Why Do We Exist - Week 3

[00:00:01] Speaker A: I was preparing for this sermon on Monday, and I found myself. [00:00:12] Speaker A: Just, like, in one of those really good moods. Like, one of those moods where, like, I wanted to worship God. One of those moods where it was, like, easy to understand. The joy of the Lord is your spirit strength. You know what I'm saying? And we have been in this series where we're talking about why do we exist? [00:00:34] Speaker A: What is. What's the purpose of our life? And Lexi's done an incredible job talking about the glory of God and who he is and. And how we glorify his name. And today I'm going to be talking about how do we enjoy him? If. If we exist to glorify God and enjoy. If glorifying is talking about the character of who he is, and we find ways to lift his name high and we find ways to magnify, then how do you enjoy. Can I be so real with you today? Everything in its power has tried to suck me dry of my joy. [00:01:20] Speaker A: I had a migraine headache all night last night. So I didn't sleep. I woke up, I got some medicine, and I was like, I'm just gonna get to work. And I started working, and I went to go take a shower, and my dog literally ate my sermon when I came down. And I was like, it's okay. I don't really use notes anyways. It's fine. But this is, like, a sermon that I'm gonna be using notes tonight. And I can feel my microphone right now, which I know that's not a big deal to you, but it's a big deal to me. Like, I can feel it, and it's not right, and it's bothering me. Have you ever had where you just feel your clothes on your skin and you're like, I need to go change. That's how this microphone feels right now. I need Tom Shrael. [00:02:02] Speaker A: And I'm supposed to preach. [00:02:05] Speaker A: About how you enjoy God. [00:02:11] Speaker A: And so I want to. I want to just start right off the bat by saying, here is the blessing. [00:02:19] Speaker A: Joy doesn't have a whole lot to do with our circumstances. [00:02:25] Speaker A: Joy has to do with a person. [00:02:30] Speaker A: Joy doesn't have to do with what's externally going on. It has to do with what's internally going on in our heart. [00:02:40] Speaker A: And before I get up here and preach, I was worshiping with nothing. And I was dancing in my kitchen. Kitchen on Monday, because it was just like, you know, that day I was so good, and I called Lex, and I was like, I want to do this song. Can we add it to the sermon. And she's like, well, we don't. We're like stripping it back. And I was like, that's even better. I want it to feel like we're worshiping God in our kitchen. I want it to sound like we are the most authentic people right now. Where there's not drums and it's not power and it's not like, oh, but it's just like the authentic, authentic soul seeking God. And so before we get started, I want to just take a second. [00:03:26] Speaker A: And I want to breathe in and breathe out. [00:03:29] Speaker A: And I want to be intentional about tonight. [00:03:33] Speaker A: I want you to open your heart to God. If you're here in this room or if you're watching online. [00:03:43] Speaker A: I want you to slow down and put down the phone and put down whatever is nagging you. [00:03:52] Speaker A: And I want you to focus. [00:03:55] Speaker A: On a God who is for you. [00:04:00] Speaker A: I want you to focus on a God who never leaves you or forsakes you. [00:04:08] Speaker A: I want you to focus on a God where over and over again the scripture brings us to rejoicing and joy. Because it's in his presence that there is fullness of joy. It's by his side that there is pleasure forevermore. And tonight I just want to be in his presence. Any amens? Tonight I want to be right by his side. I want to feel the pleasure of God in my heart and in my mind and in my soul. So as we sing this next song, just sing it from your heart. [00:04:44] Speaker A: Open your soul to what God might want to speak to us tonight. [00:05:09] Speaker A: Sa. [00:05:43] Speaker B: Oh my life you've been right here by my side. God I'm just grateful for you. God, I'm just grateful for you. [00:05:58] Speaker B: Holy, holy. There's only one. [00:06:05] Speaker B: I give you glory for all that you've done. [00:06:12] Speaker B: Even though I don't deserve it you did it. [00:06:19] Speaker B: Even though I couldn't earn it you. [00:06:23] Speaker A: Give it. [00:06:28] Speaker B: Who where am I that you keep me on you my God I'm just grateful for you. God, I'm just grateful for you. Yes I am. Oh my alive you've been right here by my side. God I'm just grateful for you. God I'm just grateful for you. [00:07:03] Speaker B: I'm lifting both of my hands but you gave me chance after chance after chance. [00:07:16] Speaker B: Are I give it all that I am. You give me chance after chance after chance. [00:07:31] Speaker B: I'm missing out of my ass cuz you give me chance after chance after chance. [00:07:46] Speaker B: I'm giving all that I. [00:07:50] Speaker B: You give me chance after chance after chance. Who am I that you keep me on your mind? God, I'm just grateful for God, I'm just grateful for you. [00:08:10] Speaker B: All my life you been right here by my side God, I'm just grateful for you God, I'm just, just grateful for you. [00:08:24] Speaker B: Who am I that you keep me on your. My God, I'm just grateful for you God, I'm just grateful for you. [00:08:39] Speaker A: All. [00:08:40] Speaker B: My life you've been right here by my side God, I'm just grateful for you God, I'm just grateful for you. [00:09:05] Speaker A: It's a good one. Yes. I was like, oh, my life, you've been right here by my side we're gonna have some joy today, people. My family always had a saying. It would say, move to the joy. Now is my microphone kind of being funny? Am I loud? We good? We got it. Let's pray. [00:09:28] Speaker A: Who are we, Father, that you have us on your mind? God, I am so incredibly grateful for you. Father, I pray that tonight you culminate within us not just the experience of happiness, Father, and what happens externally, but more than anything. [00:09:51] Speaker A: I pray we will be in your presence. I pray you will be made known to us. I pray it's less of me tonight and more of you. And that your name will be glorified and lifted high. Father, I don't want to just stand up here and talk for 30 minutes. I want it to be you. So I pray you give me the wisdom, the words, and the heart. Father, I pray that we don't just hear this and walk out, but we take root, Father. [00:10:21] Speaker A: And that we will create habits that honor and glorify you. In your son's name we pray. Amen. [00:10:31] Speaker A: I was watching a sermon on joy, and the preacher was talking about in 2009, the Lakers guys. I so don't know. Sports. What. What would it be? Their highest game? [00:10:43] Speaker A: NBA Finals? Playoffs? Finals, Finals. And they were up two to nothing. And you have to win. Four to win. [00:10:55] Speaker A: And Kobe Bryant was interviewed, and he was like. There was no smile. There was. There was like, a coldness on his face. And the interviewer is like, what's going on? Aren't you happy? Aren't you? Aren't you happy? You're up 2 to nothing. And he said, what's there to be happy about? The job's not finished. Did you just quote that? You already knew that, didn't you? You knew it. Yeah. What's there to be happy about? The job's not finished. I find so often in our life, we have an incredibly hard time enjoying things because we are always worried about what's next. Come on, I am the queen of this. I would be like, okay, I am. I'm gonna enjoy my life when. I'm going to enjoy my life when I get married. I'm going to enjoy my life when I have kids. That was reversed for me. But watch out who's talking. [00:11:57] Speaker A: You get the authentic preacher today. [00:12:01] Speaker A: Okay? [00:12:03] Speaker A: There's days when I'm like, oh, once this week's over, then I can chill. Then I'll be able to enjoy any amens in the house. Is this a woman thing or is it a humanity thing? Okay, humanity. Like, there are times in our life where we just can't be present and enjoy because we're already moved on to the next. We're not finished. The job's not finished. We work in the church, and we're like, we're gonna put celebrations for the staff on the calendar because we're terrible at celebrating, because we just move right on to the next. Because every week, Sunday's coming. Every year, Christmas is coming and Easter is coming, and there's always more to be done. So we're incredibly bad at, like, slowing down and enjoying what God's been doing. And come to find out, it's one of the number one reasons that we can't form healthy habits is because we don't enjoy the reward. [00:13:04] Speaker A: And I listened to this podcast. [00:13:08] Speaker A: My notes, got eaten, and so his name is slipping me. But Charles. [00:13:14] Speaker A: Duhigg. Yes. [00:13:19] Speaker A: Well, if it comes to you, scream it out to me later as we get going. He wrote a book, and it's the Power to Change. And the idea in this book is every habit has, like, three main components of it. Okay? So it has the cue. [00:13:38] Speaker A: And the cue is when you have a habit. Let's just use running, for example, or working out. When you work out, the cue would be something that triggers you automatically to run. Okay? So for a lot of people, it's. They pick out their workout clothes beforehand and they lay them, like, on the counter or the bathroom counter or whatever. They get their shoes out. Some of you, it's a person that you go and work out with. Taylor is my cue for workouts. Like, every time Taylor's around, I'm like, let's work out, girl. When she works out without me, I'm mad about it. So every habit has a cue. Think about brushing your teeth. Most of us keep our toothbrush on the counter, right? Because every morning you do it. It's a habit. You don't even think about it, hopefully. [00:14:25] Speaker A: And it's a cue. So when you see your toothbrush you brush it, you're good to go. The next part of a habit is the routine. It's the habit itself. So it's the working out or it's the brushing of your teeth. And then the last part of the habit is the reward. And the reward is basically every habit in our life has a reward to it if we know it or we don't. So brushing your teeth, the reward is your breath smells good, working out is your body feels stronger or you're getting healthier or whatever it might be. But for most of us, we do not enjoy the reward. So we quit before it really, truly becomes a habit. That's why working out is kind of one of those things where it can be like hit or miss. Because a lot of us feel like the reward is the six pack or the weight loss, but really the reward can be something totally different. It can be, you said you are this kind of person and you did it and you did it consistently. So the reward is, I'm a woman who works out. [00:15:32] Speaker A: I wish that was me. She's kind, I'm kind to her. [00:15:37] Speaker A: So every habit we have, there is a reward to it, but we don't enjoy it. We don't sit in it, we don't. We don't feel the enjoyment because we are a society that doesn't enjoy. We move on. [00:15:53] Speaker A: And tonight I want to talk about how do we not. [00:15:56] Speaker A: How do we truly find ways to enjoy God? [00:16:04] Speaker A: And what I'm going to do tonight is I'm going to take scripture and I'm going to give a script three ways. [00:16:13] Speaker A: To enjoy God and then I'm gonna put em in this queue. So we're gonna combine this podcast of how to form habits and we're gonna put it with scripture and things that are gonna change our life for good. Okay? So stick with me. I think it's an awesome idea. So I'm excited for it because here's what I hate. I hate coming to church and then walking out the door and doing nothing with it. Any amens? Like, I hate being like, what the heck was that sermon even about? I hate not, like, why waste our time? Why be here if we, if we aren't going to get better, if we aren't going to use it? So I want to do very practical tools of how to put it together. Deal? Okay. The beauty of the Bible is the answers are here. The answers are here and in the psalms. David wrote this psalm, and it is the most. [00:17:12] Speaker A: Beautiful psalm because it gives us real wisdom on how you truly find Joy in God. And here's what it says. We're going to start at verse eight. I have set the Lord always before me because he is at my right side. I shall not be shaken, therefore my heart is glad and my whole being rejoices. My flesh also dwells secure. For you will not abandon me or my soul to Sheol, or let your Holy One see corruption. You make known to me the path of life. In your presence, there is fullness of joy, and at your right hand, there is pleasure forevermore. [00:17:57] Speaker A: We have a God of joy. And I want to look at these three ways that we can enjoy God forever. And I'm going to have you pop them all up on. Actually, it's Gage's birthday. We don't often see our tech guys, but Gage's birthday. Happy birthday. Gage. [00:18:20] Speaker A: Behind the computer. I appreciate you and all you do. Can you put the three ways to enjoy God up on the screen? Okay, we're gonna do a little something crazy. I want you. All right, now, what word is sticking out to you? Is it pursue, delight, or treasure? I want you to pick your word. Pick your word. Everyone got it? Okay. Just by show of hands, who pursue. Who's sticking that out? Okay, show of hands, delight. Okay. And show of hands, treasure. Okay? These are your words. I want you to listen up and buckle up. So whatever word you chose, this is your word that you are going to stick with. This is going to be the way that you enjoy God. Deal. So let's go through them. If you want to change, you can change. [00:19:12] Speaker A: So the first one is to pursue God. The scripture says, I have set the Lord always before me. I have set the Lord always before me. Now, I want to be very theologically sound here, because there is a truth that God chose us. We didn't choose him. [00:19:36] Speaker A: Christ says it clearly. I chose you. You did not choose me. And so there is examples in the Bible of God pursuing man. There's a parable, and it's of a shepherd who had 100 sheep, and 99 of them were safe and sound. But one was lost and got away. And the shepherd, that was not nothing to him, it meant something to him. That one sheep was of value, and it was representation of God saying, you are of value to me. There is nothing insignificant or little about you. I will leave the 99 and I will go and I will get you. It's a vision of a God, a good shepherd who pursues you. Okay? And that's in the Bible because it's important, because sometimes we can feel less Than we can feel inadequate. We can feel like, not good enough. And Christ wants to show you you are of value. You matter. And then there's another parable where it's the son who is. He's lost his way. He's. [00:20:51] Speaker A: Wanting to leave, and he's being a jerk, and he's asking his dad for his inheritance before his dad is gone. Just a low move makes me want to say a bad word about him. You know what I'm saying? What a jerk. You know what I'm saying? Let's keep going. [00:21:13] Speaker A: And he leaves his dad and he goes and he squanders the money, and he's lonely and he's hungry and he's messed up. And now here's a picture of a father who was steady. And the son returns to him. [00:21:30] Speaker A: And the father openly, with open arms, accepts the son back in. And this is an image of us needing to pursue God. Because in both of these stories, God didn't leave. Who left, it was us. And let's just be so honest and so real. We know that to be true in our life. We are the ones who leave. We are the ones who feel disconnected. We are the ones who don't give God the credit. We are the ones who sin and walk away and choose other things over Him. And so to really understand this image, I want us to understand that God chooses us. If you're here, if you're watching online, if you have a longing to know God, if there's something inside of you that just wants something of him, that is because he's working on your heart. [00:22:25] Speaker A: And now I want to be connected. I want to pursue. Do you like. When Jacob and I were dating, there was something about the pursuit. There was something about, like him bringing me flowers and writing me love notes and saying kind things to me and just caring enough about me to care. Anyone remember the good old days? Anyone live in the good old days? Hallelujah. Okay, Me too. My husband, he still brings me flowers. Oh, he's upped his game. He brings Mama Starbucks coffee. Okay. Even better. [00:23:04] Speaker A: The pursuit, though. [00:23:07] Speaker A: It's this idea that when we glorify God, one of the number one ways we glorify God is when we are most satisfied in him. [00:23:19] Speaker A: And that's a hard thing to be. Is satisfied. It's a hard thing to not always want something. And it's the idea that when I am most satisfied in Him, I am most aware of who he is in my life. When I pursue God, I'm making it so that I'm coming to church every single week. And listen, this has been my job for most of my life, but there's been chunks of time where it's not, and that never changed. This church is a place that as a family, we have dedicated our lives to. If we're on staff or not. Like, we go to church. And it's because I want God always before me. I want to hear ideas that I don't know. I want to learn, I want to grow, I want to get better. And going to church is a way of putting God before you and saying, I want to know you. The glory of God is who he is, as Lexi so eloquently preached a couple weeks ago. And he is everything. [00:24:26] Speaker A: Every good thing we have comes from him. He is infinite, and he's all knowing. He's powerful and he's almighty. He is steadfast, and he is holy. He is just, and he is righteous, and he is good, and he is for you. And I want to be connected to a God like that. When there are things that are keeping me down and crushing my soul, I want a God where I can be in his presence. [00:24:57] Speaker A: And breathe. [00:25:00] Speaker A: When I feel like I have to put a performance on for everybody around me, I want. I want a God of strength who offers, authentically, knows me, and I want to breathe. And when we pursue God. [00:25:15] Speaker A: We put him always before us. Now I want to use the habit. Former. Okay, so there is a cue. [00:25:25] Speaker A: What is a cue for this pursuit? A cue could be as easy as church. Okay, a cue could be the Bible. [00:25:40] Speaker A: So my cue. If you walked in my house, I have a sunroom, and my Bible is always in that sunroom. So when I come downstairs, like, the first thing I see is my Bible in that sunroom. And it's my cue. [00:25:54] Speaker A: Oftentimes when my kids are home, like, the girls will all be reading on the couch together, and we'll be each other's cue. Like, if one girl's reading the Bible, the other two are like, we gotta get going. Like, there's cues. So the cue is what is gonna trigger you to make you pick up the Bible and read it? What's the trigger? Is it a plan? So I have followed so many plans, Bible plans in my life, and it would be easy because I wouldn't have to think about it. I wouldn't have to try to figure out where to start. I would go to the Bible app and I would just make a year. [00:26:29] Speaker A: What's it called? A year plan. Bible in the Year. Tricky name. It's a Bible in the year and every day, it would just give you what you have to read. You get an alert, you read it, and it's a cue. And so when you're pursuing God, what is it for me, I want to put him always before me. And so I've stacked habits of, like, getting ready and listening to. To. [00:26:58] Speaker A: Sermons. I listen to more sermons than most people. My brain is tired by the end of the week. And I consume because I want him always before me, because I want to pursue the God, the Creator, my Creator, who knows how I'm hardwired, who knows what he made me for. And as I pursue him and I get to know Him, I long for it more. [00:27:25] Speaker A: As I pursue him and I do these habits. So let's say it's cue. [00:27:32] Speaker A: Then what was this one ritual? Thank you routine. [00:27:38] Speaker A: And then reward. [00:27:41] Speaker A: So the routine is what you're doing if it's reading, if it's going to church, if it's. I kind of did this backwards. I do so bad with these boys. I do so bad. Every time I use this notebook. I'm like, you're so bad at this. Okay, so your cue is your trigger. So maybe it's the leave your Bible out. We on the same page. Okay? Your routine is reading it. And the reward is I get to know God better. I get to read verses like. [00:28:11] Speaker A: I have set. The Lord always before me because he is at my right hand. I shall not be shaken. You see, this is where I start to understand. When God is by my side, life looks different. When God is by my side, things can happen. Circumstances can be going on. Things can be going on, but there is something. There's a joy, there is a contentment. There's a satisfaction of soul. And it doesn't have anything to do with circumstances and has everything to do with the God that we follow. So we pursue him. [00:28:55] Speaker A: When we pursue him, growth stops feeling like pressure and it starts feeling like an invitation. Starts feeling like an invitation to something better. [00:29:09] Speaker A: The next one is delightful. [00:29:13] Speaker A: There is a pastor who talks about delighting in God. And he uses this image. And the idea is. [00:29:24] Speaker A: He says, imagine you are bringing your spouse flowers. We'll just make it a man bringing a woman flowers. You're bringing your wife flowers, your girlfriend flowers, whatever it is. You go to her and you say, hey, babe, this is out of duty that I'm giving these to you. There you go. Like, how would that make her feel? [00:29:48] Speaker A: Crappy. Now imagine that man goes, and he gets flowers and he picks out her favorite, and he knocks on the Door. And he says, babe, it is my delight. [00:30:01] Speaker A: To give you these. [00:30:03] Speaker A: It is my delight to find what you love and to give it to you. You see the difference in how we show up when we delight in the Lord. There's something significantly more about it. There's something that is so much more. [00:30:26] Speaker A: Beautiful. There's something that's so much richer and healthier. And this is what the verse says. It says, therefore my heart is glad and my whole being rejoices. My whole being rejoices. I delight in him. [00:30:46] Speaker A: When was the last time. [00:30:49] Speaker A: You delighted in God? [00:30:58] Speaker A: When was the last time you slowed down. [00:31:02] Speaker A: And you got intentional. [00:31:06] Speaker A: And you just said kind things to him? [00:31:12] Speaker A: I. [00:31:14] Speaker A: Do this almost every time. I worship here because it's like a time where I can just say to thank you. I sit and I worship and. [00:31:25] Speaker A: I just mouth, thank you. Thank you, thank you for who you are. Thank you for the gift of this place. Thank you for your people, thank you for the way you're working. Like, my delight is in him. [00:31:40] Speaker A: My delight is in who he is and not just what he can. Do you hear me? My delight is in the Creator, not what he can give. [00:31:53] Speaker A: I had, I was in my 20s and I had. [00:31:59] Speaker A: Someone pretty close to me actually talking to me. And he kind of like stepped away from God and it was kind of like a big deal. And he was saying that when he went away to college, he like the professors. [00:32:15] Speaker A: Just made him feel dumb, but they made points that like resonated in his heart. And he said, you know, if the whole point is to glorify God, that just seems like self serving. Just seems like God only exists to like, we just serve God and it's self serving. And, and I was 20 and I was like just beginning all this and I didn't know what to do. Say it felt wrong in my heart. Like it felt like something's missing in this conversation, but I wasn't wise enough to know what it was. But all these years later, I look back on that conversation and I think to myself, when we glorify God, it's because he is worth it. But man, do human beings get the benefit? You see what happens is. [00:33:04] Speaker A: It glorifies God for us to bear fruit. And what happens is there's something I'm designed for, there's something I want to do in this world and the desires of my heart. [00:33:18] Speaker A: For me it's this church. But maybe for someone it's running a business or for someone it's a relationship or there's a desire of my heart. And because that desire is most likely put there by God, we have some wrong desires, we can all acknowledge that. But the truest desires of our heart, we glorify God by living them out, okay? We glorify God by being who he authentically made us to be. When I came back to this church, so I was over at West Campus for like five years and I came back here to partner with my dad. The church was kind of old and I got here and it just like there was a desire on my heart for a younger generation and to be captivated by God. There was a desire in my heart for this church not to die off, but to be young and vibrant and to be multi generational and for God to do something. Come on, somebody. Okay? I felt it in my heart and I wanted to live that out. And now when I see 20 somethings here and choosing to be here on a Wednesday night or choosing to be here and serve on Sunday mornings, when I see the church full of our high school ministry serving and singing and worshiping and Sunday was our student takeover, I just, I couldn't help but to say, God, I glorify your name for what you're doing. You see, when I, when, when we glorify God, he is fulfilling the desire of our heart, okay? And I couldn't articulate that in my 20s, but I could feel it. I couldn't articulate like. But you don't understand. It's like how you're hardwired. You glorify God by doing what you innately are made for. And that's. That's something different than thinking God's an egomaniac. Okay? It's. There is a reality. I'm going to preach so long. There is a reality that we are created by a creator with a purpose. And when we delight in him, when we pursue him, when our heart longs to be in his presence, then there is, without a doubt, gonna be a call on your life. Without a doubt, your creator's gonna say, I'm working through history and I wanna use your story, I wanna use your pain, I wanna use your joy in your life and all of it. I wanna work it all together for your good. And I will glorify my name through it. That's the God we follow. And so when I delight in God, the number one way that has come out in my life is through serving. It's just. I delight in him. I delight in him. And so I'm just gonna say our cue here is if we are delighting in God, we are Most likely gonna be attached to something he's doing in the world. [00:36:23] Speaker A: I need an inhaler. [00:36:26] Speaker A: Glad I wore double long sleeves. Okay. [00:36:33] Speaker A: I'm going to say that our habit for delighting in God is serving him. And I want to serve him in delight, not out of duty. And so if you are already connected and you're already serving, we gotta find ways to delight in it. We call it the adventure of faith because we want you guys to live out this joy of ministry. So if you're serving in something you hate, stop it. What a waste of time. Serve in something you love. Serve in something that makes you come to life. Serve in something that, yeah, it's gonna be challenging and there's gonna be crappy days and you feel your headset and it's annoying, but you bring just joy that fulfills you. And so if we delight in God, how can we serve him? And this could be in the church. This could be in your home. This could be in your workplace. How do you serve him? How do you get connected to what he's doing in the world? And so what's my cue for serving? It's my calendar. [00:37:39] Speaker A: My cue could be church coming to church. My cue could be being in good groups with people. Abby Schrail's got an awesome life. Group started. Wave girl right here. Yes. Yes. My gift is making people feel uncomfortable. You're welcome. Be in groups, in community. Because what happens is when you serve with people you love, there is deep reward. There's deep reward. So the routine is going to be serve. [00:38:11] Speaker A: And the reward. [00:38:14] Speaker A: Is you're partnering with God. [00:38:19] Speaker A: The reward is you get to see what he's doing in the world. [00:38:23] Speaker A: Your reward is you get to be part of something you were created for. The more we focus on ourselves, the less we delight. I mean, it's everywhere. The more I focus on me, the less I delight in anything. The more I focus on me, the uglier I feel. The more I focus on me, the like insufficient I feel. The more I focus on me, the unhappy I get. What happens is when I stop focusing on me and I start delighting in him. When I start delighting in serving him by loving others. [00:38:57] Speaker A: There'S peace. There's a satisfaction of soul that nothing else can bring. Okay, I'm going to do the next one. Kind of quick. Treasure. Is this boring? Are we good? [00:39:13] Speaker A: Anyone changing their ideas yet? Everyone sticking with theirs? [00:39:21] Speaker A: I will not be using the whiteboard anymore. Okay, okay. We're gonna treasure him. [00:39:29] Speaker A: All this chapter, chapter 16 of Psalm it culminates and you make known to me the path of life. So many of us are searching for what to do, how to live, who to be. But in this connection, in this delight, in this pursuit, God, you make known to me the path of life. And in your presence is the fullness of joy. In your presence is the fullness of joy. [00:40:03] Speaker A: When we treasure him, he becomes the thing we long for the most. [00:40:10] Speaker A: When we treasure him, his voice gets the final say in our life. [00:40:19] Speaker A: When we treasure him, we make him above everything else. He is the treasure. [00:40:29] Speaker A: He is who we seek after. Because in his presence there's fullness of joy. [00:40:38] Speaker A: I. [00:40:41] Speaker A: Going to skip all that. I. [00:40:46] Speaker A: Next week we're going to be talking about. [00:40:49] Speaker A: Not next week, next midweek, we're going to be talking about. [00:40:54] Speaker A: Joy in the suffering. How do you glorify God and enjoy him in the suffering? [00:41:03] Speaker A: Feels like the antithesis to each other, doesn't it? [00:41:10] Speaker A: But in his presence. [00:41:12] Speaker A: There'S fullness of joy. [00:41:17] Speaker A: I was in my early 30s. I talked very open and honestly that Jacob and I struggled very much and I was leading our kids ministry and my marriage was a disaster and. And I've only ever shared this story, I think, with my family because it's odd. [00:41:44] Speaker A: But it was so special to me and it's almost like so special. I hate that I'm even sharing it with you, but I'm doing it in hopes that it'll help. [00:41:54] Speaker A: I remember being upstairs in my office and I was sad. [00:41:59] Speaker A: There was no joy in my life. And I know we talk about happiness is like the external. There was no internal joy. I could not find it. And I remember just like being in my office alone and closing my eyes and crying and just saying, God, I need you. [00:42:24] Speaker A: Nothing else will satisfy I need you. [00:42:32] Speaker A: And I was closing my eyes and I was just asking him and I was crying and I was just like being as authentic as I knew how to be. And I got this picture in my head. [00:42:44] Speaker A: And it was me standing like this. [00:42:49] Speaker A: But I was spinning. I was floating and spinning and it was the brightest color of hot pink that was surrounding me. And I was laughing and laughing and laughing. [00:43:03] Speaker A: And it felt like in your presence there is fullness of joy. I can't articulate to you that vision of what I had because it was so personal. It was. I wanted to have joy. And I am a girl that it's pretty easy for. Like, I am so fun to be around. [00:43:29] Speaker A: Thank you. Thank you. [00:43:33] Speaker A: But it was gone. [00:43:36] Speaker A: And it was like the one who created me. I don't even like hot pink. That day I fell in love with it. I didn't even know I loved it. I love it. This fuchsia, this color that I didn't even know. It was just like I was just spinning and laughing and happy. But there was nothing externally that changed. It was just this moment with me and God where I said, you are my treasure. You are what I treasure above all else. And if nothing changes, Father, I need you. [00:44:11] Speaker A: And I got this picture of me laughing. And I can't tell you what it's done for me all these years. It was like I was seen. [00:44:20] Speaker A: It was like the God, my creator, the God of the universe, he saw me in that moment. He treasured me in that moment. And I'm telling you that one of the gifts of our life is to treasure him above everything else. It makes no sense sometimes. It doesn't add up. Sometimes. And sometimes we're going to be angry. And sometimes we're going to be confused. And sometimes we're going to want to seek the love that is no good for us. But we need to seek the love and the treasure that is good for us. There's going to be times where it doesn't feel good or it doesn't feel convenient. But we say, you are the deciding factor of my life. And so I will say, seek you. I will treasure you. I will pursue you. I will delight in you. Because you. In your presence, there is fullness of joy. [00:45:16] Speaker A: And church. [00:45:18] Speaker A: It's worth it. [00:45:22] Speaker A: There's a quality of soul. There's a quality of character. There's a quality of personhood that slows down. [00:45:34] Speaker A: That seeks him. [00:45:37] Speaker A: That trusts him. [00:45:40] Speaker A: That hopes in him. [00:45:46] Speaker A: He is worthy of it all. [00:45:51] Speaker A: And he is a God who makes a way when there is none. [00:45:57] Speaker A: And if you're interested in that, you join us next time at midweek. Okay? Let's pray. [00:46:05] Speaker A: Dear Heavenly Father, I thank you for who you are. [00:46:13] Speaker A: You are my treasure. [00:46:18] Speaker A: I treasure you, Father. [00:46:22] Speaker A: I delight in you. [00:46:25] Speaker A: Father. It is my desire to pursue you for the rest of my life. [00:46:30] Speaker A: I pray for every heart in this room. [00:46:36] Speaker A: I pray where there is no joy. [00:46:41] Speaker A: But you fill it. [00:46:45] Speaker A: I pray for those who are seeking love and fulfillment in the wrong places. Father. [00:46:54] Speaker A: I pray. Just like the good shepherd left the 99, you will leave the 99 and you will find them tonight. [00:47:02] Speaker A: I pray that they feel your love and your comfort in a way they didn't know existed. [00:47:11] Speaker A: I pray for those of us who just want to follow you, heart and soul. Soul, will you guide us? Will you show us your way. Will you show us the path to life, Father? And will we slow down and enjoy you in the kind of way that makes a difference in our life? [00:47:31] Speaker A: You are everything. And it's in you I trust. Amen. Amen.