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Chris
This is further a weekly show for the people of.

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matt
Harmony Bible Church.

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Chris
Where we seek to.

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paul
Revisit and expand on Sunday sermons with the goal of growing deeper in.

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Chris
Biblical truth that transforms our lives. Well, hello and welcome back to Further. I am Chris Carr and this week I am sitting in for Brenton Graham. He's on vacation. We'll be back next week hopefully. But for today I'm going to kind of be hosting and I've got with me Paul Fischbach, Nate Todd and Matt Mitchell. I thought I would just do quick introductions here.

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Chris
Some of you probably are not terribly familiar with these guys, but these are three of our pastors. Paul is our pastor of discipleship. Nate is our Burlington assistant campus pastor and Matt is our Fort Madison campus pastor. And each of them preached on Sunday, did a fantastic job. So, guys, it's great to have you with me here today.

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matt
Thanks. We're glad to be here. Yeah, glad to be here. Yeah.

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Chris
Yeah. And looking forward to this discussion and just thought I would just make mention of this. Each of you had kind of an interesting illustration on Sunday, So, Nate, you were all about A Wonderful Life, which I have never seen, believe it or not. So I've heard a lot about it, but I'm not really into old movies, so.

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Chris
But apparently you are on this.

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matt
It's worth watching it once again.

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Chris
All right. And then that you talked about. Let's make a deal.

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nate
Yes, sir.

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Chris
What are your favorite game shows growing up?

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nate
Actually, it's nice, but it just seemed like it worked well. You did a few times. I was always intrigued, but yeah, yeah, it was fun.

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Chris
And the most interesting kind of illustration was Paul from you about Heather dating and her not seeming to want anything to do with you initially. Yeah, she played hard to get. Yeah, I.

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matt
Had to fight for it, but I try to take matters in my own hands and that clearly didn't work.

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Chris
So a great illustration of waiting in the water. Yes. Yeah. So. Well, I'd like to begin on a serious note, but taking a moment to imagine what Esther is feeling as she approaches King Xerxes. So that's the beginning of Chapter five, and she hasn't had anything to eat or to drink for three days, probably hasn't slept much. And she knows that she might lose her life if he doesn't respond positively.

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Chris
Now, it's always dangerous for a man to suggest what a woman might be feeling, so we will tread carefully here. But what emotions do you guys think that Esther may have felt in this moment? And I'll I'll ask you first, because you kind of took some time, too, to address this.

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matt
Yeah, I think it's worth acknowledging, first off, that she ends chapter four with saying, if I perish, I perish. So evidently she has some sort of peace and comfort from the Lord. She did. She was trusting in him. So she was she was placing her faith and in his plan. But that probably was most likely in her head.

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matt
And so what was going on in her heart? She was to do an emotional check in at that moment. She would probably say that she was afraid. She was lost, angry, sad and lonely. And so just the the thought of, you know, I'm either going to die or my life's going to be spared and there's nothing in between.

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matt
And so no doubt she was trusting in the Lord, but just feeling those emotions and not only feeling them in her heart, but I think that Psalm 31, nine and ten kind of best describes what she was going through. It said, Be merciful to me, Lord, for I'm in distress. My eyes grow weak with sorrow, my soul and body with grief.

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matt
My life is consumed by anguish and my years by groaning. My strength fails because of my affliction and my bones grow weak. And so she is feeling these emotions in her heart, no doubt. But if for, you know, for those who have struggled with depression and severe anxiety, you don't just feel your emotions in your heart. You feel them throughout your whole entire body, the knots in your stomach, the aching in your head, in your bones.

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matt
Like this passage says that she was feeling her emotions and she was no doubt in my mind, feeling them throughout her whole entire body. Yeah.

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Chris
That's a great answer. And I think it's can be easy for us as we read these stories are really familiar with for kind of be a loss on us as to exactly what she is feeling in that moment. And yet I think it can be really helpful for us because, well, none of us or most of us probably haven't been in a situation that drastic.

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Chris
We all have had an experience where we are scared to death and thinking that the worst possible experience might be about to become a reality for us. And some people have even experienced terrible, horrific things that actually do have that. And so my point here is it's helpful to understand and like the Bible speaks to the real situations and issues that we face in life.

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Chris
And it's it's helpful if we can actually try to identify ourselves with the people are feeling. So. Yeah, thanks for that. Now, Nate and Matt, I turn to you now. I really like the title and theme of your message, which was accepted and favored, right? Yes. Yeah. And early on in your message, you said that if you have God's acceptance and favor, you have it all.

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Chris
Can you say more about why this is the case?

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nate
Yeah, absolutely. So when I said that in the sermon, I was it was in the context of Esther being just warmly greeted and accepted and favored by the King of Persia, her husband, and just trying to point out to people that was the case because she had favor with God and God was doing something behind the scenes that nobody could see.

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nate
But, you know, at the end of the day, if God's on your side, like nobody can be against you, you can like Paul says to the Romans believers and Romans eight of God's for us, we can be against us. And if he's given us Christ, how are we not also in him graciously give us all things. And just at the end of the day, we have ups and we have downs and everywhere in between.

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nate
But if we're united to Christ by faith, we have 110% acceptance and approval or favor with God. And that can get us through anything. And it should. I mean, that's what Christian Hope is.

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Chris
Yeah, Yeah, That's a great, wonderful, powerful truth. I wonder if we can just discuss for a moment how we can actually come to experience that reality in and to go back to the feelings how we can actually, you know, feel that in our heart, not just ascend to it in our head as Christians and certainly as as pastors, we we affirm the theological truth that we have God's acceptance that we have his favor through faith in Christ that's at the center of the gospel.

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Chris
We talked about that in Romans over and over again. What are some ways that we can actually experience that or pursue experiencing that.

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nate
All happen first? I think that's a great question. I'll because I was trying to relate with the congregation of Fort Madison saying I know it in my head that I'm saved by grace, but you're living that out in real time. It's not always that way. But so how do we you know, how do our feelings accompany what we know to be true?

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nate
I think, I mean, things that we can easily overlook. But attending a gospel centered church that preaches about the gospel every week, I think showing up to corporate worship, singing songs that are about like what God has really done for us and Christ and that reunited him. We're favored in the gospel. I think, you know, Christian community, all those things.

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nate
But yeah, I wouldn't want to overlook just Sunday. I think that's a big deal.

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matt
Yeah, go ahead. I agree. And I you know, you think about why is it that we might know something in our head but not feel that our experience, that in our hearts and, you know, as we've talked about before, you've talked about before, you know, exploring, Why do we feel that way? I know for myself there were plenty of times where I knew I was loved and forgiven and accepted by the Lord.

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matt
But when I messed up and did it over and over, I often felt like I had to withdraw from the Lord because I wasn't worthy to come into his presence. And it took some self-reflection for me to look back on that and say, you know, I'm probably drawing that from my experience with my father, my earthly father. And and when I withdrew from him, when I displeased him, and then I was kind of projecting that onto my relationship with God, too.

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matt
And so once I recognize that and realize that, then then I can start to diagnose, okay, that's why I'm acting that way. But I know that's not true of what the Bible tells me and what God wants me to do. He wants me to come to his throne room and and approach him. And he's eager to forgive when I'm confessing and repenting.

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matt
Yeah.

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Chris
It's good. You got anything to add there?

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matt
Just. Just the story of the prodigal son and how the Lord, you know, time and time again, like you were talking about, Paul, that we mess up and we withdraw, but he's just always there to accept us back. And so just reminding ourselves of stories, instances in the Bible where we see that, where we see a merciful, gracious God who's just willing to to take us back and he's waiting for us and all we have to do is turn back to him.

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matt
So. Yeah.

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Chris
I'll just add something here. And this is really a bigger topic that you guys have heard me actually address in the past. And when I talk about the guys, I'm talking to the guys here on the podcast with me, not the audience here, but I would say to two important things if we're going to experience God's acceptance in favor or actually community in vulnerability and as I say, this, this is easier, much, much easier said than experienced and done.

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Chris
But having a community and it's probably at least initially going to be a small community of people that you can be vulnerable with and being willing to be vulnerable with and share with them your weaknesses, your failures. I can even say the things that you're ashamed of and you're you're open about those things, courageously open about those things.

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Chris
And you have a safe group of people who are going to show you grace when you experience grace in your vulnerabilities, that that's when you actually experience, you know, acceptance and favor. And as we experience that through other people, then that enables us to experience it more with the Lord. So, Paul, you were talking about, you know, you're you're your dad or, you know, we go or our parents or whatever our first image of who God is comes from our from our relationship with our parents.

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Chris
And as all of our parents are frail and have weaknesses, that means our image of God is going to be distorted. And so the healing to that part of the healing to that, including all the things you guys have already mentioned, includes having people who are going to who who know who we truly are and there's nothing hidden from them.

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Chris
And then we we feel acceptance even in that that that's that's that's transforming transformative. So maybe that's another podcast in and of itself. But let's move on and talk about a topic that everybody loves to talk about, which is fasting. So Paul, you mentioned and this was this is really, really good that Americans fast do lose something, but in the Bible people fasted to gain something.

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Chris
And so why do you think that we struggle to see fasting the way that the Bible depicts it?

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matt
You know, it's thinking about that. And I think there's actually several reasons I think about how fasting is talked about in our culture, and there's health benefits obviously to fasting. And so our culture promotes those. And so oftentimes I think that's how we think through and filter what fasting is really about. So there's those health benefits. I think another thing is just it's a neglected spiritual practice in the church.

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matt
It's not something that's emphasized. And if you think about that as well, there's you know, there's some of the other spiritual practices, there's a rhythm to it. So even if you look in scripture when it comes to Bible reading, there's an inference is that like David meditated day and night on God's Word. And so there's a rhythm to that.

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matt
There's one thing about prayers as pray continually, and there's a number of other, you know, things that tell us how we should be doing that when it comes to fasting as well as often as you do it or, you know, when you fast. And so there's not maybe a rhythm to that. And sometimes we feel like we have to be in a desperate situation like Esther was in or something like that too fast.

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matt
But it's, it's something that we should do regularly. I when we had communion this week, I talked about that a little bit and just said, the Lord said that when he goes away, then they will fast in a longing for Christ, return. And so it should be a regular part of our rhythm, myself included. I'd love to be able to I'd love to make that a more regular rhythm of my spiritual practices.

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matt
I don't do it as often as I would like, but it's I think that's part of the challenge with it as well. One of the thing I'll just mention about that is, you know, I think sometimes we get too comfortable in our spiritual walk and so we're not as desperate for the Lord as we are just comfortable in what we have.

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matt
And if we were less comfortable in what we're at, we might be more hungry for the Lord and seek out him through fasting.

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Chris
Yeah, that's really good. So you probably have some thoughts around this I'm thinking of, don't you?

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nate
Yeah, well, I was. Paul, I don't know if you mentioned this in your in your sermon or not, but I was thinking about our earlier discussion about Esther. She's fast for three days. There's a lot of emotions. Scared. You know what you can expect going behind that door to the throne room. But it kind of makes me think, you know, it was three days faster when it was three days and, we don't know this for sure, but she could have been experiencing a lot of power and like, a lot of strength in the Lord on that third day.

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nate
And the reason I think that could be the case is because in Luke's account, when Jesus was in the wilderness, after the devil battles, the devil leaves, verse 14 of Luke forces and she is returned in the power of the Spirit to Galilee. And a report about him went out through all the surrounding country, you know, And so, like he he should be at his weakest physically, but in the spirit he has this like power.

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nate
And so that doesn't mean that Jesus to have a lot of emotions in the desert. He surely did. But then he comes out in the Lord's, he gained something, you know, like you said, that's great.

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matt
Yeah.

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Chris
It's really good. I just would add one thing here, and it comes from actually Psalm 27, which Paul, you're going to be preaching on here when we get into July, later in July. But in that passage, David says, you have said, seek my face in your face, Lord, while I seek. And so that's just been resonating with me as I, you know, have read over your message and thinking about it, about how fasting creates in us and really for us space for for God.

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Chris
And and one of the reasons why we, I think, don't experience his presence in his power in our lives as much is because our lives are so full of other things and often, often good things. One of the things the Lord's been convicted me here is, is like, I love sports. It's probably not, you know, surprise to anybody.

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Chris
And in general, sports are are good. I think they're a gift from God. I'm looking at the guy across from the table here. He's got a Packers shirt on which represents I get angry talk about feelings but in all seriousness he yeah the sports are good but they can good things often get in the way of the best things or thing which is is God and so I just been even convicted about like how do I need to maybe cut some of that out to create more space for for seeking the Lord's face, which he's he said to do that.

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Chris
He's you know, he's he's called us to eat. He says I and seek your face means relationship you this type want a relationship and knowing him not to preach your message for you but and you know just but sometimes we there's just no room in our lives for that because of oftentimes it's other good things. It's not even necessarily bad things that are getting in the way.

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Chris
So anyway, but yeah, a lot to talk about there as well. But Neal, I'm going to turn back to you here. You spent a lot of time on Sunday talking about how God had a plan. This is a great point. And I was also a little angry about this because I was planning on talking about this a little bit more this coming Sunday.

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Chris
And so I don't know. Sorry, this so but no, it really was a great point. And it got me wondering how you have seen this work out in your life. And what I'm talking about here is how God has had a plan for you and knowing a little bit of your stories, wondering if you might just briefly be able to to talk about how you've seen it.

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matt
In your life. Chris knows me well because he added that briefly in there, because I could probably talk for a long time, you know. But yeah, so my story grew up in church, you know, saved when I was five years old and then got to junior high age. And really, you know, I mentioned that prodigal son story earlier, but that was really the story of me and really started living for the world and was entangled in a lot of a lot of sin, a lot of destructive behaviors.

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matt
And through the Lord used my wife, Janessa, and a dear friend of mine, Kevin, and a weekend ministry event and he started making some changes in my life and really, really pulling me back to him. We talked about that vulnerability in that grace earlier and just how the Lord showed that to me through what he was doing in my life.

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matt
But he showed that grace to me over and over again, through my best friend and the love of my life, my wife, Janessa. And so it was just it was just awesome to see that. And he still continues to see that. I still continue to see that my wife is just she just reminded me last night how if my plans for my life, you know, back several years ago would have worked out things would be a lot differently.

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matt
But the Lord, he had a better plan. And so just a just a real quick how I got to harmony. It's pretty cool story. We had we had a meeting for homeschool families over in Illinois and we got stood up at this meeting and so we were frustrated about that and but that pointed us to Iowa. And so we started we started attending this homeschool community over here.

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matt
And one of the moms at that who's a friend of my wife's, she she invited her to the mom group at Harmony. And so from that, my wife said, you know, we need to start watching this Chris Carr guy online. And I was like, I don't need another guy to watch online, you know? But it turned out he was okay.

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matt
I kind of liked what he was saying. So. So then we decided to come in person and that first Sunday we came into person, Nathan Williams, He met us at the door and that was all completely ordained by God. And he met us right there at the front door, showed us around, really just showed us all sorts of love.

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matt
And and the first time my wife went to Mom group, who a lady named Amy's, who she's a good friend of hers. Now, she did the same thing. She met Janice at the door and that was all ordained by God. And just a just really a cool story. How we come, we meet, I get more involved with Clay, I get more involved with the church and then the rest is history, you know?

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Chris
Yeah. And this past Sunday, you weren't watching that Chris Carr guy. You were actually doing that yourself. I mean, think about that. Wow.

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matt
Yeah, yeah, yeah. The Lord has. He's definitely had a plan, and I just kind of got to sit back and just say, Okay, what do you got next? Yeah.

00;21;17;28 - 00;21;41;11
Chris
So and we're really thankful for that plan. And the tides are here at our church, so and a huge blessing. So. And we're just getting started, right? So. All right, so you all spoke in some detail about how human is an example to avoid. I think that's pretty obvious. But while well, it might seem obvious, as you pointed out, Matt, we all have some He-Man in us.

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Chris
So do you have any advice for us as to how we can put to death our He-Man like tendencies?

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nate
Yeah, that's good.

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Chris
And why don't you just tell us your He-Man like tendencies first?

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nate
Yeah, well, I don't know his lay all those out or. No, Maybe we should.

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Chris
Have Olivia on.

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nate
The line. Yeah, let's put it pause here. We're going to find Olivia. She's in the building somewhere, I think. No, I mean, as I was reading this passage, I just thought this would be so easy to point out how heyman's the bad guy. I mean, to avoid being like him. But, I mean, we are like Heyman so often, and it's like he literally gloated about every single thing he has, which was a lot of stuff.

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nate
Kind of impressive list, right? But then he's like, There's just that one more thing, like Mordecai has got to be blotted out of the picture in order for me to be content and that's just that's, that's not a virtue of a Christian like somebody who's really walking by. The spirit is not there's just that one more thing. And then I'll be fulfilled.

00;22;38;17 - 00;22;57;01
nate
You know, it's like, No, I'm content because I have Christ. That's what Paul talks about in Philippians three, you know, Philippians four, excuse me the most the verse that's pulled out of context the most, you know, I can do all things you, Christ, you strengthens me. That's a verse about being content in all life circumstances. So, but yeah, I am just like Heyman.

00;22;57;01 - 00;23;13;26
nate
I mean, I do get to the place where I am forgetting about God and his goodness and I want that one more thing. So, it was, it was convicting for me to read the passage and relate, but as far as uprooting stuff and putting that the human attitude to death, I'd love to know what the other guys think too.

00;23;13;26 - 00;23;54;09
nate
And, but I mean, I'm thinking of Psalm 139 that says, Search me. God, no. My heart just like really being honest with the Lord and with ourselves because that's God's going to reveal things to us and that's a good thing. And then I would say part two of that, talking about Christian community and people who we feel safe around that will show grace to us, remind us of the gospel, Ask others who we trust to speak truth in our life, not like Heyman's life in his company that's just told them to, you know, get even, you know, not yet even murder a guy.

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nate
That advice Ask people who will tell you the truth and give you good pushback. I think that that helps uproot these kinds of attitudes too.

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Chris
Yeah, that's good. This kind of it coincides with something that Paul you really talked about and it comes about in how we see a lot of reversals in the story of Esther. We're just beginning to see him. Will We'll see a huge one here coming the sun in chapter six. And one of those reversals, Paul, that you mentioned, and I love how you phrase this, is that the idle self leads to death, but the death, the self leads to life.

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Chris
And this is what one author Paul Miller, calls the J Curve because it reflects the gospel of Jesus. He died and then was resurrected. Analysis followers We are to follow the curve of his life were today to ourselves and in dying, you know, that's how we experience life. You know he tries to keep his life will lose it.

00;24;57;19 - 00;25;08;00
Chris
He loses his life for for the Lord will keep it. So how do we a little bit more maybe here from you, Paul and Nate, how do we die to ourselves?

00;25;08;02 - 00;25;26;25
matt
Well, when you use that phrase dying to self, I immediately think of Colossians chapter three, where Paul is writing there, and I'll just read the early verses. There is, as you've been raised, this crazy things that are above our crisis seated on, on the right hand of God set your minds on things above, not the things on earth.

00;25;26;27 - 00;25;39;20
matt
And then verse five talks about putting to death what is earthly in you. And then a little bit farther down. sorry, I don't have my readers with me, so I'm trying.

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Chris
To reach that. Let you bear in mind.

00;25;42;23 - 00;26;04;10
matt
You know, verse nine says, Do not lie to one another seeking that you have put out, put off the old self with its practices and put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge in the image of its creator. And so, you know, verse 12 goes on and then to say, put on as God's chosen holy one's holy and beloved, compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, meekness, patience, that fruit of the spirit.

00;26;04;12 - 00;26;29;07
matt
And he goes goes on there. So I think great practice of somebody wanting to think like, how do I put off my old self and put on the new self is study Colossians chapter three and seek how the Lord would convict you on areas where you need to put off yourself. Confess those things, repent of those things, and then seek the feeling of the Holy Spirit to lead and guide you to to live out the fruit of the Spirit within your life.

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Chris
Yeah, great. Nate, you got anything to add there?

00;26;32;01 - 00;26;56;28
matt
I just wanted to reiterate that the importance of community again. And so when we're talking, thinking about dying to ourselves, how having those people like you mentioned Matt earlier, those people who are going to be able to speak truth to you, who you trust, who you're vulnerable with, but you know, out of love and out of grace, they're going to be able to tell you the hard truth and help point you back to Christ.

00;26;56;28 - 00;27;03;10
matt
So just helping you identify those areas of your life where you need to you need to die of yourself.

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Chris
Yeah, but can I give you the final word on this one? The circle. Back to you.

00;27;08;27 - 00;27;40;16
nate
Yeah. I mean, I think listening to the Pollinate talk, I'm just reminded to of whoever's listening, who's struggling with dying to themselves. that's not. That's not where it ends. We, we have the Christian message was died yourself, period. No one would be a Christian. No one would want to do this right. It's all about you. You mentioned the Jay Curve, and we we die so he can raise us up and that life and that resurrection life, help.

00;27;40;22 - 00;27;52;05
nate
Paul mentioned that in his sermon. It's life comes on the other side of death. So, we're not just asking you to die. The Bible is not just asking you today Jesus and just asking you to die, but to die so he can raise you up. Yes.

00;27;52;11 - 00;27;53;03
matt
Yeah, man.

00;27;53;05 - 00;28;15;02
Chris
That's that's. That's great. I'll finish this question with John 1224 and, 25 and 26. So Jesus says to his disciples, The hour has come for the son of man to be glorified. Truly, truly. I say to you, unless a grain of wheat falls into the earth and dies, it remains alone. But if it dies, it bears much fruit.

00;28;15;04 - 00;28;35;26
Chris
So if we want to, you know, we want to bear a lot of fruit, we have to be willing to die. We will be unfruitful unless we're willing to to die to ourself. Now, Jesus talking about himself here. But but then he goes on in verse 25 and 26, whoever loves his life loses it. Who hates his life in this world will keep it for eternal life.

00;28;35;26 - 00;28;55;28
Chris
If anyone serves me, he must follow me. And where I am there will I servant be also So again, it's that Jacob Jesus died and bore much fruit and he rose again and will much fruit. And so now as we we follow him and guide ourselves, that's where we will bear much fruit. So it's hard. It's difficult, but it's it's that's the fruitful life.

00;28;55;28 - 00;29;23;24
Chris
So anyway, we will close with this question, and I like to have some some good dialog here because I think it has a lot of practical application. And this I take this from from Paul, your message you one of your application points had to do with a waiting on the Lord or as the kind of the a lot of translators put it waiting for the Lord and what does it mean to wait for the Lord.

00;29;23;24 - 00;29;38;22
Chris
And then I'll let you answer that, Paul and then maybe just can all just kind of chime in here. How do we actually do this? Okay, What does Paul answer? What does it mean? And then he can get us started on how to do that.

00;29;38;25 - 00;30;17;21
matt
Well, what does it mean? Wait for the Lord? What do the things I mentioned in my message was, you know, we like to run out ahead and do something on our own. Feels like doing something is better than doing nothing. And so when I say we the waiting for the Lord, I don't mean necessarily doing nothing. I think actually waiting is an action and a purposeful action that you're taking, that you are choosing to not take matters in your own hand and you're choosing to wait on God or wait for the Lord to show you, to give you the direction, to make clear the next step of the path.

00;30;17;24 - 00;30;31;15
matt
And one of the things I would say as well, I you know, I encourage people I actually talked with a couple of people after the message as well about this, but you may not know when you're waiting on the Lord and he reveals to you what's to come or where direction you should head and you're not going to know.

00;30;31;22 - 00;30;51;04
matt
You might know the next step, but you're not going to know the end. And so it's it's having the courage and faith to take that next step as he reveals it. And then you just look throughout scripture, you just see over and over examples of people waiting on the Lord. Obviously Esther here with Xerxes and not knowing what to do to go before him, to remake the request.

00;30;51;04 - 00;31;17;04
matt
But you think about Moses with the Egyptian army at the Red Sea, you know, And he he said to the Israelite people like, we're going to wait on God, God's going to fight for us, and we're not going to do anything until he takes that step. David, David, with Saul, you know, Saul's coming after him. David chooses not to take matters into his own hands and kill Saul, but he's going to wait on God to resolve that.

00;31;17;07 - 00;31;32;07
matt
And so there's just examples over and over in Scripture where you see this, where it's choosing on purpose to not take matters in your own hand, and then you seek the Lord. Watch for Him at work and then join him in it when he doesn't reveal what that is.

00;31;32;10 - 00;31;50;25
Chris
Yeah. I love you mentioned that Exodus passage and at the at the Red Sea level, what Moses says we will fear, not stand firm and see the salvation of the Lord, which he will work for you today. For the Egyptians whom you see today, you will never see again. Then he says this. The Lord will fight for you and you have only to be silent.

00;31;51;01 - 00;32;03;03
Chris
Yes. Which seems like, okay, they don't have to do anything. But being silent is an action. It takes a lot of effort to do that and just it's a two way address in the Lord. So, Nate, what do you what do you have that here?

00;32;03;05 - 00;32;23;09
matt
I just in that waiting. What does that look like? What's the you know, we can still be doing things and I just go back to abiding abiding in Christ in that. And so I heard a guy on the radio not too long ago and he was talking about abiding. Abiding is not just checking things off your boxes and doing things, you know, like doing Bible studies and things like that.

00;32;23;11 - 00;32;49;21
matt
Abiding in the Lord is it can be likened to a baby with a newborn, a newborn baby with its mother fully reliant, fully trusting, just fully dependent on the Lord. And so in the waiting, in the waiting on the Lord and seeing what he is going to do, you're fully relying on him. It's seeking him out, talking to others, allowing others to bear your burdens and and just being fully reliant and fully dependent on him.

00;32;49;23 - 00;32;51;07
matt
So. Right.

00;32;51;09 - 00;32;57;02
Chris
All right, Matt, I'm going to give you the final word here or I as I say that probably not.

00;32;57;02 - 00;33;00;27
matt
But but I think the final word. You need to.

00;33;00;27 - 00;33;02;27
Chris
Find a better word.

00;33;02;29 - 00;33;23;26
nate
Yeah. I'm just thinking. I love it, Paul said. I can't say it better. It just makes me think of the disciples with Jesus without the Gospels and Jesus over and over again has to rebuke them for having small faith. Little faith, no faith. But it really is just that trust. Like you're not waiting on God, you're not trusting in God.

00;33;23;26 - 00;33;40;22
nate
You're trying to take things into your own hands. You're scrambling, frantic and it's not like a rebuke. I think it just would have been like an moment every time they heard you say that. Like, what are we doing? Like, he always provides, he always shows up. We don't need to take things in our own hands. We never have had to do that.

00;33;40;22 - 00;33;50;26
nate
It never works out well. And then Jesus just he just continually points that out and he does that for the disciples. Ding, ding, ding. Because we're just like that too. So yeah.

00;33;50;29 - 00;34;21;15
Chris
That's a really good word. So, guys, I really appreciate you being here today. This has been a fun conversation. And I also want to recognize our producer here today. So that's a Nathan Tankersley. So he's sitting in for for Britain this week and we call him Tank and really thankful for his ministry. He's a behind the scenes kind of guy, but runs a lot of our technology here, which we are seriously dependent upon.

00;34;21;15 - 00;34;49;05
Chris
So we're thankful for for him. And I hope you guys are, too. So we're on the S6 this Sunday looking forward to it. It's another one of those turning points in the story and we're going to see God's providence very, very clearly in how he is as needed out. He has a plan and just be a reminder. That's what he's doing, not only in Esther, but that's what he's doing in each and every one of our lives.

00;34;49;05 - 00;34;59;17
Chris
And even waiting to see if we can trust that he is. So everybody, have a great week and hopefully we'll see you on Sunday. Will you back on further next week?