So Big, So Close - Holy Living in a Hostile World

I have some real excitement about a book of the Bible that I have not constantly but in and out been In that book of the Bible, over the past two years a lot. And the more the world changed, The more this book of the Bible was about us. And I can't think of a place that would be more relevant to talk about. today. How many of you uh uh happen to remember seeing a movie years ago called the Poseidon Adventure? How many oh a lot you saw that Holy moly. I didn't sleep for nights after that. I didn't even go in the shower. I mean, it was a story of a tsunami. overturning this ship on New Year's Eve and uh if you didn't see it that's okay. It was terrifying. And uh and and the ship is upside down in the water and and everybody is trapped underwater in it and I'm not gonna give you the whole story, but then stuff there's two groups of people trying to find their way out, but they they don't they don't know kind of because everything's inverted. And one of them thinks they're headed for the bow of the ship, but the ship's upside down, and they think they're going up, but they're going down. They're sinking deeper and they don't make it. And then there's another group of people and they are they it looks like they're down, but they're going up anyway. The hoe is all that's above the water and they end up getting out and there's people that cut through that and and get them out of there. The reason I'm even bringing that up. is it occurred to me the other day I was trying to find a mental picture of our times and I said it's the Poseidon. Everything is upside down. It is like, and we have been hit with a tsunami. The tsunami, you could argue when it started, but COVID was, I mean, turned everything upside down, didn't it? And and then and it isn't even all right side up again. There are things that change that'll uh always be different. Um I know this. After all the plans we made during COVID, I now write the word plan in pencil. I don't write it in pen anymore. Probably you do too. We uh everybody, we still deal with the uncertainty that came from that. And we have had all kinds of racial upheaval and we have had all kinds of political craziness and and wildness going on. I heard an anchor man for a major network the other morning. He said every week we have we have to use the word unprecedented again And it is. It is literally, and the the horror in the Middle East, again, is just another Everything is upside down. Welcome to the Poseidon generation, I guess you might call it. And what's interesting is uh and also there's a lot of danger escalating internationally. Listen to what the Secretary General of the UN said in in a speech at the UN. The world has never been more threatened or divided We are on the edge of an abyss. We face the greatest cascade of crises in our lifetimes. In March of 2022, he said, nuclear conflict, once thought unthinkable Now it's definitely in the realm of possibility. Now we do not have any Prozac available here for you, and nor are you going to need it But realistically, we live in an explosive world in many senses of the word. We're places that we never dreamed before. And everything's kind of been rebranded. Everything I grew up being taught was good. is bad now in our culture. And things that I kind of grew up being taught were bad are now good And so it's an inverted Poseidon world. You can read scripture or quote scripture. And it will be immediately called hate speech. I never thought reading my Bible was hate speech, but it's just, and that's not what we're talking, not I'm interested in talking about that, but it is the backdrop, it is the environment in which we're going to look at this book. The book of Deuteronomy, by the way, I am partial to books that have My name in it. It's hard to find my name in the Bible. If your name's John or James or whatever or Ruth, you know, you're in the Bible. Um I I gotta go to Deuteron, I mean, or First or second Ronicles. You know, those are the only the only places I can get into the Bible. But you see what it says in your notes? The book of Deuteronomy is a manual for an upside-down world. Let's paint the picture. You've got one million to two million Jewish people on the edge of a swollen, flooded Jordan River. Realize we're talking now about a million to two million people that have to move through this. Beyond that, what you can see on the horizon are the looming walls of what may have been at that time the oldest city in the uh in the w in the world, the city of Jericho, with impregnable walls, double walls. And barbarian tribes with massive armies waiting to greet you. But what really is significant is the change that's going to take place because there's going to be a whole different world. You've been around people your whole life who had a single belief system. They had the Jehovah belief system. They cross that river and they're going to be in a spiritual buffet of gods and choices. Their children are going to be subjected to temptations that were un would have been unthinkable in their entire lifetime. They cross that river. An unbelievable environment for their children to grow up. They have lived every day depending on God for manna. There won't be any manna over there. They'll have everything at their fingertips. They'll walk in to affluence and raise kids who think that that's just how life is. And they got a new leader. In the midst of all of this, Moses dies. Moses, the liberator, the only leader they've known. And so this mighty leader is is gone. They know Joshua, but they've never followed him as a whole nation like this. There's new leadership. So it is a it is a there's a world of uncertainty, there's a world of in of intimidating, overwhelming challenges ahead of them, and an environment There's going to be spiritually hostile exponentially. Nothing we could relate to there And they will be challenged to holy living in a hostile world. So are we What we're going to be talking about are choices that they had that are laid out in the book of Deuteronomy. Because when I started to study this book, I saw choices. For people like them and people like us. As it says in your notes, choices for a time of seismic upheaval and anxious uncertainty But if you make those choices right, you will be safe and you will be secure. There is nothing that can come on the news There is no volley, there is no terrorism, there is no shock, there is no doctor's diagnosis, there is no storm, there is no crisis, there is no explosion, there is no season. That will shake your confidence and your courage. We'll have to find out where those anchors are. Now, this journey begins actually at chapter 1 and uh we won't have this on the screen but it's uh it's a late entry but uh deuteronomy uh chapter 1 uh here's here's how this whole journey started is that God says these words and they're they're kind of captured in your notes and it says this in chapter 1 and verse 6. The Lord our God said to us at Horeb, you have stayed long enough at this mountain. What mountain? Well, I mean, this is where we got the Ten Commandments. This is the holy mountain. This is God, this is a God place. This is Mount Sinai. He says, you know what, this is a good place for you, but you you've been here long enough. You need to leave this good place you are Then he says, break camp and advance. Then he says, go in and take possession of the land. I just put that in your notes because I think that's what God's saying to some of us. Did you think the adventures? Did you think the challenges from God in your life are behind you? Uh-uh In fact, he's saying the comfort place, the nest you you've kind of got, the spiritual status quo you've got, you've stayed there long enough. It's not bad. Just thought my Sinai's wasn't bad. But God helps more. It's time to move. I've got stuff I got for you to do. I've got things I want you to go in and take possession of. In my name. Move out of your nest, there's land to possess. John Glenn Of course, iconic hero in American culture during the first suborbital flight in the Apollo missions. And then became a United States Senator for years. Pretty good life right there. You could wrap it up. Not John Glenn. He's 78 years old. He says, I'm going back to space. You what? You still fitting the suit? Yeah, he does. And he gets up and he's on that, he's on the uh up on the space shuttle, and I mean it's just incredible. He's 78 years old He said, I got one more mission in me. I hope you do. At least. One more. You're not done. You know, the kids always say on a trip, are we there yet? You ask God that. He'll go, nope, we are not there yet, honey. You are not there yet. And so this begins with God on the move, getting them to follow him, and you see this in your notes. The book of Deuteronomy and the Book of Us is about a God-visited, God-valued people. plunged into a pervasive, seductive culture that ignores God a God-visited, God-valued people, and plunged into pervasive, it's everywhere, it's inescapable, seductive culture that ignores God. Now here's what's in the journey ahead. Here's what he tells them about the journey ahead. Deuteronomy chapter 6 tells us there are great blessings ahead For them, for us. When the Lord your God brings you into the land he swore to your fathers, to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob to give you a land with large, flourishing cities you did not build. Houses filled with all kinds of good things you did not provide. Great blessings on the other side of that river. Wells you did not dig, vineyards and olive groves you did not plant. Then when you eat and are satisfied, be careful That you do not forget the Lord, who brought you out of Egypt, out of the land of slavery. So he's promising Great blessing, chapter 28. He says this. The Lord will open the heavens, the storehouse of his bounty, to send rain on your land in season, and to bl what a thing, bless all the work of your hands, everything you touch. You will lend to many nations, but you will borrow from none. I think it's a Chinese proverb that says, to the fool, old age Is winter time. To the wise, old age is harvest time. And it is true. I've talked to people who are old age, and uh and I'm hoping 30 years or so, you know, maybe I'll stick around and I'll be here. I'll be here for that But um it is harvest time. Great blessings ahead. But also Deuteronomy 7. Here's the flip part of it. When the Lord your God brings you into the land, you're uh you're entering to possess and drives out before you many nations. Now we've got all the Iights, the Hittites, the Gergeshites, Amorites. uh Stalamites, uh Canaanites, Perizzites, Hymat, seven nations larger and stronger than you. You may say to yourselves, these nations are stronger than we are. How can we drive them out? But do not be afraid of them. Remember well. You remember what the Lord your God did to Pharaoh and to all Egypt? You saw with your own eyes the great trials The signs, the wonders, the mighty hand, the outstretched arm with which the Lord your God brought you out, the Lord your God will do the same to all the peoples you now fear. Moreover, the Lord your God will send the hornet among them until even the survivors who hide from you have perished. God says there are blessings ahead, but if you noticed, there are battles ahead. He promises victory. But what is on the other side Of this, where you are standing now, of great blessings and great battles. A couple other verses about the battles, guys. Let's look at chapter 20 When you go up against your enemies, and you're going to see horses, you're going to see chariots, you're going to see an army greater than yours. Don't be afraid of them, because the Lord your God who brought you up out of Egypt will be with you. For the Lord your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory. I want you to add something that's not in your notes. There are great blessings coming. With them are great battles. And would you put great God in the process of claiming the blessings and fighting the battles, you are going to realize what a great God you have. So here's what he said to them and what I want to say to you. The best of your life is not behind you. Now, this is not dependent on your health. I didn't say it's going to be easy, but the best is yet to come. Not the easiest. But I believe that God still has a whole lot more blessing mixed in with a whole lot more battle. But there's two things. that keep the more that God wants to give you from happening. Two enemies. They're not Canaanites. No. No, that's the easy part. Here's the first one. Fear. Why does God keep saying, do not be afraid, do not be afraid, do not be afraid. The most repeated command in the Bible From Genesis to Revelation, do not be afraid. Do not be afraid. Deuteronomy 31, verse 8. He said the Lord himself, goes before you with you, will never leave you nor forsake you. Read the next words out loud with me. Do not Be afraid, do not be discouraged. See, the Lord your God has given you the land. Go up and take possession of it, as the Lord your God of your ancestors told you. Uh, Crior, you ready? Do not be afraid. Do not be discouraged. Here we go. Over and over again. God's making the point. I will tell you this. Over the years, if you're like me and many others, fear has kept you from doing the right thing at times. Fear has kept you from obeying God at times. Fear has kept you from taking risks. In fact, I can't read everybody's heart here, but I think we all have something we're afraid about. Maybe it's one of your children. Your your marriage. Your financial future. Your health. A lot of unknown out there. A season of your life that has more questions than answers. Do not be afraid. Do not be discouraged, he says. We're afraid of change. We're afraid of failure. We're afraid of rejection. We're afraid of disapproval. We're afraid because we feel inadequate. We fear losing someone or something. and cannot imagine life without it or him or her. I wrote down some of the things in your notes here that fear does. Fear paralyzes us. We just don't move. Fear clouds your judgment You know why? Because the next thing, fear inflates your obstacles Things look bigger than they really are because fear inflates them. At the same time, fear shrinks your faith. You know what the proof of that is? Forty years before the scene that we're looking at in Deuteronomy, there had been another generation on the edge of the promised land. They ended up wandering in the wilderness for 40 years instead of in the wonderful place. Why? Because they said those people there look really big and those walls are really high. And two of them two of them, Caleb and Joshua, who will now still go in, the others died They said, that's funny. You're talking about people things that are bigger than we are. We're talking about a God who's bigger than the things that are bigger than we are. But fear shrinks your faith. There God shrank right there at Kadash Barnia on the edge of the promised land. It leads you to make expedient choices. I looked up that word. Expedient means a greater concern for what is convenient than what is right. How many choices have we made in our life that were expedient and they ended up being expensive? Causes you to compromise. And fear can cost you God's will. And I I I can't prove this, but probably there's not one of us in this room who has not stopped short of saying yes to God at something we should have said yes to, because of fear. It's a big deal. And apparently God thought it's not going to be the Canaanites who are going to be the problem. It's not going to be the walls of Jericho. It's not going to be a flood of Jordan River. It's going to be spear. Because he just kept talking about it. That other generation, their parents' generation, there was so much God wanted to give them. All that stuff, those goodies we just read, God wanted to give that generation And they lost it all. Because of fear. Fear focuses on how big the risks and the obstacles are. It focuses on how big the risks are, and that's so that that's how you make your choice, is based on the size of the obstacles and the size of the risks. So faith says go. And fear says no And there have been times we've all been at that crossroads. Where faith was saying go. And fear said no. And fear one. So in these times of uncertainty and hostility and and a lot of stuff swirling and hard to have any grasp of how to plan anything with any certainty in this world. You understand why fear would be our enemy. Ten times in the book of Deuteronomy. Do not be afraid. Do not be afraid. Do not be afraid. Because they have a changing season coming up. Now, did you know this? We can choose. Not to be afraid. John 14, 27. The disciples have no idea what is going to happen to them in the next 24 hours. These are this is Jesus' last hours before his arrest. He says, peace I leave with you. That's going to be pretty hard to find from the time of Jesus' arrest Peace I leave with you. Not like the world gives you. And then he says, don't let. Your heart be troubled. Don't let it be afraid. So you give your heart permission. Is that it? To be troubled and afraid. Jesus says, shut that down. And they're going to have every reason. He knows what's coming in in an hour or two, maybe. The Calvin Coolidge was President of the United States. John, do you remember him? I don't know if you even remember him. You were probably very young, but uh you you probab you guys this is not first person history you're getting here. Some history Calvin Coolidge was president when my mom was born actually and um And he was a Vermonter and he was very terse. He didn't have much to say. Very so they called him Silent Cal. And so after he was elected, not long after he was elected, somebody handed him a note threatening to assassinate him. He didn't say anything He handed it to his Secret Service agent and just said, guess this belongs to you. That's all he said. He's like, wouldn't you be scared? You know what? You can choose to not be afraid, or Jesus wouldn't have told you not to, if whatever you're afraid of, you say not to Secret Service. But your Heavenly Father, the Lord your God, I think this belongs to you. So Fear makes the mistake of comparing me to my monster, whatever the monster is that I'm afraid of, financially, medically, parentally, whatever it is. instead of comparing my monster to my master. Don't repeat the mistake of your previous generation guys who. who compared their monster to their size. Instead, compare the monster you're afraid of to the size of your master. An acquaintance of mine told me the story of going on a cruise down the Inside Passage of Alaska, which goes from Sitka to Port Angeles. This is a 60-year-old wooden boat, but the skipper had been skipper for 30 years, so you had a really seasoned guy. Unfortunately, this was the last cruise that was late in the season when some wild storms come up. They thought they could beat it, they didn't You got this 30-year veteran who's taken the wheel, and he was overheard simply saying, as the as as now they're going down these deep swells like this, you know Frow up time. I mean this is bad. You're telling me time. And and uh the water is just sweeping over everything on the deck And the cat skippers at the wheel, and he just said, no problem. Just like that. Because you see, no matter how violent the storm was And no matter how perilous the situation, his whole life he had brought everybody through safely. He knew he would do it again. Your Heavenly Father has brought generations through safely. And he's at the wheel of you. Don't let the storm decide how you handle it. There's another enemy that was fear and then what was the other part? Do not be afraid. Do not be what? Discouraged. Discouraged. He mentioned discouragement. If fear focuses on the problem, the obstacle, the risk. then discouragement simply focuses on your feelings. Here's how I feel. I'm feeling And discouragement tells the whole story. It's like a courage sucker. Sucks it right out. You got no courage when you're discouraged. Strips away your courage. Now we get to the good part. There are four words that are absolutely core to what God is saying to a generation much like ours facing a world much like ours. And it's all you need to know. We all have an unknown, some unknown out there. Uncertain? Something that seems immovable? Something that seems incurable? Something that seems overwhelming. Four words that are the heart and soul of holy living in a hostile world It is so fundamental. They are repeated 272 times in one book of the Bible. Two hundred and seventy-two times these four words. So come back tomorrow morning and no whatever we'll do right now The Lord, your God, the Lord, your God, the Lord, your God. Two hundred and seventy-two times. Why not be afraid? The Lord your God. Why not be discouraged? The Lord your God. How do we go against Jericho? The Lord your God. I'm afraid of The Lord your God. It's all over. You saw it already. We saw it a bunch of times in the verses we already put up. This is like the wow God. I mean the Lord your God. William Booth, the founder of the Salvation Army said, we journey to the very throne of God. There is no higher seat of authority, power, and splendor in the whole of the universe When we come to worship, we come to a throne. And everything else arranges itself. around that throne. The Lord your God. Abraham Kuiper, the great theologian, said this. There is not one square inch in the whole domain of our human existence, over which Christ, who is sovereign over all, does not cry Mine. It's all, not one square inch, about which he cannot say. Mine So how do we choose not to be afraid? I wrote down this is not in your notes, so if you want to jot it down, I wrote down five things that make us afraid. It's too big I'm too weak. It's too dark. In other words, it's uncertain. I have no idea what's out there. It's too dark. It's too insecure. I don't know how my needs are going to be met. And I'm too clueless. Alright? That sum up most of the things that make us afraid. It's either too big, we're too weak, it's too dark, too insecure, too. I'm too clueless. Deuteronomy chapter 1, verse 29. Then I said to you Do not be terrified. Here we go again. Do not be afraid of them. The Lord, your God, who is going before you, will fight for you. As he did for you in Egypt before your very eyes. Stop there for a minute. What's the answer to it's too big? He will fight for you when it's bigger than you can handle. I don't care if it's bigger than you. What is this? Isn't about you it's in your battle anyway. No, no. So so much for my fear of the thing it's too big. He will fight for me Let's go to two week. There you saw how the Lord your God carried you as a father carries his son all the way you went until you reached this place. When we went to the U. S. Capitol many years ago, Brad was three years old. Have you ever been there? Have you stood at the bottom of those steps on the Capitol steps there? Hey, listen, that's a challenge to get up there. Can you imagine little Bradley looking up? And then again last year he did. No. And so Here is like, but he did. He did actually get to the top of those stairs. Because his father carried him Which means he could go where he could not go. He didn't have the strength to get up there. But he didn't need the strength to get up there. Because he had a father who was strong enough to carry him up there You're too weak to say, I don't know how I can handle I can't handle this. That's right, you can't. But you have a father. He said, the Lord your God will carry you. Case closed. Um too dark. I can't see what's ahead. Well, just keep going In spite of this, you did not trust in the Lord your God, even though he said he'd carry you, who went ahead of you on your journey, in fire by night and in a cloud by day, to search out places for you to camp. And to show you the way you should go. Let's back up for just a second here where it says, he went ahead of you on your journey. So, if you say, well, I I don't know how this is going to happen. I don't know what's out there. I'm scared because there's so much uncertainty. And he says, he will go ahead of you when you can't see what's ahead. He will get there ahead of you. In fact, he's already in your tomorrow. Getting your tomorrow's ready for you. The Bible describes Jesus as our shepherd and us as sheep. I gotta every time I mention sheep, I got Navajo friends in the room and they like, you know, sleep with sheep. I mean it's just they have they take care of sheep all the time. They are experts, so I say sleep stuff, sheep stuff and it's dumb But most of you don't know the difference, so you don't know if this is true or not. But for my interviewing sheep on the radio, what I learned was this. Sheep have no idea where they're going today. I don't even know if they care. All they need to know is the shepherd's movement and they'll follow him He'll get him to a good destination. He always does. So if he's going ahead of you, all you need to know is you got to keep your eyes on the shepherd and let him take care of where you're going. So oh about too insecure. What I mean how how what about the money and what about the thing and then what about having and people and it and what am I fine He will search out places for you to camp and show you the way you should go. Two things take care of the other two fears Too insecure? He will make sure you have what you need. He says that. You need places to camp, fine. And he did. For 40 years he got in manna every morning. You know what the word manna means in Hebrew? It's really funny. It means what is it? They're like, I'm going out and get me some what is it We're gonna have why what is it? Krispies for breakfast this morning. Um so he will make sure you have what you need and then he said I will show you the way you should go You're too clueless. He will show you the way when you don't know which way to go. What are we afraid of again? Write this down. It's not in your notes. Whatever I'm afraid of. Jesus is Lord of. Whatever I'm afraid of, put your fear in there Whatever I'm afraid of, Jesus is Lord of. So five bold choices we're gonna cover. Six. Wait. Six bold choices Here's the first one. As you go into a strange new land, generation, unknown, new things I will rest in his sovereignty. The Lord is my God. I will rest in that Not just believe it, I will rest in it. The Lord Every time you see that in Deuteronomy is Yahweh. Jehovah That's the God of personal relationship. That's how he introduced himself to Moses at the burning bush. This is the close God. So close. The God of personal relationship. His covenant name. And the Lord your God is Elohim. So in the beginning, Elohim created the heavens and the earth. This is the mighty God. This is the God of all gods. This is the invincible God, the Supreme One. The Lord Your God, so big, Elohim, so close, Yahweh So, do this with me. When we learn Bible verses on and on Eagles Wings team, we do things. We don't just say things. I'll keep it simple. Tonight, no promises tomorrow, after you've had some sleep. But tonight, let's do this. The Lord, my God, once more, and say it with me the Lord. My God, you might need to look in the mirror some very scary days and just say those four words The Lord my God. So that's who you're resting in. When we say so big Couple facts you might be interested in. Our Milky Way. Um if you were to cross the Milky Way, you can't, but if you were going to at the rate of 186,000 miles per second, speed of light, you'd be able to do that in a brief 100,000 years. That's just our Milky Way. Um when we look up at night, we look in the sky, we say, look at all those stars. On a really good night, away from the lights You might see 3,000 stars. The average galaxy has a hundred billion stars And according to the latest estimates from the Hubble telescope, there are 200 billion galaxies. Each with a hundred billion stars. Just real quick, one of you math majors, how many is that? You run out of paper to write the zeros, man. It's 10 billion trillion stars, all of which he calls by name I have a hard time remembering the names of everybody in a room. Let alone a hundred billion trillion stars. Um that's the Lord your God. When um the astronauts were headed for the moon, one of them put his thumb over the window. And Earth disappeared. They weren't even to the moon yet. Our big world here is a thumbprint. The Lord, your God. He's so big, but he's so close. Just in case you were wondering, somebody asked you how many red blood cells you have. You have 30 trillion. And Else they they need you know your blood has to circulate all through uh your body regularly and and take out the garbage from every one of those cells, right? Takes out the garbage and leaves some oxygen behind. You have 60 miles of blood vessels. Takes 23 seconds. Longer than shorter than it took me to explain it. He is so close. And he is so big. Psalm 147, verses 4 and 3, and you don't have them in your notes. You say that's backwards. Uh-huh. On purpose. Psalm 147. 4 says this. He determines the number of the stars and calls them each by name, so big. You know what the verse right before it says? He heals the brokenhearted and binds up their wounds. So this guy who calls by name a hundred billion trillion stars holds me when I cry. He is so big. He is so close Yahweh is your mighty God with whom you have this great personal relationship. I had a friend who Had a little boy who was three years old and it was not a lifetime condition, but he had a terrible respiratory infection for an extended period of time. He'd wake up in the middle of the night screaming and crying. And his dad just finally moved to right outside his room and set up to sleep outside the room so that he could be right in there when his little boy was, little David was crying. And uh and and and uh after a little while um David figured out where his dad was. And so when he started to have this difficulty breathing in the night, he just went out to where his dad was and curled up next to him. And slept the night. Because he figured out where the safe place was. Was resting next to daddy. So is yours. Whatever the obstacle, whatever the fear, whatever the doubts, whatever the questions Whatever the need, whatever the battle, he is the Lord your God. And I love what the the new contemporary song says. You turn graves into gardens. You turn bones into armies. You turn seas into highways. You're the only one who can. So here's what's going to happen as we journey through Deuteronomy these times together. It will show us against the backdrop of a dark culture and powerful forces. A God to love deeply, to obey completely And to trust more fully. For God's people then, and for God's people in our troubling times Got one thing to go on. Think about this. Why would they do this? Venture with no plan that they know of into a river at flood stage Why would they then go up with no battle plan for a walled city, no conceivable way to even get past the first obstacle? Let alone uproot barbarian tribes who are ready to fight for every inch of land Why would they do this? This is crazy. Million, two million people going in. New leader One reason. One, they only had one reason. A promise That's all they had to go on. It was the promised land They got nothing but the promise. And that's enough We proceed boldly into the unknown because we have a promise When they came out and I was in the waiting room and I'd heard them yell uh uh call code blue, but Karen's cardiac procedure was gonna be minor Relatively. But then I saw the doctor's face and I said, and they were beckoning for me She had seven and a half liters of fluid in her lungs. She was drowning. Congestive heart failure. I thank God he gave her back to me and we had longer together. But in that moment when I said, have I held my wife for the last time? Dream of it when she went in. Suddenly a promise popped up. I couldn't think rationally, but it was like God Turned on a computer screen in my head and it said these words, I know whom I have believed, and I am convinced that he is able To guard what? No, who? Karen, who I have committed to him until the day Christ returns And I have a promise from thee, Lord, my God. And when our grandson Taylor was born with that one in 10,000 heart condition, many of which the birth do not survive. He'll be 18 next month, our miracle kid But Doug and I had some pretty serious father-son conversations. And we just kept going back to. John 9, 3. This happened so that the works of God might be seen in him. We had our promise. So hear me now. Think about what sh what your uncertainty, what your fear is, what your next step is. Your strength will equal your day. Deuteronomy 33, 25. You have a promise. I will lead the blind in ways they have not known, along unfamiliar paths, I will guide them. I will turn the darkness into light before them. I will not forsake them. You have a promise. The Lord is close to the brokenhearted and saves those who are crushed in spirit. You have a promise. Do not fear, for I have redeemed you. I have summoned you by name when you Pass through the waters, I will be with you. When you pass through the rivers, they will not sweep over you. When you walk through the fire, you will not be burned. For I am the Lord your God. You have a promise. He tends his flock like a shepherd, and he carries the lambs, your children, close to his heart. You have a promise. He who has begun a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus. You have a promise Philippians 1. 6, Hebrews 8. 12. Your sins and your iniquities I will remember no more. Hebrews 8. 12. You have a promise. John 10, 4, he puts his sheep out and he goes ahead of them. You have a promise. Psalm 126, 6, he that goes out bearing with weeping, bearing precious seed, will doubtless come again with rejoicing, bringing his harvest with him. You have a promise? Ephesians 3. 20, he is able to do immeasurably more than all we could ask or imagine. According to the power that works in us, you have a promise. Jeremiah 32, 17. Ah, sovereign Lord, you created the heavens and the earth by your power and your outstretched arm. And nothing is too hard for you. You got your promise. That's all you need to cross the river, challenge Jericho, and enter into whatever battles are on the other side. For God never forgets a promise. He never forsakes a promise. He never vacates a promise. Wrap up in with just this. You may remember the movie The Perfect Storm. It was a hurricane coming up the east coast. It kind of met up with some other storm systems. and created one of the most violent storms the East Coast had ever seen. That particular movie is about some New England fishermen that never made it back. But down off the Jersey coast, it was still looking good when this particular gentleman went out with a six-year-old daughter sailing. And they were about six miles out, and all of a sudden the storm really came up suddenly. Hit them hard, swept their boat, their life jackets, into the ocean And there's father and daughter. He had taught his daughter back in the family swimming pool to float on her back. He said, well, honey, Daddy's gonna try to swim and get some help. You know how to do this. I know you can. You just keep floating on your back until daddy gets back. I'll be back Well, he got amazingly about three miles and couldn't go any further. Um Coast Guard caught him. Got him. He said, we gotta find my daughter. It's now been about five hours. They go back and actually they see her still floating on her back in the water in the swelling tide. And they pulled her in and they said, how in the world did you do this, Mary? And she said, well She said, because my daddy said he would be back. And my daddy always does what he says he'll do. Your daddy always does what he says he'll do You got your promise. Go possess the land Let's pray. Lord, it's almost incomprehensible that the creator of 200 billion galaxies Would say, I want to be the Lord your God. So big, so very big, and so very close Lord, I pray that during our time together, you would turn fear to courage. And turmoil to peace, and timidity to boldness And fear to faith. We pray you would walk us through this journey now. You know the life and the fears and the future and the struggles and victories and histories of everybody in this room Well you've gone ahead of us to this weekend, knowing what we need. Pray, Lord, that we might meet you in a deeply personal, deeply personal. Load lifting, life-changing, future securing, way And we pray as you've taught us to, in the name at which all knees will bow. We pray with boldness and confidence in Jesus' name tonight. The Lord our God. Amen.