Problem Solving - Week 7

[00:00:01] Good morning, Christ church. It is good to be with you. My name's Chet. I'm from West Campus, but just. Yeah, thank you, but so glad to be with you today. And as Sarah said, this has been such a cool season to be part of our church and to see just God move. And at every single campus, God is doing amazing things at old Brooklyn with Jovan and Logan. God's doing great things at west, and God's doing amazing things here. Amen. And what a cool thing to see and to be part of. And I'm grateful for you. I'm grateful for the good work of God. But let's pray and we'll get to the message today. Father, I thank you for this time. I pray, Lord, that you could just draw our hearts towards you. I pray, Father, for my friends here, my brothers and sisters that maybe are coming in here with heavy hearts, facing difficult things, experiencing different kinds of pain. And, Lord, I pray that our pain could become a pathway to the fullness of who you are. So, Lord, bless us in these moments, in this time that we have together. Meet us here. I ask this in Jesus name. Amen. [00:01:23] Amen. I'll tell you, hey, if you're going to do it, man, do it. Yeah, I know we had that time change last night, but you guys are high speed. You're here, you're ready. You're filled with God's spirit. But I've got three kids. Emory's five, Abby's two, and Teddy is five months. So, yeah, our hands are full, but it's a lot of joy and kind of probably about maybe six months, eight months, a year ago. It all really blends together these days. But we kind of got in the rhythm where I would put the girls to bed, Emmy and Abby, I'd put them to bed every night and know. Would really focus on Teddy. And so we have this nighttime ritual and just kind of the basics. We brush their teeth, read a couple of stories, say a prayer, and put them to bed. And they have a million kids books. And I don't want to be too arrogant, but I'm kind of a kids book connoisseur at this point. I mean, I've read them forwards, backwards. I've got a couple of them memorized. [00:02:28] And I got to tell you that the state of kids books is not great. [00:02:33] A lot of times, there's not much character development. The stories don't really go anywhere. [00:02:40] There's one about a cruise. Everybody's on a cruise. And curiously, they decide to go to bed at the same time, brush their teeth, then they go up to exercise. Like, that doesn't make sense. You don't do that, right. [00:02:56] Of. I got sick of reading them, so I was like, I need something better to share with the kids. So there's this really cool guy. His name's Jocko Willink. He's a former Navy SeaL, but he writes kids books. How cool is that? And he's got this series called the way of the warrior Kid. And they're like a little like kid novels, but they have these great lessons in them about facing problems and discipline and overcoming life challenges and all that kind of thing. So I was like, we're getting these. So we've been reading through these every night. I got rid of the weird ones. I'm like, this is good stuff. And so I'll start reading them to the girls, and about 2 seconds in, they'll say, dad, what are we doing tomorrow? [00:03:42] And I'll say, I don't know. Grandma's coming over. I said, I'm reading this right now. You need to listen. Say, oh, okay. And then I'll read, like, another two words and be like, dad, where's my chapstick? I don't know. There's 8000 of them around. Just. I'm sure you could find one. You don't need one. It's bedtime. [00:04:01] And on it goes. And then it degenerates into them jumping on the bed and rolling around. And I'm like, girls, I'm trying to share with you some wisdom that you need for life. [00:04:16] You're going to need this one day. You're going to need to know how to be self disciplined. You're going to need to know how to face challenges. Dad's trying to pour wisdom and you're not listening. [00:04:27] The church, it gets frustrating. So I just quit sometimes. Like, all right, we're going to bed. [00:04:33] I'm done. And I wonder how many times that maybe the Lord looks at me that way. I wonder how many times God is trying to pour himself into you and into me. And he's like, son, Son, I got stuff that you need. [00:04:55] You may not think you need it right now, you may not see it, but I'm telling you, you're going to need it for all you have to face. And I want to give it to you early. I want to give it to you now, but you're not really super open. [00:05:09] You're not really paying attention. You're not really listening. Do you think that's possible in our lives at times? Do you think that's possible that God really, like he wants to give us the gift of himself, but we're not always great at receiving it. Is that fair? But you know what? I know there is one special time in life where we are more open than others. And these are not the times in life that we want, but they're the times in life when everything hurts, that all of a sudden our ears perk up, don't they? That all of a sudden we can slow down a little bit and begin to open ourselves to God in a new way. The great C. S. Lewis, he says that God whispers in our pleasures, but he shouts in our pain. I'm not sure God really changes the level of his voice. I think we just actually listen a little bit more. And I don't wish pain on any of us. I don't want you to be in pain. And maybe some of us are in pain. But here's what I want to show you today, is that our pain can become a pathway to experience and receive the fullness of God. [00:06:25] That if you're in a season of pain, I want to show you that there's a pathway to God in it. And if you're not in a season of pain, I know you will be at some point because life is tough. But in that season that might be coming, there is a pathway. And I want to show it to you in the book of psalms. So if you have a copy of the scripture, you can turn with me to psalm 16. And I'm going to read it all to you because I want you to see how the movement and flow of this psalm goes and how David gets there. It starts here. Preserve me, o God, for in you I take refuge. Now, just notice that first line. Preserve me. What does he say? He's saying, God, save me, God, I'm not doing well. Do you hear the pain in that? God? I'm concerned about where all this is going. It's not right. If you're asking God to preserve you, you're not in a great spot. You're not in an easy spot. And this is David. And then he goes on, for in you I take refuge. He's saying, I need to get out of this. [00:07:34] Where life is at. It's not good, it's not easy. And I want to go to a better place. So here's what I would say. David's in some pain. Now, we don't know the details of it, because pain looks so different in all of our lives, doesn't it? Be the pain of our bodies, be the pain of relationships that are hurting be the pain of disappointment, the pain of loss. But nonetheless, I think it all creates this similar effect. [00:08:01] And then look at verse two. I say to the Lord, you are my lord. I have no good apart from you. As for the saints in the land, they are the excellent ones in whom is all my delight. The sorrows of those who run after another. God shall multiply their drink. Offerings of blood I will not pour out or take their names on my lips. The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup you hold my lot. The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places. Indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance. [00:08:35] The Lord who gives me counsel and night, also my heart instructs me. I've set the Lord always before me, because he's at my right hand, I shall not be shaken. Therefore, look at this change. Therefore my heart is glad. What happened, David? You were saying, God preserve me, but now his heart's glad. Look at this. My whole being rejoices. My flesh also dwells secure. [00:09:04] For you will not abandon my soul to shale or let your holy one see corruption. Then look at this verse. You make known to me the path of life. [00:09:14] Look at this. In your presence there is fullness of joy. Those beautiful lines right there at your right hand are pleasures forevermore. [00:09:30] Now do you see? What begins in pain in this psalm ends in the fullness of God. [00:09:36] You see the movement through the text, what begins? And David needing to get out of the place that he's in now, the place that he in, he is experiencing the fullness of God, the path of life, the fullness of joy, the pleasures and church. That's where our pain can bring us through God's grace and God's goodness, that there is a pathway to the fullness of God. So how do we walk down that pathway? How do we get there? Well, I think David shows us. Now, notice this first thing. David again, he begins in pain and we see it, but we don't get a whole lot of detail about his pain. Have you ever asked someone, hey, how's it going? And then a half an hour later, you were still hearing how it was going and it wasn't good. You ever had a conversation like that? And they just emptied everything in their life. And you're like, wow, I'm really sorry, but this is also kind of a lot. [00:10:45] They're just overwhelmed and consumed in their pain. And certainly all of us have probably been there before, haven't we? Because pain has this powerful pull to turn us inward, to turn us into ourselves. [00:11:08] Pain has this remarkable ability to just capture our vision so that all we can look at is how we're hurting and what we're struggling with and what we're going through and what we're afraid of. And it can just keep our eyes locked into that, that it gets hard to see anything else. You with me, church? [00:11:31] And unfortunately, that doesn't help our pain, because the more inward that we turn, the more we miss the pathway to God in it. Now, I want to show you what David does here. He doesn't turn inward. He turns outward. [00:11:50] David begins in pain, but as quick as he can, he starts to look outside of his pain and outside of himself. And guess where he looks? [00:12:03] He looks to God. [00:12:05] But get this, he doesn't just look to God. [00:12:10] He worships God. [00:12:12] He says, I have no good apart from you. That's a declaration of worship. [00:12:22] That's a declaration. Do you think David felt that in the moment? [00:12:27] I'm guessing he didn't. [00:12:30] Do you think, David, that everything in him wanted to turn away from the pain and turn to God? No, I don't think he wanted to. I think he did it as an act of discipline. I think he did it because he knew that's exactly what his soul needed, was to step out of his pain and out of his struggle and to look beyond himself into God. And not only to look to God, but say to God, there is no good in my life apart from you. And he worships him. And church, I want to tell you today that I think that one of the very best things we can do when we're struggling, it's going to be the last thing that you feel like doing. But it's the very thing you and I need to do, is we need to move off of self and towards God. [00:13:18] And I want to encourage you today, if you are struggling today, if you're in pain, if you're overwhelmed in difficulty, here's what I want to encourage you. Create some space to worship, even, hey, before this service is over and the band comes up and they sing the next song that they're singing, you just take that moment, and you just declare what David declares. There is no good apart from you, God. [00:13:44] And you tell your soul that, whether it believes it right now or not, that doesn't matter. What matters is that you engage in that moment, and you look beyond and you look to him. David turns outward and he worships. And I want to encourage you, church, this year, if you're a follower of Christ, and even if you're not, just open your heart to seeing, acknowledging the goodness of God. And here's what I'll tell you. It will put you on a different path. You with me on this. It will put you in a different place. And David goes there. Now, here's the other thing that he does. He turns outward, but he also turns to the right group of people. Now, this is a little bit harder to see in this text, but let me just show you quickly. He talks, you remember that verse? He talks about the excellent ones in the land who is his delight. And then the verse after that, it talks about the sorrows of those who run after another. Other gods shall multiply. Now, he's using fancy language, but what he's talking about is two different groups of people. [00:14:54] He's saying, there's one group that I can find in life. They are the saints. What does that mean? They are people who love God. That's it. They're not perfect people, but they're people who are in pursuit of God. David says this. Here's what I see also around me. There's another group of people. They're not in pursuit of God. They're in pursuit of little g gods. [00:15:19] Here's what's interesting about the scriptures is that the opposite of belief is not unbelief. [00:15:27] The opposite of belief is what the Bible calls idolatry. [00:15:33] That, in other words, the temptation, whether we know it or not, today, the temptation is not to either I believe in God or I don't believe in God. It's either I believe in God or I've made something else a God in my life. [00:15:48] And there's all kinds of options out there. You can make your career a God, you can make yourself a God. You can make a relationship a God. You can make tons and tons of things into gods. What that means is you're looking for them for happiness, for safety, for security, for comfort, for relief, for all those things. But here's what David says, and you can't miss this. He says, those who run after gods, their sorrows shall multiply. Here's the whole problem with it. When you run after a false God, it makes you worse, not better. [00:16:28] Have you ever tried to find relief in something that just adds to your pain later on? [00:16:37] Are there things and habits in your life and my life that you go to because you think they're going to help, but they just end up hurting over the long run? Like, I'm a stress eater, man. [00:16:50] I get stressed, I want to eat food, and I do. Don't be judging me right now. [00:16:58] We all got our things. [00:17:01] And it feels good. It feels good in the moment, but it doesn't feel good. [00:17:07] Then when I look at the online service and I'm like, dang, they're chunks, you know? That doesn't feel good anymore. The sorrows of those who run after another God shall multiply. [00:17:19] But get this, here's what David does. He turns to people who love God. [00:17:26] You need people in your life who love God, especially when you're in pain. You need to surround, look, there's always other options. [00:17:33] And some of us know, in fact, have you ever noticed that when you're struggling in life, one of the easiest things to do is actually just to isolate yourself from everyone? [00:17:42] The time when you most need people, you're like, everybody, get away from me. [00:17:50] But that's when we know most need them. And David says, and I need people. I need the people of God around me. And can I tell you that this church is filled with people who will walk with you in your pain? [00:18:04] Can I tell you it is? Yeah. [00:18:07] I promise you, if you want it, it's there. [00:18:11] I've never met a group of people that they are the least judgmental. They are the most compassionate, merciful, selfless, gracious people you will meet. They're sitting next to you, and they will walk with you in your pain. [00:18:31] But we got to be open to it. So here's what David does. He turns outward to God. He worships. He turns to the right group of people. And then he decides, look at verse five. He says, you know what? The Lord is my chosen portion and my cup you hold my lot. The lines have fallen for me in pleasant places indeed, I have a beautiful inheritance. Here's what David's doing. He's in his pain. [00:18:59] He's deciding, I'm doing this with God, not without him. [00:19:05] The Lord is my chosen portion. I'm choosing God. I'm choosing to do this with him. See, our times of pain, they can draw us away from God, but you know what they can do even more powerfully? They can draw us into a deeper commitment to him. [00:19:25] That's what David decides. He's saying, this is hard, but it's going to be even harder without God. [00:19:33] And can I just tell you, that's always been my experience. [00:19:38] Don't make it harder by running from him. Make it easier by deciding, no matter what, I'm doing it with him. That's what David does. He says, the Lord is my portion. I'm leaning into him, and I'm not leaning away. And then he says these two things. He says, I bless the Lord who gives me counsel, verse seven and verse eight. I set the Lord before me always. Now, this is, I think, a picture of what it means to do it with God, these two realities. I bless the Lord who gives me counsel, and I set the Lord before me always. [00:20:14] In other words, here's what he's saying. I'm listening to God. [00:20:18] I bless the Lord who gives me. I'm listening to him, and I'm going back again and again to what I know and what I've heard and what I've seen from God in my life. [00:20:31] Now, we all desperately need these two practices, these two things. We need God's wisdom this week. You remember Monday? Remember how beautiful it was Monday. I'm not trying to make you feel bad today, but you remember that it was like 75. [00:20:46] It feels like an eternity ago, doesn't it? But that was beautiful. And on Monday, Allie, when I got home, she said, hey, I told the girls we would have a fire because it was so nice out. We were like, we'll have the first fire outside on the patio of the season. And she said, and we'll do s'mores. So can you go to the store and get them? I said, yes, ma'am, I sure can. And I've learned that's a great response in marriage. Anyway, so I went to Mark's. [00:21:21] I don't know about you, I hate going to any store. I hate it. Marks, clothing stores, the mall, I hate it. I actually think I have some kind of physical condition. I get dizzy, I get nauseous. [00:21:37] It's almost dangerous for me to be there very long. So when I go to a store, I am trucking through, I'm power walking. [00:21:48] I don't care if you ever see me out. And I don't say hi. Don't take it personally. I have a time limit. And so I was just trucking through marks, but I must have been just kind of making circles a little bit because I seemed to concern one of the employees. And she was like, probably like 20ft away from me. And she's like, sir, do you know where you're going? Do you need help? [00:22:12] I was like, why are you calling me out right now in front of half of the store? [00:22:17] And I was like, no, lady, I'm not lost. I just haven't found where I'm going yet. [00:22:23] There's a difference. No. [00:22:27] I said, yes, I'm just looking for s'more stuff. And she pointed me in the right direction, very kindly, but she was concerned. [00:22:38] She's like, what's up with this guy? [00:22:41] And then I kind of just had this thought. I was like, you know what? Why do I think I can figure out so much about my life and I can't even find Graham crackers and marshmallows at Mark's? What makes me think I can figure out how to be the husband I need to be, how to love my kids, how to navigate this situation, how to figure out the life that God, I can't even find Graham crackers at Mark's to the tune that it makes people afraid. [00:23:08] How am I going to figure out the complexity of living this life? We need God's wisdom. Church, you're not meant to be able to figure all this out. [00:23:20] That's not an expectation God's put on you. That's not an expectation you should carry. We need his wisdom, and then we need to respond and listen to his wisdom. But here's the deal. We've got to listen. [00:23:34] We've got to listen. David says, I bless the Lord who gives me counsel. My heart instructs me at night. I listen to God. Church, here's what I want to encourage you. Do you have a practice in your life to listen to God? [00:23:52] Life is really noisy, isn't it? [00:23:55] And to listen, you can't do that accidentally. [00:24:00] You have to do it intentionally. Now, I think that we've got to talk to God. We've got to share our heart. I think God is honored in that. God tells us to do that. God tells us to pray about everything in our life and to make our request known for him, and we have to do that. But I think if you're like me, it's easy to do some of that, but not really create much opportunity to listen. [00:24:28] And you know what I think we need, especially when life is hard, is we need space to listen, to listen. Say, lord, you know my heart. You know everything I'm worried about. You know everything I'm concerned about. But you know what? I want to hear you. [00:24:49] You're hearing me, but I want to make sure I'm hearing you. [00:24:55] And, church, maybe this season, maybe you and I, we need a little room in our life to listen. [00:25:03] I've been enjoying just going on walks after the kids and everybody's down in my neighborhood and just using part of that time where I'm not listening to anything and I'm just trying to slow my mind and relax my body and just say, all right, lord, I'm just open to you. I'll tell you, it's been really, really life giving, however you do it, whatever it looks like in your life. I think we need a practice of listening and hearing. And then here's what David says, and I'm setting you before me always. I'm going back again and again to who you are and to what I know is true. I don't know about you. I need to learn the same lesson about 8 million times. How about you? Sometimes I need to hear the same things from God again and again and again. I'm a really thick headed person. I'm trying to be better, but it's hard for those things to get through. And David says, I'm going back again and again, and I'm listening, and I'm trying to be more open than I was before so that, Lord, I can be connected and in tune with you. [00:26:16] And he practices it. And then look at this last part. Here's where it all leads them. [00:26:22] It leads them to the fullness of God. [00:26:25] Therefore, my heart is glad. [00:26:29] I don't know if his situation is different, but you know, God can make your heart glad when your situation isn't what you want it to be. [00:26:40] That God, that we can find a sense of joy in our whole being even when we're hurting and we're scared. That's part of the blessing of God's presence and help in our lives. [00:26:54] Church. If we are only happy when life's going the way we want it to go, we're going to be happy for about 4 seconds in this life, right? Because as soon as it's all squared away, then something else comes your way, right? Our happiness has to be deeper than our circumstances. It has to be deeper than our feelings. [00:27:16] And David says, I find it in the fullness, in the presence of God. Yes, I am in pain. He's not denying the pain. Denial is not a good thing. He's not acting like it's there. But do you know you can be in a hard time and still have joy in God? You can be in pain and difficulty and still have a sense of well being. Those are not contradictory. They can exist at the same time through the grace and presence of God. And David's entering into that. He says, for you will not abandon my soul to shale or let your holy one see corruption. Here's what he means, that this pain is not going to be corrosive to me. [00:28:02] It's going to be redeeming in my life. [00:28:06] God will not waste the pain and difficulty of your life. [00:28:10] He will redeem it. He will use it for his glory. He will use it for your good. Have you met people that have been through really hard things and it's made them a really hard person? [00:28:23] Have you met people that have experienced a lot of pain? And because they're so hurt, their only way they understand life is to unnecessarily hurt others. [00:28:34] Pain can do that to you. Here's what else pain can do, though. [00:28:39] It can make you holier, it can make you more into the man or woman Christ calls us to be. Have you met people who have been through really, really hard things, but yet their spirit is noble, their spirit is strong. [00:28:59] Their spirit has grace and wisdom. What's the difference? The presence of God in the pain, the pathway of where the pain leads us. And then he says this. You make known to me the path of life. In your presence, there is fullness of joy. At your right hand are pleasures forever more. [00:29:23] Here's what I found. I found the fullness of God, and that's my hope for you. Now, here's what I want to tell you today. No matter who you are or where you come from, when you go to God, when I go to God in pain and difficulty and struggle, every one of us will find the same thing David found. [00:29:47] We'll find the wisdom of life. You make known to me the path of life. This is all confusing God, but you're bringing clarity. We'll find that. We'll find fullness of joy. [00:29:58] We'll find that. That there's a deeper joy to live from, to tap into that that we can draw from. And it's connected to the presence of God, not what's going on. And we'll find that there is a future, there is a hope. At his right hand are eternal pleasures, you and I. No matter what your pain is today, even if you're like, well, Chet, here's the deal. I've created all this pain in my life. [00:30:25] I've created it. It's hard for me to admit that, but I've created it. I've been a knucklehead, this or that. So maybe if it's pain you didn't create, God will bless you in it. But what about the pain you create, too? Hey, guess what? You'll still get the same result. [00:30:43] Guess what? Even if you created it, even if at the end of the day it comes back to you, or even if it's like a mixed bag, you're like, this was tough, but then I made it worse. Guess what? You'll still get the fullness of joy. You'll still get all that because it's a gift from God to each and every one of us, because God is so gracious and so good. [00:31:07] Here's how I know this. It's a gift to us, and every gift costs someone something. [00:31:17] I did a wedding a few years ago. Well, it's probably longer than that now, but the bride and groom, they were a very young couple, and they didn't have a lot of money, and they're really just great people. And the groomsmen, we were all kind of waiting before the ceremony, hanging out. [00:31:36] If you're the officiant, you got to corral the groomsmen, keep them in line. Very difficult thing to do, actually bring one of those cattle prodders now and just. You can hide it in your jacket real easy. Anyway. [00:31:53] But these guys were a little bit different, and we were sitting there, and we were waiting, and they pulled the groomsmen or the groom in, and there's only a couple of groomsmen. It wasn't a huge wedding party, and they said, hey, we got a gift for you. And I was like, wow. Never seen groomsmen do this type of thing. [00:32:13] And he opened the gift, and it was an iPad. [00:32:17] Now, this was when iPads first came out, so this thing costs a pretty penny. I know they're still expensive now, but they were, I think, even more expensive then. And the groomsman said, we got you this iPad. And I was just standing there watching this. I was like, this is crazy. [00:32:37] Then my other thought was like, dude, those are some great friends, man. [00:32:42] And I was like, I wonder if I can be friends with them because I'd like an iPad, too. And that part didn't pan out. But I was sitting there, I was watching, and it was moving to see it, because they just love their friend. And then I was like, man, there's, like, three of you, an iPad. I'm doing the math in my head, like, you guys put forward some cash to bless your friend. [00:33:07] It was a free gift to him. [00:33:10] It costs them a decent amount. [00:33:14] And in the same way, church, I want you to know that the gift of God's presence, it's free to you today. It's free to you. You don't have to be something you're not today to get it. [00:33:27] You don't have to go home and change this in your life and change that. And then you're like, okay, I'm crossing my fingers. I hope God will bless me. I hope God will meet me. I hope God will help me. I hope I did enough. No, it's free to you. It's free to you. You're like, that sounds too good to be true. It is not too good to be true. It's just too good. But here's why it's free to you. But it cost Jesus Christ everything. [00:33:57] Someone did pay the price. But wasn't you. It wasn't me, and it never will be. It was our Lord Jesus Christ. That's why we worship him. That's why we say, every knee will bow and every tongue will confess. Because Christ paid the. I don't deserve the fullness of God. [00:34:16] I don't deserve God's help no matter what, no strings attached. I don't deserve it. But Christ bought it for me. [00:34:25] So what do you do when someone pays for a very generous gift and they give it to you? What do you do? You just receive it with thanks. That's it. You just receive it. You say, thank you. [00:34:42] Thank you. And today, maybe in our pain, maybe some of us, that that's exactly why you're watching today. That's exactly why you're here today, is because God wants to give you that gift. [00:34:55] And all in your mind, you've been saying, oh, I got to buy that, and I can't afford it. No, you don't need to buy it. And yes, you can afford it, but Christ bought it for you. [00:35:07] And you know what the best thing you can do to honor him is? You say, thank you and you receive it. Say, God, thank you for your presence. Thank you for your help. Thank you for what was given to me through Christ, death and resurrection. I receive it. [00:35:23] And some of us just need reminded that when we go to the Father, that's what we'll find, too, because we got that gift, because it's still there. It's still at work. [00:35:35] And the fullness of God, we can find it. We can experience it. We could be blessed by it. Let's pray. Father, we love you. [00:35:45] I pray, Lord, especially just for my brothers and sisters who. Man, life's been hard. It's been confusing. It's been frustrating. [00:35:56] But, Lord, I pray that we could come to the point, that we could kiss the wave that throws us upon the rock of ages. [00:36:04] That, Lord, our pain could be that pathway, that channel that doesn't take us away from you but brings us right into your presence. [00:36:16] I pray, Lord, for those of us who were open to it. But we've never received the free gift of Christ. Give us a heart of faith to do it today, to see it's for us. It's free. It's by him, and it's for him and it's to him. And may you be glorified in that. [00:36:36] Bless us today, Lord. Thank you for these good people. Help us just in this moment, a worship to taste and see a little more of the fullness of who you are. We ask this in Jesus name. Amen.