35.360 --> 0:29:39.800 calling Stephen ferdickt to become. I have so many thoughts 0:29:40.080 --> 0:29:43.680 on who God is calling Elijah, Graham, and Abby to become, 0:29:43.920 --> 0:29:47.560 because when I think about them, I don't have to 0:29:47.640 --> 0:29:52.640 face me, and sometimes I get caught up on them. 0:29:52.960 --> 0:29:56.400 Sometimes I get caught up on what God wants me 0:29:56.760 --> 0:29:59.600 to do, the parts of me that I can see, 0:30:00.120 --> 0:30:02.760 the parts of me that I can manipulate, and so 0:30:03.080 --> 0:30:05.800 I focus on my position, or maybe you focus on 0:30:05.960 --> 0:30:09.040 your character or your title, your appearance, and those things 0:30:09.080 --> 0:30:13.080 are not bad, but they are not nearly as important 0:30:13.400 --> 0:30:17.240 as who God is calling you to become. 0:30:17.480 --> 0:30:19.840 It's not about what God's calling you, is about who 0:30:19.920 --> 0:30:22.239 God's calling you to become. Because if you don't have 0:30:22.320 --> 0:30:24.320 the who, when you get to the what, you won't 0:30:24.360 --> 0:30:25.480 be able to keep it up. 0:30:27.760 --> 0:30:32.719 The parts inside of me that are unseen, you change 0:30:32.720 --> 0:30:35.280 what you see by giving attention to. 0:30:35.280 --> 0:30:36.480 What you don't see. 0:30:37.280 --> 0:30:41.920 And Jesus was moving the disciples from a seene relationship 0:30:41.960 --> 0:30:46.040 with him to an unseen relationship, and that was. 0:30:46.000 --> 0:30:49.760 Going to require a different level of faith. It was 0:30:49.840 --> 0:30:50.720 one thing for the. 0:30:50.680 --> 0:30:53.960 Disciples to believe in Jesus when he was multiplying bread 0:30:54.280 --> 0:30:58.400 and calming storms. But now they're moving into another level 0:30:58.680 --> 0:31:01.640 where they're going to see the whole spirit do miracles 0:31:01.720 --> 0:31:03.200 with their own hands. 0:31:03.800 --> 0:31:06.440 So they're moving from observation. Look at what. 0:31:06.480 --> 0:31:12.520 Jesus did to experience. Look at what the Holy Spirit 0:31:12.640 --> 0:31:19.320 did through me. So who is God calling you to become? 0:31:21.040 --> 0:31:26.400 He also gave them partners to believe with. God never 0:31:26.480 --> 0:31:29.800 intended for you to walk out your faith alone. Let 0:31:29.800 --> 0:31:33.200 me say that again one more time. God never intended 0:31:33.240 --> 0:31:37.040 for you to walk out your faith alone. He took 0:31:37.040 --> 0:31:41.360 the disciples, he gathered them together, He spent three years 0:31:41.520 --> 0:31:47.080 with them, developing a community among them because he knew 0:31:47.160 --> 0:31:48.800 he was gonna leave and they were gonna. 0:31:48.600 --> 0:31:49.280 Need each other. 0:31:49.880 --> 0:31:51.880 And I want to tell you today he has a 0:31:51.920 --> 0:31:56.400 community for you as well. Now, you do need to 0:31:56.480 --> 0:32:00.200 find ones that are headed in the same direction that 0:32:00.280 --> 0:32:01.000 you're headed in. 0:32:01.040 --> 0:32:04.200 And I'll give you a hint. They might be in 0:32:04.240 --> 0:32:04.800 this room. 0:32:06.440 --> 0:32:09.600 So the more you come back to this room, the 0:32:09.600 --> 0:32:11.200 more you're going to find those people. 0:32:12.320 --> 0:32:13.280 And then when you have. 0:32:13.320 --> 0:32:15.840 Those people in your life, you've got to be patient 0:32:17.080 --> 0:32:18.360 because they. 0:32:18.200 --> 0:32:21.240 Have their own stuff, they have their. 0:32:21.160 --> 0:32:24.760 Own people, and their own drama and their own questions. 0:32:25.600 --> 0:32:30.920 But when you allow others in your life into your questions, 0:32:31.760 --> 0:32:35.280 you will find a strength that you didn't realize that. 0:32:35.200 --> 0:32:38.080 You were missing out on all along. I don't care 0:32:38.120 --> 0:32:38.880 how old you are. 0:32:38.920 --> 0:32:42.440 I mean, we all know that our teenagers need positive influences. 0:32:42.680 --> 0:32:48.800 You need positive influences too. Jesus never intended for you 0:32:48.880 --> 0:32:49.520 to give. 0:32:49.400 --> 0:32:54.800 Up on having partners to believe with. Can I show 0:32:54.840 --> 0:32:57.520 you one more Bible passage? I want to back up 0:32:58.160 --> 0:33:00.600 all the way to Matthew eleven. 0:33:03.160 --> 0:33:06.120 Here in Acts one we've been talking about we're seeing 0:33:06.160 --> 0:33:09.920 the final days of Jesus's ministry on Earth. But in 0:33:09.920 --> 0:33:14.320 Matthew eleven, Jesus was in the thick of his ministry. 0:33:14.800 --> 0:33:18.200 John the Baptist, his cousin, had baptized him, and he 0:33:18.280 --> 0:33:21.800 prepared the way, and he introduced Jesus to the world. 0:33:21.840 --> 0:33:26.440 And now Jesus' ministry is in full effect. He's healing people, 0:33:26.680 --> 0:33:29.800 he's preaching in the synagogues, he's calming the storms. 0:33:30.040 --> 0:33:32.760 And meanwhile, somewhere in the middle of all of. 0:33:32.680 --> 0:33:36.920 This, John the Baptist has been thrown into jail and 0:33:36.960 --> 0:33:37.600 he's waiting. 0:33:39.000 --> 0:33:41.960 He's waiting to see what's next. 0:33:41.880 --> 0:33:47.600 For him, while everyone else it seems like he's experiencing 0:33:47.960 --> 0:33:52.560 the full effect of Jesus's ministry. John is rotting away 0:33:52.840 --> 0:33:55.240 in a prison cell, and he doesn't know how long 0:33:55.440 --> 0:33:59.480 he's going to be there, and he is having major fomo. 0:34:00.000 --> 0:34:03.520 He sends his disciples to ask Jesus a question, and 0:34:03.560 --> 0:34:06.240 I want to show you what John. What John the 0:34:06.280 --> 0:34:10.200 Baptist asked of Jesus. It says this and verse two. 0:34:10.239 --> 0:34:13.320 When John, who was in prison, heard about the deeds 0:34:13.320 --> 0:34:14.680 of the Messiah, he heard what. 0:34:14.719 --> 0:34:15.640 Jesus was doing. 0:34:16.000 --> 0:34:19.640 He sent his disciples to ask him, are you the 0:34:19.680 --> 0:34:23.160 one who is to come? Or should we expect someone else? 0:34:24.360 --> 0:34:27.080 Can't you just you can feel the question coming out 0:34:27.120 --> 0:34:31.640 of his soul, And Jesus replied, go back and report 0:34:31.680 --> 0:34:35.839 to John what you hear and what you see? The 0:34:35.880 --> 0:34:39.280 blind receives sight, the lame walk, those who have leprosy 0:34:39.360 --> 0:34:42.279 are cleansed, the deaf here the dead are raised, and 0:34:42.360 --> 0:34:45.960 the good news is proclaimed to the poor. Blessed is 0:34:46.000 --> 0:34:51.960 anyone who does not stumble on account of me. And 0:34:52.000 --> 0:34:54.719 while John's disciples leave and go back to him with 0:34:54.800 --> 0:34:59.240 the message, Jesus keeps talking to the crowd, and he says, truly, 0:34:59.680 --> 0:35:02.920 I tell you among those born of women, there has 0:35:03.000 --> 0:35:08.360 not risen anyone greater than John. He's saying, John is 0:35:08.400 --> 0:35:14.640 as good as they come. Yet even John still had questions. 0:35:15.840 --> 0:35:19.080 And I told you earlier that if God answered all 0:35:19.120 --> 0:35:23.000 your questions, there wouldn't be a need for faith. But 0:35:23.080 --> 0:35:27.520 I want to close by letting you know that having 0:35:27.640 --> 0:35:33.400 questions doesn't mean that you don't have faith. If you 0:35:33.440 --> 0:35:37.040 read in the New Testament, you constantly find people coming 0:35:37.120 --> 0:35:40.680 up to Jesus with questions and faith at the same time. 0:35:40.800 --> 0:35:43.400 Right they're asking him for something with faith. 0:35:43.480 --> 0:35:46.080 Sometimes he immediately responds to their request. 0:35:46.280 --> 0:35:47.560 Sometimes he says no. 0:35:48.000 --> 0:35:51.080 Sometimes he gave them more than what they were asking for. 0:35:51.160 --> 0:35:53.799 He forgives them of their sins, and then he heals them. 0:35:54.040 --> 0:35:57.279 Sometimes he answers them with a parable that didn't really 0:35:57.320 --> 0:35:59.640 seem to answer their question at all. 0:36:00.080 --> 0:36:02.040 And I love what Jesus. 0:36:01.640 --> 0:36:05.120 Replies to John through his disciples, because he wanted to 0:36:05.200 --> 0:36:10.440 turn John's attention to what he had already revealed. He said, 0:36:10.800 --> 0:36:14.600 report back to him the blind, see the lame, walk 0:36:14.800 --> 0:36:18.279 the death here. Don't stumble because you feel like you've 0:36:18.320 --> 0:36:19.240 been put on hold. 0:36:19.560 --> 0:36:20.360 Look around you. 0:36:21.600 --> 0:36:26.520 God is alive and present in your situation, and He 0:36:26.560 --> 0:36:31.239 has been so good to you. Don't allow yourself to 0:36:31.280 --> 0:36:34.320 be imprisoned by your unanswered questions. 0:36:35.400 --> 0:36:40.640 Focus your attention on what He's already revealed to you. 0:36:42.600 --> 0:36:45.560 For the past several months, we've been singing a song 0:36:46.400 --> 0:36:48.840 here at church called Trust in God. How many of 0:36:48.840 --> 0:36:51.799 you love that song? I love that song. Aren't you 0:36:51.920 --> 0:36:54.359 grateful to be a part of a church where our 0:36:54.400 --> 0:36:56.560 pastor works so closely with. 0:36:56.480 --> 0:37:00.760 Our worship team to write songs that are biblical and relevant. 0:37:00.800 --> 0:37:03.560 I mean, the scripture is just right there. 0:37:03.800 --> 0:37:07.360 In this song, and every time that we get to 0:37:07.480 --> 0:37:11.239 the part where we say it comes from Psalm thirty four. 0:37:11.400 --> 0:37:15.400 I sought the Lord and he heard, and he answered. 0:37:16.360 --> 0:37:20.200 I don't know about you, but the Holy Spirit just 0:37:20.920 --> 0:37:24.480 takes over whenever that part, and in my mind just 0:37:24.520 --> 0:37:28.960 gets flooded with the memories of how many times in 0:37:28.960 --> 0:37:34.759 my life that God has answered me. I stand right 0:37:34.800 --> 0:37:37.879 down there in my seat and I think about all 0:37:37.920 --> 0:37:41.040 the times that I've come to church feeling weight down, 0:37:41.840 --> 0:37:47.000 feeling burdened, and all the times over the years that 0:37:47.080 --> 0:37:50.279 God has answered whatever it was that I came in 0:37:50.320 --> 0:37:52.000 here worried about. 0:37:52.000 --> 0:37:55.399 And I think about how far I've come. I think 0:37:55.440 --> 0:37:58.520 about the ways that He's provided for me. I think 0:37:58.560 --> 0:38:02.960 about the ways that he's protected me, think about the 0:38:03.000 --> 0:38:06.440 things that I was so worried about that he was 0:38:06.480 --> 0:38:07.239 taken care of. 0:38:08.480 --> 0:38:12.640 And when I focus on those things, I find that 0:38:12.719 --> 0:38:18.120 my faith is renewed and refreshed, and I remember that 0:38:18.320 --> 0:38:23.280 even though I still have questions, I'm worshiping the God 0:38:23.840 --> 0:38:24.680 of answers. 0:38:26.719 --> 0:38:27.200 So as we. 0:38:27.239 --> 0:38:30.879 Close, we're going to stand and we're going to sing 0:38:30.920 --> 0:38:32.280 this song as. 0:38:32.120 --> 0:38:36.319 A declaration of faith for the questions that we are 0:38:36.400 --> 0:38:38.160 still waiting on answers for. 0:38:39.160 --> 0:38:41.040 I want you to sing this song with all of 0:38:41.080 --> 0:38:44.680 your heart and let God remind. 0:38:44.280 --> 0:38:48.120 You of his faithfulness. So, God, we come to you 0:38:48.239 --> 0:38:50.279 right now. I thank you that. 0:38:50.360 --> 0:38:54.120 You are the God of answers, that you have proof 0:38:54.120 --> 0:38:57.400 in yourself time and time again. 0:38:57.560 --> 0:39:03.920 God, you are worth the wait. We love you, and 0:39:04.120 --> 0:39:05.080 Jesus the name we pray. 0:39:05.719 --> 0:39:06.080 Amen. 0:39:07.600 --> 0:39:10.160 Hey, I hope you enjoyed the podcast, and if you did, 0:39:10.719 --> 0:39:13.319 make sure to share it and subscribe so we can 0:39:13.360 --> 0:39:15.960 get you all of these new messages as soon as 0:39:15.960 --> 0:39:18.759 they're available. I also want to take a moment and 0:39:18.840 --> 0:39:20.640 thank all of you who are a part of Elevation, 0:39:21.160 --> 0:39:24.480 whether you support us financially, or serve with us, or 0:39:24.880 --> 0:39:27.600 just share these messages. It's because of you that we're 0:39:27.600 --> 0:39:30.560 able to reach people all around the world. And if 0:39:30.560 --> 0:39:33.080 you want more information on how to be a part 0:39:33.080 --> 0:39:37.000 of Elevation, click the link in the description. Thanks again 0:39:37.040 --> 0:39:40.000 for listening. Make sure to leave a review, share the message, 0:39:40.040 --> 0:39:40.839 and subscribe. 0:39:41.160 --> 0:39:50.600 God bless you.