#19 Become More Than a Conqueror in Christ

(419) Become More Than a Conquerer in Christ - YouTube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRxWzuGf3Ek

Transcript: (00:03) [Music] welcome to this week's crowd church service we are a digital Church on a quest to discover how Jesus helps us live a more meaningful life we are a community a space to explore the Christian faith and a place where you can contribute and grow I want to invite you to connect with us here at crowd Church and there are a few ways that you can do just that firstly you can engage with Crow from any device during our live stream and if you're up for it why not invite a few friends over and experience the service together you see church is all about connecting with God and connecting with (00:51) others and one of the easiest ways for you to do that is to also Join one of our midweek groups where we meet online together to catch up and discover more about the amazingness of Christ you can also subscribe to our podcast called what's the story where we Deep dive into stories of faith and courage from everyday people more information about all of these things that I've mentioned can be found on our website at www. (01:31) c or you can reach us uh on social media at crowd Church if you're new to crowd or new to the Christian faith and would like to know what your next steps to take are well why not head over to our website crowd. church sln next for more [Music] details and now the moment you've been waiting for is here our online church service starts right now well hello there and welcome welcome to crowd Church really good to to be here with you and I'm today I'm joined by the lovely will hello hello nice to see you all since the Instagram we do this nice little reveal so it's like yeah who's it going to be on that camera (02:16) it's well it's good to be with you well yeah and you Dan nice to see you how was your weekend so we've had um well we've had a a bit of a a link weekend because my niece has been away with your daughter daughter indeed indeed so there's been um lots of drama and um and prayer requests coming because they've been away haven't they I don't know any of you saw the uh the game yesterday who was it I can't remember the Germany Denmark game um that that was uh stopped Midway because of the lightning storm and the torrential rain in the stadium so uh so that's pretty much uh landed (02:56) flights around Central Europe um which uh Dan and my daughter were trying to get back from a school exchange from so um yeah no flights back into Manchester from the Netherlands um and so uh yeah some hurried getting together of trains and faeries and trying to get them back about 24 hours later and uh a very very long day of travel yesterday but they made it they made it they made yeah yeah forgive any YNS on my part yeah so we had um lots of whatsapps and then prayer requests well they're here can you can you pray that they they get some where (03:30) to stay can you pray they they get back we got a ferry it all changed it yeah yeah they had cabins in the ferry but they ended up I think not sleeping and just running around the ferry it was great great adventure for the kids as things are like this not so much for the parents and definitely not so much for the teachers involved but um well done if you catch this thank you very much so we have coming up we've got Matt doing part three of our identity series um more than a conqueror which I'm really looking forward to um and I just thought I'd just do a perhaps a little (04:06) recap of the last the last talk and and last so in a series of about identity really brilliant and Pete fingon last week did a great talk on identity and where you base your identity so nowadays we based it we can base it on uh what we do as a job who we who we think we are what what's going on with the world and politics and stuff at the moment but he talks about basing it in Christ and something someone who who is steadfast his fixed to is not changing anyway I don't want to spoil it for you if you haven't heard it I'd really say go back (04:44) and um have a have a listen I had a listen um yesterday it was brilliant talk yeah no definitely fantastic um well well worth a listen yeah um yeah I mean so yeah politics he me he mentions politics how are the elections for you d there's a couple of elections coming up a few things changing aren there in the in the world in in the Western World so indeed indeed interesting and it's great that our hope doesn't have to be in politics I think that's a good good way of putting it uh yeah that that's that's very diplomatically put um but yeah it's (05:20) it's interesting identity is such a big issue isn't it um and and how somebody looks particularly across the Atlantic at the moment um less about that substance and uh yeah identity is yeah it's a really important thing to to get your head around and a really good thing to to think about uh from a a God's God's point of view and from a Christian point of view and where our identity is uh yeah good to see people tuning in online so hi Andy and Miriam um and Matthew over in the states hello Matt looking forward to your talk yeah so I think so (05:57) shall we start the talk I think that' be good let's do it so if you got any questions as always please just put them in the comments and then when we get back after the talk we'll Endeavor to answer them um indeed at least we'll have a go won't we yeah yeah yeah see you soon so here we go if I press the right button in fact doesn't seem to be a button here we go let me tell you about a lady called Florence Chadwick now she stood on the beach at Catalina Island looking at the Californian Coastline the question was in her mind could she swim that stretch (06:35) of water could she make it to the other side it was 20 miles of Open Water Swimming now 25 years before this a chap called George Young had wondered the same thing and he made it across that particular stretch of water in 15 hours and 44 minutes which was the brand new record for that particular Open Water Swim and all power to them I could definitely not do that but could she do it could Chadwick do it that was the question she believed she could and so she started to swim now her mum was in a rowing boat beside her encouraging her (07:13) with every stroke as only mums can and all was right with the world she was on track she was on target but at some point during that swim a dense fog settled in and she couldn't see the shoreline in front of her anymore all she could see was a dense fog and this started to have a real impact on her morale and her sense of progress it felt like she was just swimming and not really seeing any kind of movement forward it didn't matter how hard she tried it seemed like she was getting nowhere nothing cleared up for Chadwick (07:52) and despite her mom's best encouragement to keep going she grew tired and she grew exhausted and she was weary so after six 16 hours in the water she asked to be pulled out into the boat now I don't know if you've ever felt like that that you just sort of keep going but nothing seems to be making a difference your morale is low you are exhausted you may even have amazing people next to you encouraging you keep going but in your head there is turmoil and you just want out well when Chadwick was pulled out of the water little did (08:28) she know that she was less than one mile away from the shore less than one mile from achieving her goal she was so close she just didn't know it so two months later she has another go oh yes only this time she was going to think differently she kept her mind or kept in her mind on the mental image of the shoreline she sort of focused in on that image so when the fog came that's all she could see was this mental image and this time not only did she complete the swim but she also beat George Young's record uh by 2 hours she totally smashed it and she did this in the (09:15) 1950s at a time when Middle America looked very different for women than it does now she thought differently and as a result she conquered oh yes she conquered what was in front of her so just like Florence Chadwick we Face our own fog in life our challenges our obstacles that sort of obscure our vision and sap our morale and the Bible is not surprised by this not in any way and what's remarkable is not that we are promised an easy way out of the challenges of life but in them we have a really really unique position Romans 8:37 Paul wri to the (09:58) Roman Church said this in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us you me we are more than conquerors that's who we are in Christ now I'm not sure if that's how you see yourself but that's who you are that's who I am that's who Chadwick was because the second time she not only made it she smashed that 20-year-old record in the process so what does it mean what does it mean to be more than a conqueror so let's start by clearing up a common misconception being more than a conqueror doesn't mean that we will (10:39) never face troubles in life actually it's quite the opposite by definition to conquer something you must have something to conquer but being more than a conqueror then is not about this sort of problem free existence this Utopia of of joy and happiness that we all seem to be chasing um I think if you have no problems in life you should do what Peter Daniels recommended and ask God why he no longer trusts you I mean seriously ask him and you can't really understand Romans 8:37 about being more than a conqueror without first reading the preceding verses where Paul gives context writing (11:25) about the challenges that we might face in life so in the two verses previous he says who will separate us from the love of Christ shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword as it is written for your sake we Face death all day long we are considered as sheep to be slaughtered well he's not sugar cod in that reality is he Jeepers I mean he's acknowledging that life can be incredibly tough trouble hardship persecution famine danger even death these are the fogs that we have to swim through he didn't (12:06) ask why you are inable or facing hardship he didn't rebuke their lack of faith for the famine or or tell you that you had unconfessed sin and that's why you're being persecuted on the contrary it's almost like he's wearing these things as a badge of honor who shall separate us from the love of Christ shall trouble or hardship or persecution or famine or nakedness or danger or sword as it is written for your sake we Face death all day long we are considered a sheep to be slaughtered no in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved (12:49) us that's good stuff this you can preach yourself happy just on these verses but what does it mean right now let's dig into this because at the time Paul wrote this it was a time where armies would conquer cities and towns the Romans especially were known for their overwhelming force and would conquer new territories on a whim it was an idea that was familiar with Paul's readers and quite often it was actually them that was subject to the might of Rome Rome conquered everyone knew what that meant but let's look at what Paul said notice he doesn't say that we conquer too he doesn't compare us to Rome he (13:29) takes it a lot further he says no we are more than conquerors which means we overwhelmingly conquer this isn't a mere Victory it's decisive it's complete it's an utter Triumph it's like winning a race not by inches but by miles it's not only swimming through the fog and getting to the Shoreline it's smashing that record in the process and Paul uses this idea to imply that Believers don't describe great by we achieve an undeniable Victory a victory that is not found in Rome but found in Christ why because he said (14:11) right at the start nothing we face can separat us from the love of Christ hence we are more than conquerors part of our identity who you are right now is more than a conqueror I want you to let that sink in the very things that threaten to break you can become the environment in which God builds us up deepens our faith and our character and brings about an overwhelming undeniable Victory this was a revelation of the famous Joseph and his technical a Dreamcoat uh who was sold into slavery by his own Brothers (14:50) after years of pain and hardship of high flows he meets them again and he tells his brothers that that what they meant for evil God turned it for good so God can take the trouble the persecution the hardship the pain the nakedness the lack the Brokenness the danger the death and he makes you more than a conqueror in it he turns things what your enemy meant for evil he turns it through Christ it's good stuff it's not about mustering up some kind of emotion In My Own Strength but relying on his strength (15:31) his Divine strength this strength that enables us to face any challenge with the confidence knowing that we do so not in our own power but in his it is his strength that turns weakness into a platform for his power being more than a conqueror is Conquering but with God's style oh yes it's winning the way that Jesus would win which means you have to be prepared for all kinds of outcomes take the story of Mick and Lin Connelly the brother of Dave Connelly who you will have seen on crowd many times uh they had the worst possible (16:12) thing that you could imagine happened to them their son Dave's nephew was murdered and it was a case of mistaken identity so it wasn't even it didn't make sense on any kind of level so how can you be more than a conqueror there well Mick and Lynn they came to a place of forgiveness over it it didn't change what happened to their son but in the midst of tragedy they did something that only Jesus could do they forgave that might not look like conquering but that's doing what Jesus would do that's being more than a (16:49) conqueror now if you haven't done so already I would encourage you to listen to one of the recent episodes on the what's the story podcast uh with Esther stamp she talks about how her husband was arrested for sexual assault it is a harrowing story in many ways he had to leave the family home as he wasn't allowed to be around his kids on supervised he was charged and eventually ended up in court finally after 2 years of turmoil a jury very quickly found him innocent of all charges but you can't imagine the shame and the upheaval that (17:27) family had to deal with during that time yet Paul tells us that in the midst of these events we are more than conquerors how does that even work well when all you have left is the belief that God has got you you can still find Joy even when it doesn't make sense even in the darkness deep about it abiding Joy that's what they found they found forgiveness and the strength to not only get through it but now to support others going through through a similar thing more than a conqueror wherever you are whatever you are facing whatever you are feeling right now how close to God you are or how distant from (18:10) him you feel rest assured that God always has the final say he has got you and when he sent Christ to the Cross he made you more than a conqueror and we see this all over the Bible imagine being chased by a king and his entire bloodthirsty army they want you dead and they're not going to you are this is what happened to David of David and Goliath Fame Saul who was king at the time and his army chased David Into the Wilderness and set up Camp David being a special kind of adrenaline junkie decides to up the stakes a little bit by deciding that it's time for him to actually stop (18:56) running so whilst everyone's asleep he sneaks into Saul's camp and the scriptures tell us that David and Abisha went right into Saul's camp and found him asleep with his spear stuck in the ground beside his head and the soldiers were lying asleep around him all of David's enemies are right there they're asleep right in front of him he could kill the King right then and there end this Pursuit and take his place as a king of Israel he could conquer it would have been an easy thing to do and it's actually what all the people wanted anyway so why not but (19:38) David knows that this is the wrong way to go about things he could conquer but there's the god style thing to be more than a conqueror so David what he did like I say a special kind of adrenaline junky takes the spear and jug of water that is near Saul's head and then he and Abisha got away without anyone seeing them or even waking up because the Lord had put Saul's men into a deep sleep this tickles me you see now God is involved the Supernatural is starting to happen and when God gets involved the strategy he gives you might not make a (20:20) whole bunch of sense you can see a way to end the pain right there he just takes the spear through uh Saul's vitals basically I don't want to go too graphic but you know what I mean something could have happened in an instant to end it it's lying there right on the floor but God's ways on our ways they're much better and we have a choice to listen to the Holy Spirit or take a shortcut to a victory that would have been shortlived David took the spear and the jug of water now the reason I chuckle whenever I read this story reason I find it so funny is because (20:54) that would not have been an easy thing to either carry or or keep quiet ever tried carrying a jug of water it feels like it is a harder route right but God is in it the Supernatural is happening and David eventually you know the next morning from a safe distance I might hasten to add uh let Saul know that he came into his camp and could have taken his life but didn't so when Saul hears this scripture tells us that Saul confessed I have sinned Oh Come Back my dear son David I won't hurt you anymore you have honored me this day treating my life as most precious and I've acted the fool the (21:38) moral duns a real clown love how the message puts that particular version of that verse David was more than a conqueror that day he won that day in the way that Jesus would win and the outcome was oh so much better so what does it mean to be more than a conqueror it means understanding that our victory in Christ is complete and overwhelming it's knowing that we cannot be separated from the love of Christ it's about listening and obeying the Holy Spirit despite the pain it's seeing our trials as opportunities for transformation and it's realizing that in him we have the (22:22) power to turn every test into a testimony and it's why Paul wrote this to the church in Corinthians he said but thanks be to God who gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ and later in another letter to the Corinthian Church he said thanks be to God who always leads us in Triumph in Christ and through us diffuses the fragrance of his knowledge in every place and it wasn't just Paul that that wrote this kind of stuff the Apostle John one of Jesus's disciples said this for whatever is born of God overcomes the world and this is the victory that (23:02) has overcome the world our faith who is He Who overcomes the world but he that believes that Jesus is the son of God we are more than conquerors we are Overcomers and we are victorious in Christ so how do we like Florence Chadwick hold on to the belief that the shoreline is out there even when we can't see it how do we live as more and conquerors in a thick dense fog of life's challenges in other words how do I apply this to my life Matt how does it actually how does it affect me on a Monday morning well for (23:40) me the first step is to stop interpreting spiritual truths by my lived experience so when I choose to let my feelings and my experience dictate my theology I create a very shaky platform if what Paul and John wrote are true than they are true regardless of what I face and the thing I like about Chadwick's story was that she knew the shoreline was there even though she couldn't see it Esther whose husband was arrested experienced joy in darkness David saw a different way to end the fight with Saul and I think we can ask God to change our perspective to change (24:26) what we see what we fix our eyes on Paul wrote this to the church in Corinthians uh to the church in Corinth known as the Corinthian Church this is why we never give up for our present troubles are small and won't last very long yet they produce for us a glory that vastly outweighs them and will last forever so we don't look at the troubles we can see now rather we fix our Gaze on things that cannot be seen for the things we see now will will soon be gone but the things we cannot see they'll last forever so we change how we think about our troubles we don't blame God for them (25:09) nor do we thank God for them but rather we thank God in them we find a way in the midst of it to fix our eyes on what is unseen we shift our perspective it might not change what we are going through or even how we feel about what we're going through but transformation starts with a renewed mind something that we will look at much more very very soon now when we meditate on the truth of God when we start to see who we are Through The Eyes Of God everything changes when you look at what you are going through the Through The Eyes of someone (25:47) who is more than a conqueror what was impossible becomes possible because of him Paul put it this way when writing to a different Church the Philippian church he said whatever ever things are true whatever things are noble whatever things are just whatever things are pure whatever things are lovely whatever things are of good report if there is any virtue and if there is anything praiseworthy meditate on these things fix your mind on them that's what meditate means fix your minds on them and it will renew your thinking one of the key things that happens when you (26:25) renew your mind is that you give your soul and your spirit an opportunity to hear from God so whatever he tells you to do do that it might not solve the problem but it will be just for you so here's my challenge if you're a regular crowd you will know I like my challenges here's my challenge I want you to put on a Post-It note um the verse Romans 8:37 I want you to put it on your bathroom mirror uh and just write out no in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us and every time you see it think (26:59) about what it means speak it out aloud be thankful for it let it sink in down deep into your very soul and allow God to work in your heart and in this sort of transformative space that you are in let him do his thing whenever you think about the fog whatever it is just say no in all of these things I am more than a conqueror through him who loved me now remember this journey isn't about a sudden overnight change but it can change starting today as you fix your eyes on the Unseen the shoreline in the fog what is that for you what is the (27:39) shoreline that God is showing you what is he helping you see and we're here to do this journey with you so if you have any prayer requests we would love to know do reach out to us through the website www.c crow. church now a couple of weeks ago I asked a simple question who are you as we started to look at this topic of identity and becoming whole as we become whole part of our Hess is becoming more than the Conqueror let me tell you uh but I asked who are you well let me tell you who you are my brother and sister you are a child of God an heir created (28:20) in Christ Jesus for good works and you are more than a conqueror through him who loves you fantastic yeah thanks mat thanks for that um brilliant brilliant talk loads loads of things to get ahead round and mention so I'm going to say will what's the first thing what's the first thing that jumps into your mind do you know when when Matt started talking about being more than conquerors that there was something that slightly wenter oh because the whole idea of conqueror I mean the linked word Conquest it's (29:04) something that I think is used really badly uh by Christians by the church over decades Millennia not Millennia centuries maybe um this whole idea of conquest and conquerors and quite quite kind of militant and and and we overcome and everything else and as Matt began to talk about it it's like no no no no no no God's way is a different way and I'm really glad he said that because that that's absolutely where I'm coming from um I think this verse actually has been misused by so many to justify so much but I love the way he unpacked it and said uh actually there's a there's a (29:41) whole load about uh Jesus's way and and how Jesus wins that is entirely different from our human understanding and our cultural understanding of what being a conqueror really means of what winning really means yeah um and so yeah fantastic examples great great stories in there yeah I I um I'm sorry did I have the wrong camera on there apologies that's right um yeah I love that so Paul talk says we're more than a conqueror um he says fix your eyes on him he um he says we're a child of God we're hes yet Paul died most of the disciples (30:26) died very UNC conquering looking way didn't they yeah um because it's it's it's that um not winning in it's not it's keeping your eyes on God and what he's asked you to do and that challenge yeah um and that life that is just committed yeah it's like it's like they were operating on a whole different rule book a whole different set of stuff like kind of secret SCE that like this doesn't make sense and actually it doesn't make sense a lot of that kind of the way Jesus wins or or or doing it God style as Matt said uh doesn't make a lot (31:12) of sense in the world um often um forgiveness is a fantastic example and that kind of Grace of those who've been through some real trauma of no fault of their own they' got every right to be bitter resentful to fight um and you get this kind of you know it's hard for I absolutely know but you get this grace and this peace and that deep joy that that that Matt talked about um and and an ability to to release someone from that debt that you feel owed uh in a very real way like the like like the death of a child yeah and and and (31:52) there's lots of stories like that and some some of them are more publicized than others um but you you go how is that possible it's like what what do they what do they know that that I don't get and and that is one of the great uh draws I think the kingdom of God of the Gospel there is this walk that that on the surface makes no sense but has something of such substance in it uh that that draws Us in yeah I think without forgiveness the the battle can be lost there can't it the action can have happened like with um Mick and Lynn the the horrific thing happened um and (32:35) that thing could have been the end that could have been the the Conquering thing that that won but through through forgiveness that was the thing that won that was the more than conqueror um it it changed the situation it changed I should imagine changed their lives and their knowledge of of God and their hope and their ability to to be able to reach out to others you know in similar situations in horrific things happening it was definitely a more than conquer moment yeah yeah absolutely and and I'm (33:12) I love the again that some of the stories that Matt said um that it it's like yeah God turns things around but it's like he's got a whole completely different set of I don't even can call them weapons but a whole different tool kit than we're kind of mostly familiar with and uh and it's and it's that that we that's the good news isn't it that that's what we inherit as we follow God we begin to understand oh there's a whole way there's there's a yeah there's there's a whole set of different power tools that I didn't even know existed and actually (33:49) these are so much more effective so much better to use they they they achieve a completely different job um and and that's some of the excitement of discovering of Walking with God and understanding more of God's heart through through the word and particularly through Christ and as you look at Jesus's life and you hear those stories of people who are a little bit further on in the journey than than you and you go yeah that's that's a that's a beautiful set of tools right there yeah I I love um this comment that Andy put (34:18) on the um on the comments but you can't have an easy life and have a great character and I think we see that we see SE in the Bible all the time and with the example that Matt brought out with David and Saul he could have just killed Saul and that would have been the Saul it would have been turmoil but in the end it was Saul saw his character the his then um when he was King the people around him would have known his character they would have know that story yeah it transforms not just the situation but it transformed him (34:59) yeah it's great isn't it yeah the great thing about that David story though is that that David already knew that he was going to be king God had already prophesied into David's life he he'd been anointed like years before then and said no one day you will be king and David could have gone oh look here's here's the chance this is what God told me th those years ago and I was a Shepherd boy and I was anointed by Samuel the prophet and God said yeah I was going to be king one day oh this is it this is what should do uh and David (35:30) had had enough of that character even though he'd been hunted down like a a terrorist he was hiding in a cave he had a kind of a ram Shuckle group of guys around him who were all kind of Misfits and outlaws um not exactly the kind of glowing future of kingship that had' been promised even in that situation he had enough character to say this is not the right way I do not want my future Kingdom to be built on this this Bloodshed he he really he properly honored Soul if you read through the story and Other Stories like it he really respected the fact that Saul was King even though Saul was behaving (36:10) terribly he he he respected the office of King and God's anointing for Saul as king and so even though it was actually his right you could argue it was his right to kill Saul at that point and take the kingdom God had even said it uh he still refused to do it and uh it's like he refused to play the same game yeah and I think in our application this is a really key thing is to think about well what what is the opposite what's the opposite spirit that I can come in so when someone comes against you um effan and blinding full of Rage it's (36:48) like yeah that's an invitation to to to fight back and exactly the same it's like okay you want to fight let's have a fight um and God calls us to come in an oppos it spirit and you know when when you do that it it actually completely disarms um it's a it's a curious thing but um but yeah David really really then practiced that and there was a couple of opportunities he had had a chance again to to to kill Saul and and even in the final battle with Saul he said nobody kills Saul you know I I don't want him killed even though it was like it got to that point of like two massive battles (37:24) and Saul continued to hunt him um but he was still saying saying no no no no I want to protect Saul and I protect his family he God's anointed um yeah I amazing I I think you picked up on a really great point there which was that um oh but was is right he knew he was going to be king he could do it this way and we can have that thinking can't we but this is yeah I know I could do this another way I know perhaps the holy spirit is guiding me but this is my right I've I've got a right to get angry I've got a right to someone's stolen something from me someone's done an injustice MH (38:01) um but looking at what God has asked us to do we can say Okay hold it there let's move let's just trust him for what he's got for me what he can do through me um yeah and yeah and just trust him and not not go take the easy way way out yes easy way out it can be kind of and actually the world's very good at telling us our rights isn't isn't it and and and actually our friends at times as well it's like no you have every right to feel this outrage and this resentment and this bitterness and this unforgiveness and and all the rest um we can almost be encouraged in that kind of (38:44) battle from from good people as well we have to we have to listen to to what God's saying to us you know it could be someone could very well be saying to it you know we've got every right to do that and you have but they haven't been been spoken to yeah um God hasn't said to them hold on I don't want you to say that to that person I want you to forgive I want you to move on I want you to yeah you know take that sphere away yeah yeah and there's an element of faith in this um let's be real about it I mean you need to well first of all to (39:19) hear to hear God but actually there's an awful lot of faith needed as well to to be able to take that path and not feel like oh I'm just being T completely taken vage of here and and that that Faith to say no God has I am God's son I am an heir of God um he has promised nothing separate from me love he has promised that I'll be more than a conqueror um there's an element of faith in that but I tell you when you start doing it and and you and you have a few stories of your own like that maybe not as extreme um that really boosts your faith and I'd really encourage you to to try that to to think about at times the (39:58) things that are coming to you and think about what is the opposite Spirit there when someone's coming with anger can I can I fight that with peace when someone's coming with hatred can I return love um think about what what is the opposite thing here and and yeah and and for me I know you know a couple of stories where where I've I've done that and I've suddenly realized that it it just unlocks a power that I I could not have and a situation actually that I couldn't have done myself um so yeah walk walk that that that path of Faith (40:34) but it does it does require some Faith AB absolutely does and I think um talking about Chadwick and that story of of going through the fog and Matt says about um meditate on these things whatever things are pure whatever Things Are Holy whatever things are righteous if we if we fix our eyes on those things then all the fog around us we just know we just keep going cuz that fog might stay for a long time you know for the swimmer it might have been 16 hours for us it might be weeks or months or yeah years is not something um like Matt said (41:10) this is not an overnight thing yeah absolutely this is a fix your eyes on God he's steadfast everything around us can change um he put He says a great Matt said a great thing there said don't let your emotions dictate your ology which very easy to do I'm going to find a verse in the Bible that seems to answer what I'm thinking I know I know the general theme of the Bible doesn't do that but there must be some way I can turn it around in my in my mind yeah no absolutely yeah if we if we lived our lives on our (41:49) experiences yeah we won't get very far we get won get to see some of what God what God's got for us we miss out on those things but actually that that's a really good like call to to know God's word in its fullness and not to be picking CU you know even in God's word you can find a verse that will exactly justify how you're feeling and and but but you need to you need to kind of take it bit more wi like you said before more than conquerors we could say oh conquerors we're going to do this do but read just the verse before the verse afterwards (42:23) yeah absolutely so so what are your fogs what are the things that are fogging your your effort to to do this epic swim um that that was something that that Matt talked about a couple of times uh yeah put it put them in chat if if you if you're listening any uh examples of that kind of fog that can distract but also demotivate you um yeah and it could be any any sphere of life so yeah do do put those in the chat um if you've got any of those um yeah what else from you Dan um I was just looking through my just looking through my notes um (43:03) and I it was it was just to emphasize what Matt was saying that um that challenge that he put at the end to have that we're more than conquerors in him who loves us write it write it somewhere yeah um and have it and think about it this week yeah and and to know that yeah it's not an immediate thing but it's a something that does start today doesn't it you got start yeah somewhere yeah so yeah thank thanks Matt he's put some fog on on the chat of stress at work and actually stress at work is I think is a good example of that that kind of that Journey a bit as well (43:50) because um stress at work often it comes from that place of personal responsibility and you know bosses at times are great at an organizations actually are pinning that responsibility on you as an employees is like you must do this and and that can that can be a stress obviously if you're leading an organization that can also be a stress but but taking on that kind of personal responsibility and it becoming it's all down to me that's a really good example of somewhere where you need to start a journey with God and and just think actually who am I what's my (44:29) identity in God going back to to Pete's talk last week what what's my position in God I'm in heir of God and when you begin to kind of look at God and what God said about you and take the the focus of yourself and what you're supposed to be achieving it begins to feel a little easier and you can begin to get a sense of reality of like actually that's not my responsibility that stress that I'm taking on it in my organization that's often profit and and margin it's like well obviously I can't take that on personally um but that sense of (45:08) understanding what our part is and understanding who who we're within it and who who we've got in it um is a really important part of that of that that Journey of Faith I need to begin to look at this a little bit differently from how I have been and in that situation you talked about the situation hasn't changed has it no you're still in that J no you still got those challenges you still got those things around you yeah um so the yeah situation things haven't changed but it's our um focus on God it's putting (45:43) more on him taking things that take things on ourselves that it's again it it becomes it's it's the way we do it it it's the kind of God style it's the way that Jesus wins um as we begin to to look at God in those things it changes the way we do things and yeah you're right the situation may not change but the way we do it the way we address it the way we respond in it um does change and that's absolutely a crucial part then of and possibly the situation then changing as well um I find you know when I'm not stressed when I've got a better balance of my (46:21) understanding of of who I am and what my role is in a particular situation what my responsibility is I actually become much more effective anyway in doing what I do because because I've got peace about me and so that that can then change the situation um but yeah it's this is this coming in a different a different way uh using some different tools yeah um and it I I think I mentioned it a couple of weeks ago but there's a song and and it it it's it's a Bible verse but it said that the verse is peace that (46:52) passes all understanding um but the the song just says peace that doesn't make sense and I love that that God can give you that peace that you know the situation is still the same but he yeah it doesn't it doesn't make sense and I mean Matt said it isn't he it's like how does that even work um and some of the stories that he used like that joy in the depths of yeah just an awful situation how does that work and again this is this is partly those Steps of Faith I I I can't explain it to you actually I I can I could describe it a (47:25) little bit um given a bit more time maybe and and a bit more presence of Mind in some of the the stories from my own life but there's an element of of doing it of stepping out and and beginning to know it for yourself um because it doesn't obviously make sense but it is true I can absolutely testify to that absolutely um I think we better sort of bring things to an end here next week we have got the fourth part it's Dave connley um and he's talking about Abundant Life in a broken world that's going to be I'm looking forward to that (48:02) as well so tune in and if You' got again if you got any prayer requests if you got any questions does go to crowd. church um WhatsApp there you can email contact form and we'd love to pray for you try and answer your questions um yeah thanks very much for and ju just finally on on Matt Matt's final Point actually on on the um that we have this power to turn tests into testimony share share testimony you know if you've got some encouraging stories of where test has become testimony um if you've been able to come with the opposite Spirit if you've been able to come you know fix (48:42) your eyes more on Jesus share those as well because it's really great to hear other people's stories absolutely brilliant thank you very much will okay love you much on the comments and we will see you next week all right thank you so much for joining us here on crowd church now if you are watching on YouTube make sure you hit the Subscribe Button as well as that little tiny bell notification to get notified the next time we are live and of course if you are listening to the podcast uh the live stream podcast make sure you also hit the follow button Now 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(49:49) church where you can learn more about us as a church more about the Christian faith and also how to connect into our church Community it has been awesome to connect with you and you are awesome it's just a burden you have to bear and hopefully we'll see you next time that's it from us God bless you