Trust the LORD

[0:00] Please stay open at Proverbs chapter 3. We all trust in something.

[0:16] ! There's another lady doing hair braiding and there are people shopping.

[0:35] These are the gods of the age we live in, in this city, and many others as well. We rely on something or some things.

[0:50] Christian people are called to trust the Lord, trust the Lord. This has been the recurring message the past few months as Phil has taken us through the book of Isaiah.

[1:00] We have kept on seeing that message, haven't we? Through all the instances of the storylines of what people were going through. The message is again and again, trust the Lord, trust the Lord.

[1:15] And this is not haphazard. This is a word for us as a church. And I'd like to suggest several reasons why this is a word for us at this time.

[1:27] Because there have been blockages. I think it's fair to say that we hoped two and a half years ago we started on a process of looking for an assistant pastor.

[1:38] That hasn't occurred. There appear to have been sort of blockages in that way. And can I say this?

[1:50] I think there have also been some disappointments. It's a hard thing to say that in church because in a way you feel that it's very important that everyone is encouraged when they come to church.

[2:01] But I think there have been some disappointments. I felt disappointed because I felt at the beginning of the year that the Lord was speaking to us very clearly and helpfully. And that there were a number of people coming in.

[2:14] But it's been like the morning dew in some way. Those folk have not continued. Some have gone off. I'm very saddened about the Chinese folk.

[2:28] That we haven't seen progress in their lives. All sorts of reasons, explanations. But I have felt disappointed. You know that.

[2:38] You know that that's what happens with pastors. They feel disappointed. It's a real experience. I feel desperately disappointed when people seem to have come that close and yet not followed on.

[2:54] But disappointments and blockages force us to face this truth in a way that prosperity and a sunny day does not.

[3:10] It is a harsh fact about human nature. That when all seems to be going smoothly. Then we don't look to the Lord in the same way as we are forced to.

[3:26] When there appear to be problems, frustrations, difficulties. And this is a call for us as a church.

[3:36] I hope that you too might feel disappointed when those that you have prayed for earnestly appear to have hearts which are just as hard as they were months, years ago.

[3:53] It is a message for us individually because here's the truth. We can't trust the Lord as a church if we are not trusting the Lord individually.

[4:08] Have you thought about that? How can we trust the Lord as a church if we are not trusting him individually? The church isn't some other organisation, it's us.

[4:25] And the strength of the church is reflected by the strength of the spiritual life of its members. I think that's one of the statements we make in the membership meeting, isn't it?

[4:36] If there is slackness amongst us, there will be slackness in the church.

[4:48] If our lives are going wrong, the life of the church will be damaged. The church is not some other organisation than the amalgamation of the individuals.

[4:59] And so how helpful it is for us to turn to the book of Proverbs this morning because the book of Proverbs is actually addressed not to a church, not even to a group of people, but it's like a fireside chat of a father to his son.

[5:18] We read in chapter 1 verse 8, Listen, my son, to your father's instruction, do not forsake your mother's teaching. It's very domestic, isn't it? It's very family based, it's very one to one.

[5:33] A father calling his son on one side saying, I just really need to talk to you. I need to tell you some things. You need to know this.

[5:44] I think every father in this room would be delighted to have that opportunity with their children at some point. It's too rare, isn't it? But this is Proverbs and this is the father passing on wisdom to the son.

[6:06] How to live life rightly. How to live life well. It's a very important book.

[6:16] We're just going to look at some prime teaching as found in verses 5 and 6 of chapter 3. Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lead not on your own understanding.

[6:31] In all your ways acknowledge him and he will direct your paths. What a well-known verse this is. I imagine that if you were to close your eyes and not look at the screen, many of you could actually recite that back to me.

[6:46] Do many of you have that as a memory verse in your life? It's just the sort of thing that we do have. It's right up there with John 3.16 and the other famous ones.

[6:59] It's a great verse. Great verses. But we need to be careful that we don't abbreviate what this passage says to this.

[7:16] Dot, dot, dot, dot, dot, dot. The Lord, dot, dot, dot, dot, dot, dot, will direct your paths. Okay? See what I've done there? I've taken a pair of scissors and I've cut out all those intermediate phrases.

[7:32] It just got to this point where we're saying, oh, I know what this verse is about. This is about guidance. And that's what we all need in life, isn't it?

[7:43] We live in a confusing, distracting world and I need guidance. Lord, please show me the way I should go. Proverbs 3, 5 and 6.

[7:54] The Lord will direct your paths. It's very encouraging, isn't it? And I'm sure that you, like me, have put this verse on the bottom of a letter to a friend or quoted it to somebody and opened your Bible and shared it with somebody at a time of prayer.

[8:15] And there is encouragement in this verse. But if we abbreviate this text to that, we are actually missing the point.

[8:25] It's not all about guidance. There's a context. It's not just about what. What should I do?

[8:37] But how? And when? And it actually teaches us something far bigger than a narrowly focused idea about how to find out God's will in my life.

[8:52] But a way of living. A way of living. And that's why these two verses are so precious. Because it's actually about a way of living. It's not about that crisis moment. Should I marry this person?

[9:05] Let's get Proverbs 3, 5 and 6 out and see what it has to say. No, it's about 24 seconds. It applies to all of us in this room today.

[9:17] Actually, all of us. Absolutely all of us. If you're not a Christian today, I want to say to you, Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Don't lean on your own understanding.

[9:31] In all your ways, acknowledge Him. He will direct your paths. But it's something which should be growingly precious to those who are walking the Christian life.

[9:44] And hopefully, if you have been walking the Christian life for some 10 or 20 years, you could put your hand up and say, Do you know what? I've proven this to be absolutely true.

[9:58] What a precious thing. What a precious testimony to be able to say to others. Add an important testimony. Because you need to be able to say it like a father to a son or a mother to a daughter.

[10:10] So an older person to a younger person here in this church can say, look you straight in the eyes and say, Trust in the Lord with all your heart. Don't lean on your own understanding.

[10:23] In all your ways, acknowledge Him. He'll direct your paths. What better advice could you receive? It neatly breaks down into four sections and we start with, Trust in the Lord with all your heart.

[10:47] And immediately the heart of the Hebrew leaps at this point. Because he is invited to trust in the Lord.

[11:01] The Lord. Capital L-O-R-D. Ah, yes. The covenant God of Israel. The God who revealed himself over years and centuries to his people.

[11:15] The God who declared himself by mighty works. This is the Lord in whom this son is encouraged to trust.

[11:29] The Lord. We read Psalm 111 where it says, God has caused his wonders to be remembered. The Lord is gracious and compassionate.

[11:44] The Lord is very concerned that his ways and works should be remembered. That he made it a sort of cardinal rule for his people.

[11:55] That they should remember the ways of the Lord. And they were given examples of how to do that. The stones were set up, weren't they?

[12:09] There were altars of sacrifice. There was the ceremonies of the tabernacle and later the temple. The day of atonement.

[12:21] The Passover. All these were fixed points in the calendar of life. So they might remember the ways of the Lord. God is very jealous that his name should be remembered.

[12:37] That his ways should be remembered. Not forgotten. Not buried away. But remembered. Recounted. Refreshed to us. So we have the Lord's table here twice a month.

[12:52] First Sunday of the month. The third Sunday of the month. If you don't come to the Lord's table. You're disobeying a command of God. He has set this table so that his ways should be remembered.

[13:10] Because it's as we remember his ways that we remember him. And we know what kind of a God he is. Because this is not just a mantra to be repeated again and again.

[13:21] Proverbs 3, 5 and 6. I say it over and over again as if I was a Catholic saying the rosary. It's not like that at all. Nor is it some sort of seven step idea that the Alcoholics Anonymous have.

[13:37] Where they say, well whatever higher power you have, trust in that. Well who is that higher power? No, no, our God has revealed himself in his word.

[13:50] And by his deeds. And they're recorded for us. That we may very seriously learn. Who he is. Because when we learn who he is.

[14:03] We say, oh that's the same God. The God who delivered his people. Out of Egypt. Is the same God who will deliver me. In the difficult workplace trouble.

[14:14] That I'm facing tomorrow. The God who protected his people. As they went through the wilderness. Is the same God who is going to protect me.

[14:25] From the jibes and insinuations. And possibly the lies. Of somebody who's turned against me. This is it.

[14:37] Because God is a God who has. Provided. And protected. And delivered. And granted victory. And as we carefully read the Old Testament.

[14:48] We see that's exactly what he does for his people. Again and again and again. Because he's committed to them. He loves them that much. I will be your God.

[15:00] And you will be my people. And all this is filled out for us. In the personal work of Jesus Christ. Because the Lord. Became flesh.

[15:11] And dwelt among us. Emmanuel. It's the Lord Jesus Christ. Who has provided for us so richly.

[15:25] That in our death and darkness. He has transformed that. By his sacrifice upon the cross. And granted unto us. Life eternal. He protects us.

[15:38] Against the devil. Because the devil was defeated at Calvary. He has delivered us from the kingdom of darkness. And he's brought us into the kingdom. Of his dear son. And we have victory.

[15:50] Because we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. And so all these things that. The young Hebrew was reading.

[16:01] The Hebrew was reading. A thousand years before Christ. They're made. Deliciously. Deeply real for us. Aren't they? In Jesus Christ. Trust in the Lord with all your heart.

[16:16] This is the Lord. I'm recommending to you today. The God who has said. You can. Put your. Confidence in this. Read about me.

[16:27] See what I've done. See how I've behaved. This is the Lord to trust in. Lean not on your own understanding.

[16:40] Don't put your reliance upon your own understanding. Please don't confuse this. You mustn't ignore your understanding. Because it's God's gift to you.

[16:50] It's God's gift. That hopefully all of us learn. By the. The sequences of our lives. The passages of things we go through.

[17:01] And hopefully day by day. Our understanding. Is being sanctified. But don't rely upon your understanding. Your thoughts. Because they're damaged.

[17:13] By sin. Your understanding is damaged by sin. Jeremiah 17 verse 9 says.

[17:23] The heart is deceitful above all things. And beyond cure. Well in this life. Yes. There will come a time. When the heart is actually.

[17:34] Completely restored. But. Brothers and sisters. No matter how long. You've gone on in the Christian life. Don't. Ever think.

[17:45] You're getting to a point. Where you have such knowledge. And experience. That you can rely upon. Your own understanding. That way lies disaster.

[17:56] We need to put ourselves. In the place of humility. Recognizing that. No matter how much.

[18:07] Of the Lord's goodness. Or discipline. We have received. We're not in a fit place. To trust in our own understandings. We need to put our reliance.

[18:19] Upon. Jehovah God. In all your ways. Acknowledge him. Acknowledge is much more.

[18:31] Than waving. Nodding. Casual greeting. In the street. That's what the English word suggests. Isn't it? Someone comes into the room. And say. That's not what this is about.

[18:48] But a warm and welcoming embrace. And an invitation into the home. Opening up our life. So here's the challenge. In all your ways.

[18:59] Acknowledge him. Let's just change that word. Acknowledge. To warmly welcome. Inviting into the home. Would you like the Lord Jesus Christ.

[19:12] To come into your home? Sounds nice. And then you think. I've left it in a bit of a mess.

[19:31] There are many rooms. In all our homes. You actually might not own a home. You might live in one room. But I. I want you to know. That actually.

[19:42] Your life. Is a home. And there are many rooms. In your life. There's a room of decision.

[19:54] A room where the decisions are made. I'd like you to look at verses 7 and 8. Do not be wise in your own eyes.

[20:04] Fear the Lord. And shun evil. Fear the Lord. Modern parenting is all about being positive. It's amazing the semantics.

[20:20] That modern parents seem to get into. To try to avoid saying the no word. Well done for not getting near the fire.

[20:33] Rather than. No. No. We live in a world. Where anything which is negative. Is. It seems somehow. To be. Rather damaging.

[20:49] Fear the Lord. And shun evil. Do you realize. Christian people. There is a place. In the Christian life. For saying no. David was reminding us.

[21:00] Be careful. What you see. And hear. And speak. There are places. Of saying. No. This is the room of decision.

[21:12] Where we learn to say no. And we stick to it. So Paul writes to Timothy. We think of him as a young man. But actually he's probably about 40.

[21:24] And he tells him to flee. Flee. The lusts of youth. Flee the lusts of youth. That doesn't sound very.

[21:36] Positive. Does it? Why not have a go at it? Why not just. Find the Lord. In every situation. Well.

[21:46] Paul's very straightforward about it. Says the same word to us. You just flee it. Don't touch it. Don't go near it. You've got nothing to do with it. That's not being cowardly.

[21:57] Okay. That's just saying. I belong to the Lord. I'm not going to go down that route. You learn to say no.

[22:09] And you stick to it. Are you alright with that? Are you alright with that thought? Brothers and sisters. We can be so.

[22:23] Drugged. By the spirit of this age. That we don't put no. Upon anything. I can taste it.

[22:34] I'm strong enough. I can deal with it. God will help me. Rubbish. There are some things. You have to say no to. Flee. Flee. That sounds like a strong word.

[22:46] Doesn't it? At the end of the service. You're going to walk. Out the door. But fleeing. Is not walking out the door. Fleeing is.

[22:57] Like John Bunyan's pilgrim. Shutting his ears. And running. Away from the city of destruction. Say. I'm not going to touch that. I just know.

[23:09] How weak I am. I can't allow myself. To be in that same territory. I have to get out of it. All of us.

[23:24] Has a room of decision. And we need to put. Proverbs. Three. Verses. Seven and eight. Over that room. And say. That's what I'm going to do.

[23:36] And for your children as well. This will bring health to your body. And nourishment to your bones.

[23:46] What I've noticed. Is that when we dabble in sinful things. Or doubtful things. Life becomes messy. It just becomes.

[24:02] Unsatisfying. Here's a promise. Shun evil.

[24:12] Fear the Lord. Health to your body. And nourishment to your bones. It's a great thing to be able to go into every day. Open eyes. Hands out.

[24:25] Unashamed. I've not got to say sorry for what I did last night. I'm going into this day. In the strength and power of the Lord Jesus Christ.

[24:38] I'm not carrying the baggage. Of poor decisions on my back. There's a room of stuff. Verses nine and ten.

[24:49] Honor the Lord with your wealth. With the first fruits of all your crops. This is a room where you have all your stuff.

[25:00] All that you've accumulated. By way of qualifications and hard work. The Lord is very interested in that room. Because all of this stuff actually belongs to him.

[25:11] And he's interested to see how you're handling this on his behalf. It's hard to get our mind around that thought, isn't it?

[25:26] It's a very scriptural one though, isn't it? We're stewards of all that God has given to us. Do you know what a steward is? A steward is somebody who looks after stuff on behalf of someone else.

[25:39] He doesn't own it. He looks after it. And if anything is going to happen to that stuff.

[25:50] He has to find out from the master. What the master wants that to be done. The master says, That stuff, I want you to give that to somebody else.

[26:02] The steward says, Okay, that's fine. That's what I do. So some of you, You're chasing after degrees. Masters.

[26:15] PhDs. God has blessed you with the intelligence and the opportunity to do it. That's wonderful. But please note, When you get that certificate at the end of the day, And it goes up on your wall, You have to write upon it, Steward.

[26:34] Steward. Steward. That's not yours. It's yours on behalf of him.

[26:48] Kept in trust. For some purpose. That he will reveal. That's your stuff. There was someone in the Bible who had a real problem with stuff.

[27:03] His name is Achan. And we come across him in the book of Joshua. Do you remember that? Where the Lord's people had a great victory. And all the booty they gathered from that victory, They were to dedicate to the Lord.

[27:19] But Achan, He took some of that, Which should have been given to the Lord. And he buried it in a hole underneath his tent. And disaster came upon all the people.

[27:31] Disaster came upon all the people of God. Because of the misbehavior of this one man. Do you read his story in Joshua 7, Verses 20 and 21?

[27:46] Achan replied, It's true. Because he was found out. I have sinned against the Lord, The God of Israel.

[27:58] This is what I've done. When I saw in the plunder, A beautiful robe from Babylonia. 200 shekels of silver, And a wedge of gold, Weighing 50 shekels. I coveted them, And took them.

[28:08] They're hidden in the ground inside my tent, With the silver underneath. It ended in judgment for Achan, And his family.

[28:19] Which was a great tragedy as well, Wasn't it? That the sin of one man, Should be the downfall of his family as well. So no doubt, Achan thought, I'm only one person.

[28:39] The Lord won't notice this. It's only a small thing. He could quote the scriptures, The Lord owes the cattle on a thousand hills. What is it to God, Whether I have a little bit of this for myself.

[28:53] But God's a jealous God, And he won't have us storing stuff for ourselves. He brings us into the place, Where we have to acknowledge him in all our ways.

[29:10] The Lord loves those who sit very lightly to what they have, But are constantly using it in a way that pleases him. He trusts them with more. Which is the reason, Why we go on to read in Proverbs 3, Honour the Lord with your wealth, With the first fruits of all your crops, Then your barns will be filled to overflowing, And your vats will brim over with new wine.

[29:34] And some of us, Imperfectly, Though we have gone through life, Have known the pleasure, And the measure of this great goodness of God.

[29:48] That those who are good stewards of what he has given, He gives that steward more. Why wouldn't he? It's just the same at work. If I see someone doing really well with a job, I'll give them more.

[30:00] I'll give them greater responsibility. That's logic, isn't it? That's good human understanding. If I see someone dropping the ball constantly, Misusing what's been given to them, Not acting on behalf of the master, If you like.

[30:20] Why would I give them any more? It's a spiritual truth. Oh, that we all should be those who can say that, We honour the Lord with our wealth, With the first fruits of all our crops.

[30:38] So if you have blessing coming to you this week, Your first thought is, How can I bless the Lord? How can I give to the Lord? How can I acknowledge the Lord? In this.

[30:49] This isn't my money. This is, To give to the Lord. So the Israelites were taught, If they had those first fruits, That they gave the very best of it, To the Lord Jesus Christ.

[31:02] So if it so happens, That you're given 10,000 pounds this week, I do hope very much, That you would actually make this a matter for prayer. And you'd say to the Lord, What do you want me to do with this?

[31:14] What blessing he has in store for those, Who look after the room of stuff. But what about the room of God's discipline?

[31:27] Or, The room of God's teaching. Verse 11, My son, do not despise the Lord's discipline. Do not resent his rebuke.

[31:39] These words are quoted, In the book of Hebrews, Chapter 12. Now this is a room, Which feels quite sad. You're a bit uncomfortable, Going into this room.

[31:54] It makes you uneasy, When you go here. You go reluctantly. But the Lord would have us realise, That if we're his children, And we are, We need a father's correction, And shaping.

[32:08] And we do. This is usually through difficulties. It's not pleasant, But it's necessary.

[32:20] You can find all those sorts, In Hebrews chapter 12. No discipline for the moment, Seems pleasant, But painful. But all this, And this room is absolutely useless, If we don't try to understand, What God is saying, And doing in our lives.

[32:41] We're all like this, We're all like this, So I put myself, In exactly the same place, As all of you. You get into trouble, In some way or other, Whether it's mental, Spiritual, Physical, You're in some difficulty, Please pray for me, That I should be relieved, Of this trouble.

[33:02] Isn't that right? And I don't deny the reality, And the importance of that prayer, But, We need to be careful, That our prayers are not limited, To the issues of relief, And to recognize, That there may be some important, Lessons, That the Lord, Is trying to teach us, Through the experiences, That we're going through.

[33:33] Because praise God, He's in the darkness of that room. Praise God, It's not taking Him by surprise, Praise God, It's part of His sovereign purpose.

[33:47] When through the deep waters, He calls you to go, The rivers of grief, Will not thee overflow, For He will be with thee, In trouble to bless, And sanctify to thee, Thy deepest distress.

[34:01] It's a great hymn, It's a Bible hymn, It's a Bible truth. Now we live in a world, That absolutely rejects pain, Rejects difficulty, I signed a card yesterday, Happy birthday NHS, 70 years, Bless you dear people, Who work in this fantastic, Healthcare system, But there's also people, Who live with chronic illness, And what place have we got, In our thinking about them, There are those of us, Who have the pain, Of children, Who are not yet, Belonging to the Lord Jesus Christ, And it's gone on for years, And years and years, And there are situations,

[35:07] That you're facing, That you just wish, You weren't facing, So invariably, There are people, In your workplace, And invariably, It might be your line manager, You have a problem with, And you think, If only, If only, If only life was a bit different, But, But it's not, So here you've got two routes, Either you can squirm, And squiggle, And try and avoid that situation, And get out of it, As fast as you can, Or you can say, Lord God, I accept, Your hand upon my life, I recognize, Your sovereignty, In all things, Please, Tell me, What I need to learn, Through this experience, Wouldn't it be terrible, To go through three years, Of a very difficult, Line management relationship, And learn nothing, Apart from getting resentful, Cross and taking it, To some arbitration situation, I think, Christians are called,

[36:08] To something better than that, That's the way of the world, But as we meet together, For prayer on a Wednesday, How good it would be, To be able to, People to say, Not just, I'm really having difficulties, In this situation, But, Please pray for me, That I shall know, What I need to learn, From this situation, So I should be God's ambassador, In that situation, So I should honor him, In that situation, That I should become, More Christ-like, Because of that situation, So you come to the end, Of that time, And you say, Amazingly, Thank God, I had to go through, That time, I would never have learned, Lessons, Like I learned, During that time, I would never have learned, Like I learned, During that time, There's a locked room,

[37:09] Have you got a locked room, In your house, When we have people, Coming to stay, Sometimes, A lot of things, Go into one room, And the door is closed, Because you haven't got time, To sort everything out, Put it nicely, In its proper place, So the door is closed, They don't need to go, And see that room, They can see the rest, In your life, You probably have, A locked room, There's stuff, That you're allowing, The Lord Jesus into, But there's other, There's a room there, That's pretty dark, And he might say to you, I'd rather like to see that room, And you say, I've lost the key, I don't have the key, I can't let you in, But of course he knows, What's in that room anyhow, Doesn't he?

[38:04] It's not darkness to him, Is it? He knows what's in that room already, But he's a gentleman, And he asks the question, Can I have a look?

[38:18] So here I come to something, Very important in this message, I want you to listen, Very carefully to this, Because as well as you might be doing, In all those other areas, If you've got a locked room, And you're not letting the Lord Jesus, Into that locked room, To see what's going on there, You're in serious, Spiritual trouble, It's the room, For some of us, Where we don't allow, Our relationships, To be a matter of prayer, If there's something, That disappoints the pastor's heart, More than anything, It's seeing unhealthy relationships, Relationships, That should never be, Relationships, That are going to go nowhere, Or relationships,

[39:19] That ought to be growing, That are just stuck, Where husbands and wives, Aren't learning to love each other, Even though they're both, Going to the same church, And we say, There's no way, You're going to touch that relationship, That's mine, That's mine, To look after, Or there's pride, Pride, We all know something, About pride, Pride, Pride is when, We're not, Allowing, Our, Self worth, Or our self esteem, To be in any way, Damaged, By anything the Lord, Might have to say about us, Or in that locked room, In another cupboard, There's secret and besetting sins, Which nobody knows about, Except ourselves, And the Lord, And the Lord, We have another key for that as well,

[40:22] Double lock, And there's another cupboard, With habits and hobbies, And it may be fine, Or you may just be a bit, Nervous about it, You're just thinking, I'm not really sure, I can open this cupboard up, To the full scrutiny, Of the Lord of the universe, And then there's another place, Of compromise, Where you're trying to make, Bargains with God, Well I'll do this, I'll do this, But I won't do that, And I want to say, Dear brothers and sisters, May the Lord get into the locked room, May the Lord get into the locked room, And have his way, Clear out those cupboards, This cleansing fire, Going through all,

[41:24] Why? Because, He's the Lord, Who delivers, And provides, And protects, And grants victory, Why wouldn't we want him? Why wouldn't we want him, To have, Full control in our lives, And he will direct your paths, If those building blocks, Are in place, In a 24-7 way, We may expect, The gentle and generous voice, Of the spirit, To say to us, This is the way, Walk in it, And people of God, Have, Nine times out of ten, Found it to be, A still small voice, You just know, What God is saying, And you want to walk in it, And that's his promise to us, The Lord will unfold, The path of his choosing for us, More often than not, With deep assurance, And,

[42:26] And isn't this a beautiful way, This is so beautiful, I can't think of any other, Adjective to describe, What I've just been talking about, It's beautiful, It's not a hardship, It's not a, A terrible thing, It's a beautiful thing, Romans 14, 17 says, The kingdom of God, Is not meat or drink, But righteousness, Peace and joy, My experience, As I look around this congregation, Is that, When I've seen people, Who've opened their locked rooms, Who's allowed the Lord Jesus, To have control of their stuff, Who've embraced his discipline, In their lives, Who've shunned evil, There's a harvest of righteousness, That belongs to such folk, No discipline for the present, Seems pleasant,

[43:27] But grievous, But afterwards, It yields the peaceable fruit, Of righteousness, To those, Who were exercised by it, Hebrews 12, 11, And there's a peace of God, Here's a well known verse, In Philippians, Don't be anxious about anything, But everything, By prayer and supplication, With thanksgiving, Make your requests known to God, And God will give you, No it doesn't say, It tells you what, He'll give you, It says, And the peace of God, That passes understanding, Will guard your hearts and minds, I'm anxious about something, What's the Lord going to give me, He's going to give me, Is peace, Because that's more important, Than the things, The peace of God, Is enough to keep us all, The peace of God, That passes understanding, Will guard our hearts and minds, What a blessing, To live in such a fractious, Anxious world,

[44:28] And to be able to say, Though I walk through the valley, Of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, For you are with me, Your rod and your staff, They comfort me, I'm at peace, It is well with my soul, Isn't that beautiful, I don't wish stuff for you, But I do wish God's peace for you, And joy, Righteousness, Peace and joy, The Amar 8 verse 10, The joy of the Lord, Will be your strength, The joy of the Lord, Will be your strength, Isn't that a lovely thought, The proverb, There's a lot to say, About people who are downcast, And disheartened, And how it's like, Something gnawing away, In their bones, But to have the joy of the Lord, I can scale a wall, I can climb a mountain, The joy of the Lord, Is my strength,

[45:28] So I come to the end of this, And I've been so blessed, By this word, And I've thought to myself, Why wouldn't I want to do this, Why wouldn't I want to be in this place, Wouldn't every Christian, Want to be in this place, But here's the sad fact, We're not, We're not, So we lack the joy of the Lord, We don't know the peace of God, Hallelujah, Well may God keep you by his grace, And may there be a harvest of righteousness, For all of us, And so, If we are hindered, We do need God's grace, To embrace this truth, To repent,

[46:31] Where we have squirreled, Areas of our life, Away from God's, Interrogation and scrutiny, To say, I want to obey, I want to put you first, And to enjoy the blessing of it, Heavenly Father, We pray that you would, To repent, Thank you.