Good morning, everyone, and happy Father's Day to all the dads out there.
I got the standard socks this morning, which declares that apparently I'm number one dad.
So that settles the matter. That's the final word on that.
In fact, I got five pairs that say I am number one dad, so I get to wear them every day at work.
So, yeah, anyway.
Have a great day.
On the screen is one of my prized possessions.
It's a certificate of competency as a powder man.
Now, that's not a license as a makeup artist.
It's, in fact, an explosives license.
And I got that when I was 21.
And I don't know why you're laughing.
I used to wear flannelette shirts before they were famous and before they were fashionable.
In fact, it's when all Bogans wore them.
And so that was many years ago now.
But as soon as I got that license...
Let's go back to the other screen. Oh, good.
As soon as I got that license, I went out and bought 25 kilograms of explosives,
which I was allowed to do because I had a license.
I was a competent powder man.
And my grandmother was visiting at the time that I did this,
and so I wanted to show her my newfound skill.
And so I picked this old dead tree, which is about 300 meters from our house,
and decided that I would show her how to dislodge a tree using explosives.
I calculated the size of the tree and all that sort of stuff.
I needed about four kilograms of explosives,
so I prepared some strategic holes under the tree.
And then I had one of those moments, which you have when you're 21,
of thinking, well, what if four kilograms is not enough?
I knew, for instance, that you couldn't put...
You couldn't do a second blast.
You had one attempt at this.
And so I decided, well, let's just add a little bit more,
just to make sure.
And after topping up the four kilos,
I realised in my bucket of prepared explosives
that I had were just a little bit left over.
And so I put that in too.
And so in the end of it,
I ended up with eight kilos of explosives under this tree,
went out and got my grandmother,
stood her in the position that she needed to be standing.
I went and I lit the fuse, which is a two-minute fuse,
and you hastily walk away from the explosion site at that point.
Don't run, because you might trip over.
You hastily walk away.
And then I got to where my grandmother was,
which was just outside the back door of our house,
and in that moment,
I'm doing what sensible people do,
and you go over the calculations again
to make sure you got it all right.
Now, most sensible people do that
before they've lit the fuse.
But I'm sitting there,
and it was at that moment I thought,
oh, my goodness, there's one calculation I forgot,
and that was the calculation of amount of explosives
compared to distance from the blast site
that you need to be.
And it just went poof.
And what happens is you see it.
Then you hear it, and then you feel it.
That's what happens with an explosion.
It's awesome.
And that's going back to last week.
It truly is awesome.
And so it was at that moment I realised 300 metres from the blast site
is correct for four kilos, but not for eight.
It went off,
and it all...
You know, the tree's on its mission to Mars.
And there's stuff going everywhere.
And then there's this eerie silence.
And then I could start hearing this...
What's that?
It's getting louder.
And it's sounding like it's pretty fast.
And then...
Right!
Five metres from us,
this rock the size of my fist
embedded itself into the ground.
By the grace of God,
I just grabbed a sheet of iron and put it over us.
What else can we do?
My grandma couldn't run to the house.
I mean, it was my first attempt to think,
well, she's lived long.
I mean, it's okay.
You know?
I'm only young, you know?
I've got a lot to live for here.
I could run.
But anyway,
all this stuff comes down.
And just to give you an idea,
a lump of wood,
the size of our communion table behind us here,
landed 300 metres past us.
Okay.
So it travelled 600...
It landed 600 metres from the blast site
in the neighbour's place.
For it to land 600 metres away,
it goes twice as high.
So it went 1.2 kilometres into the air
and boom!
Into his...
You need a tractor to pull it out
of where it landed.
And it was pretty impressive.
And it was purely by the grace of God
that no one was killed.
No animals were injured
in the whole experiment.
No dents,
no windows were broken,
no cars were dented.
Nothing went wrong at all.
Now, at 21,
I had a certificate of competency
as a powder man,
but I wasn't competent
in regard to the realities of life.
That's a pretty dangerous combination.
Pretty dangerous combination.
The definition of wisdom
that we've been working with
in this series is
is that wisdom is becoming competent
in regard to the realities of life.
Wisdom is more than just pure intellect
and passing exams
and gathering qualifications
such as certificate of competency
as a powder man.
Wisdom is knowing
how things actually are
in this world,
how things work in this world,
and how to live
in accordance to that.
Now, it's 26 years
since I made that decision
and blew up that tree.
And I've got 26 years
more of experience behind me now
and I've still got the license.
I've grown and I've changed.
And if I had exactly
the same opportunity again,
I'd do exactly the same thing.
It was awesome,
let me tell you.
It was fantastic.
I mean, there's nothing like
a great explosion.
Except this time,
what I'd do is
I'd stand a bit further away.
That's all.
I'd still overload the tree.
I'd still put too much in.
It's just a habit of mine.
I overload, you know.
But I'd just stand further away.
See, making wise choices
is the key to wisdom.
It's one of the key elements,
if you like, to wisdom.
It's not too much to say
that you make or break your life,
or potentially other people's lives,
on the basis of your choices.
There's a whole category of choices
that you don't need a lot of help with.
You know, it might be
20% of the choices we face,
you don't need a whole lot of,
you don't need to spend time.
You know, for instance,
you're married or a married person
propositions you to commit adultery
and the things might not be going well
in your own marriage
and this is a very real possibility.
It's not something
you need to pray about.
You don't need to spend time
on that work.
What's the will of God at this point?
He's made it really clear
in the Bible.
Don't do it.
But there's about 80% of choices in life
where, is this the right person to hire?
Is this the right career?
Is this the right amount of freedom
to give my child in this moment?
Is this the right person
to have confidence in?
Is this the right person to marry?
In those situations,
there is a number,
multitude of options.
And most of those decisions
are moral,
most of them are legal,
most of them are allowable,
but it doesn't mean that,
therefore,
you don't need wisdom
in the choice.
Yeah, for instance,
it is totally legal
and allowable
for middle-aged men
to wear these pants.
You know,
I didn't break the law
when I bought these things.
However,
Lady Wisdom,
as Proverbs calls her,
and in my hand,
we call her Natalie,
as she suggests,
it is totally,
I should buck the trend
of middle-aged men
wearing these things
without putting shorts
over the top of them.
You see,
that's what wisdom does.
So we need guidance
to make a whole bunch
of choices in life,
all the decisions
that we face
where the Bible
is not,
you know,
black and white on them.
We need guidance
to make these wise decisions.
And the Hebrew word
for guidance
occurs a number of times
in Proverbs,
such as in Proverbs 11,
verse 3,
where it says,
the integrity
of the upright guides them,
but the unfaithful
are destroyed
by their duplicity.
Now,
the word that we translate
there into the English
word guidance
comes from the Hebrew word
rope.
It's the origin
of the word
is of rope.
There is the idea
of sailing boats.
The rope
which hoists the sail
or lowers the sail
or changes the direction
of the sail.
It carries the concept
of navigation
to it.
And so that's
what we're facing here.
How do we get
God's navigation?
How do we get
God's guidance?
How do we get
God's navigation
when we're faced
with all these choices
about is it this way
or that way?
That's what we're
going to look at
very briefly.
And I suspect
by the time
we finish the day
you're going to be
frustrated.
Just give your heads
up on that one.
So let's have a look
at a couple of parables.
Proverbs 21
I've got an outline
in front of you
so hopefully
some of these passages
are in front of you.
Proverbs 21
verse 5
and 1633.
21 5
The plans of the diligent
lead to profit
as surely as haste
leads to poverty.
Now that proverb
to us
makes sense.
It encourages
action,
planning,
strategy,
making decisions.
decisions.
That's fine
and it's particularly
good for people
with my type
of personality.
But what about
Proverbs 16
33?
The lot is cast
into the lap
but it's every
decision
is from the Lord.
Now
the lot casting
there is equivalent
to what we might
call rolling a dice
or flipping a coin
or picking
drawing a straw.
So what's it saying?
It's saying
that every
coin toss
every detail
comes down
exactly the way
that God
plans it
to come down.
How do you
hold
Proverbs 21
5
and 1633
together?
You see
we tend to feel
that either
our choices
matter
and our destiny
is fixed
or we believe
that everything
is fixed
and so
who cares
what you do?
We tend to
go on one
of those two
and yet the Bible
says that we
are absolutely
free
and absolutely
determined
at exactly
the same time.
we see it
again in
Proverbs 16
1
and verse
9
16
1
to humans
belong
the plans
of the heart
but the
Lord
comes
from the
Lord
comes
the proper
answer
of the
tongue
then down
in verse
9
in their
hearts
humans
plan
their
course
but the
Lord
establishes
their
steps
your
plans
and your
choices
are
yours
you are
responsible
of them
God's
not
forcing you
in any
direction
do something
stupid
do something
wicked
do something
cruel
do something
selfish
and there
will be
bad
consequences
for those
things
people will
hold you
accountable
and they
should hold
you
accountable
the police
will hold
you
accountable
they should
hold you
accountable
God
will hold
you
accountable
and he
should
hold you
accountable
but
what
actually
happens
as a
result
of your
stupid
choices
are
absolutely
controlled
fixed
and set
by God
I made
a stupid
decision
to overload
a tree
stump
and it was
a complete
grace of
God that
nothing went
wrong
nothing happens
that is not
in accordance
with his
plan
our choices
belong to
us
but what
actually
happens as a
result of
those plans
is set by
God
and both
of those
things happen
at exactly
the same
time
it's not
50-50
50%
free
50%
determined
it's
100%
free
in our
choices
and 100%
determined
under the
sovereignty
of God
and human
categories
cannot
work that
out
it just
blows
your mind
there is
no human
category
to fit
that in
we tend
to think
that things
are either
free
or they're
fixed
people in
ancient
times
essentially
saw that
people were
fated
the order
behind the
universe
was set
and you
either
learnt to
submit to
it in a
stoic
brave
kind of
way
or your
whole life
would be
dashed to
pieces
that's
that's the
ancient
times
one example
is
Oedipus
from
Oedipus
from Greek
mythology
who was
fated
in an
oracle
that he
was going
to kill
his father
and marry
his mother
and it
didn't
no matter
what he
did
he tried
to do
everything
possible
not to
do that
including
running
totally the
opposite
direction
to his
parents
it's
exactly
what
happened
now the
rise of
the Christian
faith
in those
times
brought
quite a
different
perspective
on the
universe
Christianity
saw the
universe
and still
sees the
universe
not as
an
impersonal
order
that
somehow
you
were
fated
with
but as
a
universe
made
by a
personal
God
who
created
human
beings
as
responsible
moral
beings
and who
cared
about
how we
live
and he
still
cares
about
how we
live
and how
we
behave
and the
choices
that we
make
our
secular
culture
has
taken
the
corrective
good
that
Christianity
brought
into our
world
and has
taken it
into the
extreme
the other
way
that is
Christianity
poured
into
our
world
the importance
of individual
choices
and our
culture
has
gone
radically
and
increasingly
individualistic
take God
out of
the
picture
and so
the
highest
purpose
of our
culture
is to
set
all
individuals
free
to live
as they
choose
without
any
hindrance
from other
people
and certainly
not from
God
and so
choice
individual
choice
is the
one
sacred
value
and
discrimination
the only
moral
evil
we
tolerate
everything
except
intolerance
that is
in our
world
nothing is
set
nothing is
fixed
nothing is
determined
your future
is what you
make of it
and we
see that
when we
move from
Oedipus
in classic
ancient literature
to Marty
McFly
in classic
modern
Hollywood
at the
end of
the
Back to
the Future
trilogy
of movies
Doc Brown
explains
the profound
message
of those
movies
and he
says to
Marty
McFly
your future
is whatever
you make it
so make it
a good
one
that's
popular
culture
that's the
way our
world
thinks
that's what
we believe
in this
country
now while
it might
be hard
to hold
together
the concept
that
intellectually
hold together
that we're
100%
free
and 100%
fixed and
determined
at the same
time
there is
something
in our
hearts
that
connects
with that
and resonates
with that
there's
something about
it that rings
true
you see
if you
believe
that you
are either
totally
free
or totally
fixed
then put it
mildly
you're stuffed
either way
if you
believe that
there is
no connection
between your
choices and
your destiny
that is
everything's
fixed
everything's
faded
then you're
going to be
totally
passive
you're going
to be
bored
you're going
to be
cynical
you're going
to be
hard
you're going
to be
indifferent
and in fact
too many
Christians who
believe 100%
in the
sovereignty of
God
default into
that position
of not
making any
choices or
doing
anything
however if
you go with
popular culture
and believe
that there is
a total
connection
between your
choices
and your
destiny
and if you
truly believe
that
that you
are free
and if you
truly thought
about it
you wouldn't
get out of
bed in the
morning
you'd be
too scared
to
what fool
knowing how
little we know
about this
world and the
way it
works
would want
to live
in a
universe
where your
future is
completely
determined
and fixed
by the
choices that
we make
day by
day
what fool
wants to
really live
like that
you'd be
too scared
to get
out of
bed
so even
though what
these
proverbs are
saying are
pretty hard
to hold
together
intellectually
they are
so practical
the bible
doesn't say
that your
choices have
no connection
to your
destiny
or that
our choices
determine
our ultimate
destiny
the bible
says that
god in his
sovereignty
partially relates
our choices
to our
destiny
but he is
the one who
fixes our
destiny
we have
every incentive
therefore
day by day
to live
wisely
to make
great
choices
but behind
it all
is a god
who is
working out
everything
for the
good of
those who
trust in
him
now
god's
guidance
is however
not always
obvious
notice
proverbs
16
4
the lord
works out
everything
to its
proper
end
even the
wicked
for the
day
disaster
now that
is saying
that not
only are
the little
things
part of
god's
plan
but so
are the
bad
things
part of
god's
plan
now if
we hadn't
just
gone through
what we
just
gone
through
we'd be
saying
well
you know
it appears
there that
god is the
author of
evil
but remember
what we've
just read
to humans
belong the
plans of
the heart
evil deeds
belong to
the evil
doer
they are
responsible
god doesn't
force anyone
to do evil
deeds
they are
your deeds
they are
my deeds
and yet
god is
going to
overrule
and weave
through that
the ultimate
good even
in the worst
of things
not necessarily
immediately
it says
in the
end
and a great
example of that
is joseph
in the old
testament
genesis
37
to 50
he's one
of many
sons to
his father
jacob
had been
poisoning
the relationship
between his
boys
by favouring
joseph
and as a
young lad
joseph
wasn't helping
things a whole
lot by kind
of rubbing
his brother's
nose in it
by showing off
he's the one
with the fancy
coloured coat
and one day
the brothers
got jack of it
they threw
him in a pit
and then they
sealed him
off to
slavery
and as a
slave in
egypt
joseph
went from
one pit
to another
pit
to another
pit
from one
dungeon
to another
dungeon
he was
accused of
wrongdoing
and it
seems that
things just
went from
bad to
worse
year after
year
he cries
out to
god
consistently
help me
god
help me
god
help me
god
and there's
no answer
only years
later
do we
see
that
because
of
each
one
of
those
things
that
god
had
shaped
him
and
elevated
him
to a
man
of
greatness
bit
by bit
and as a
result
his family
and in fact
the whole
part of
the world
are saved
from starvation
in the
end
and in
Joseph's
famous
summary
of all
these
events
of his
life
we have
an almost
exact
statement
of what
we have
here in
Proverbs
16
1
it's in
Genesis
50
20
you intended
to harm
me
but god
intended
it for
good
to accomplish
what is
now being
done
the saving
of many
lives
it's a
wonderful
forerunner
to an
even greater
example of
god at
work through
the paradoxical
and the
non-obvious
the ultimate
good the
redemption of
all humanity
was provided
by the
Lord Jesus
but it was
brought about
through an
act of
horrifying
evil
in Acts
2
Peter's in
front of a
crowd and
he's explaining
the crucifixion
of Jesus
and he says
that though
Jesus was
put to
death by
wicked
people
this was
done
Acts
2
23
by God's
deliberate
plan
and foreknowledge
and this
idea of
this proverb
lies behind
Paul's
assurance in
Romans 8
28 that
in all
things God
works for
those who
love him
who have
been called
according to
his purpose
so never
ever
think that
God is
not working
and
at the
same time
never
ever
think
that you'll
be able to
work it
out what
he's up
to in the
immediate
it's not
always clear
what God's
doing and
he's working
but he is
he is
working
now I've
heard many
people say
that they
need God's
guidance
need to
know God's
will
according to
the Bible
God's
guidance
is something
that he
does
it's
something
that he
does
not just
something
that he
gives
that is
can I
say
right now
under the
sovereignty
of God
you are
standing
in it
you're
standing in
his
guidance
right now
you're in
the middle
of it
you're
standing in
a stream
where he's
in control
of all
things
you don't
most of
the time
we go
you know
God
which direction
he's moving
you
right now
you are
being
navigated
you just
probably
can't
see it
now of
course God
does give
guidance
so how
does he
do that
so it's
not just
something
that he
does
but it's
also
something
that he
gives
at this
point I
want to
turn our
heads
basically
turn on
our heads
the way
we normally
think about
guidance
and this
I think
is absolutely
essential
and it's
connected to
what we've
already preached
on and
what we
looked at
one of
the most
intriguing
proverbs
is
Proverbs
16
3
it says
this
commit to
the Lord
whatever you
do
and he
will establish
your plans
and we
read that
and we
go oh
that's
awesome
that's what
I'm looking
for
that's
exactly
what I
need
and this
is how
we normally
read it
it seems
so obvious
isn't it
what this
proverb is
saying
we automatically
think
it's you
know commit
your plans
to the Lord
and your
plans your
deeds will
succeed
commit your
plans to the
Lord and
your plans
and your
deeds will
succeed
and we
go wow
that's
awesome
every decision
I need
to make
in life
I just
need
Lord bless
my
plans
and then
they will
succeed
but that's
not what
that proverb
is saying
is it
it's
actually
saying the
exact
opposite
it's
saying that
if you
commit your
deeds to
the Lord
then
you'll
become more
and more
a person
who makes
the right
plans
and the
right
choices
commit your
deeds to
the Lord
not your
plans
your
deeds
to the
Lord
it's
in the
you know
in the
context of
making decisions
for us
as a church
I wrote
this in our
bulletin
this week
if you haven't
already written
it
read it
I'm convinced
that Romans
12
because I'm
asking the
question in
terms of
what do we
do as a
church
do we go
this way
go this
way
and I'm
convinced
that Romans
12
is absolutely
essential for
us
do not
conform any
longer to the
pattern of
this world
but be
transformed in
the renewing of
your mind
then you'll be
able to test
and approve
what God's
will is
his good
pleasing and
perfect will
and then if
you go down
into the
rest of
chapter 12
it tells you
what it looks
like
and I'm
convinced
that what
Romans 12
says is
staff
parish
council
leadership
members
don't
think the
way the
world thinks
be
transformed
pursue
renew mind
in verse
2 of
Romans 12
have humble
views of
yourself
verse 3
look always
to Christ
in faith
in verses
3 and 6
love
authentically
abhor evil
cleave to
the good
in verse
9
rejoice in
hope
be constant
in prayer
in verse
12
Paul's
assumption
is that
that is
the way
that you
discern
the will
of God
that is
what is
good
what is
acceptable
what is
perfect
and I
would add
what is
wise
if you
commit
your
deeds
to the
Lord
then you
will become
a person
who more
and more
discerns
what the
will of
God
is
that is
commit
your life
how you
live to
the Lord
and you
become wiser
in the plans
and decisions
that you
make
now the
word
commit
in verse
16
is a
word
that
means
to put
all your
weight
on
and it's
the same
idea that
we looked
at in
Proverbs
3
last week
unconditional
trust
with all
things
that happen
in your
life
unconditionally
trust God
and you'll
become a
person who
makes plans
in accordance
with
reality
if God
says in
his word
don't do
this
go that
way
do this
you
unconditionally
put your
weight on
him and
what he
has revealed
what he
says
and you
will in
over life
grow and
grow as a
person in
wisdom
to ask
for the
guidance of
God
requires
abandonment
it's
costly
so this
proverb says
here we
don't say
if I
trust you
you're going
to give
me what
I want
if I
trust you
you're going
to give
me what
I want
that's the
way we
think about
Proverbs
16 3
at first
glance
instead
it says
I trust
you
I trust
you
I trust
you and
therefore
you give
me or
you withhold
from me
whatever
you choose
God's
guidance
is costly
we come
to God
not asking
for his
advice
on the
decision
we come
to him
asking
for his
will
and
seeking
his
will
and his
will
is not
optional
it's not
advice
where we
take it
or leave
it
it's
his
will
remember
what I
said
two weeks
ago
two
questions
to be
wise
I will
obey
anything
you tell
me
whether
I agree
with it
or not
and I
will
accept
anything
you
send
me
whether
I
understand
it
or not
the more
we saturate
ourselves
in what God
has revealed
about himself
his plans
his ways
the way
the world
works
that is
saturate
ourselves
in his
word
and commit
ourselves
to obeying
him
unconditionally
the wiser
we become
in the choices
that we make
now who
does that
totally
the unconditional
total trust
certainly not
the bloke
behind the
microphone
this morning
only Jesus
in Mark
14
Jesus is in
the garden
of Gethsemane
and he's
wrestling
with God's
plan for
him to
go to
the cross
and he
has no
peace
about it
I mean
so many
people come
to me
and say
I'm
trying to
make a
decision
I have
peace
about this
one
but not
that one
as if
somehow
my peace
in my
heart
is the
settled
conclusion
Jesus
didn't
have
peace
in the
garden
of Gethsemane
he's
wrestling
with it
but in
verse
636
he says
Abba
father
everything
is possible
for you
take this
cup
from me
yet not
what I
will
but what
you
will
and he
submits
himself
to the
father's
will
he goes
to the
cross
for the
sins
of
humanity
and as
a result
of that
obedience
in the
end
he is
given the
name
that is
above
every
name
and
he has
opened the
way for
people like
you and
me
to be
navigated
back to
God
the one
who
knows how
the way
works
the way
the world
works
how
things
actually
are
Jesus
is
the
navigator
he is
God's
revealed
word
Hebrews
1 says
in the
past
God
spoke
to
ancestors
through
the
prophets
in many
times
and in
various
ways
but in
these
last
days
he has
spoken
to us
by his
son
whom
he
appointed
heir
of all
things
and through
whom
he
also
made
the
universe
the
sun
is
the
radiance
of
God's
glory
and the
exact
representation
of his
being
sustaining
all
things
by his
powerful
majesty
in
heaven
see
in
Jesus
God
has
uttered
a
comprehensive
and
final
word
in
Jesus
God
has
brought
all
of
his
purposes
and
plans
to
fulfillment
in
Jesus
the
very
goodness
of
God
dwells
he
is
the
exact
representation
of
God's
being
and
in
the
Bible
we
have
the
great
and
final
message
of
God
written
down
and
as
we
read
it
and
as
we
obey
it
God's
spirit
work
in
our
hearts
we
hear
God's
voice
to
us
today
and
especially
his
call
in
our
lives
to
repent
and
to
unconditionally
trust
him
in
all
things
guidance
is
something
that
God
does
through
his
sovereignty
and
it's
something
that
he
gives
through
the
person
of
the
Lord
Jesus
and
his
word
now
I
suspect
that
many
of
you
sitting
here
right
now
are
really
frustrated
I
want
wisdom
now
Steve
you
know
you
got
to
understand
I
got
these
choices
to
make
you
know
I
want
what
Moses
got
I
want
what
King
David
got
I
want
a
direct
answer
from
God
by
close
the
business
tomorrow
why
doesn't
God
to
do
that
and
he
did
it
for
some
people
in
the
Old
Testament
didn't
clearly
do
it
for
everyone
didn't
do
it
for
Joseph
why
spend
so
many
years
and
all
the
difficulty
after
difficulty
to
get
Joseph
to
where
he
was
why
not
just
show
up
and
say
to
Joseph
hey
Jacob
stop
showing
favouritism
to
your
boys
you
brothers
quit
your
murderous
plans
Joseph
stop
being
a
prat
about
your
fancy
coloured
coat
and
by
the
way
25
years
from
now
it's
going
to
be
a
really
big
drought
start
saving
15
minutes
and
he's
done
I
mean
that's
the
kind
of
guidance
I
want
you
know
why
doesn't
he
do
that
now
let
me
say
first
of
all
in
expecting
that
from
God
we
need
to
be
careful
of
not
undercutting
the
majesty
and
finality
of
God's
revelation
to
us
in
the
Lord
Jesus
according
to
2
Peter
1
3
God
has
given
us
everything
we
need
for
life
and
godliness
through
the
knowledge
of
him
who
called
us
by
his
own
glory
and
goodness
so
let's
not
diminish
at
all
the
finality
of the
majesty
of what
we
have
in
the
Lord
Jesus
growth
in
wisdom
and
making
choices
is
a
journey
but
here's
one
option
of
why
God
doesn't
fix
everything
instantaneously
for us
imagine
Amelia
my
four year
old
comes to
me
tomorrow
afternoon
at
five
o'clock
and
asks
whether
she
can
go out
and
play
for a
little
bit
and
I
say
okay
you know
I'm
getting
dinner
ready
and
so
I'll
call
you
when
it's
ready
to
come
in
out
she
goes
fast
forward
16
years
she's
20
years
old
she's
at
university
somewhere
and
she
calls
me
five
o'clock
Monday
afternoon
and
asks
is it
okay
if she
goes
out
and
plays
a few
friends
are
playing
some
netball
frisbee
whatever
out in
the quad
and she's
wondering
is it
okay
if she
goes
out
and
play
I'm
going
to be
at the
phone
there
and I'm
going
to go
what's
wrong
with
you
what's
the
matter
with
you
girl
seriously
make
a
decision
make
a
decision
now
there are
parents
that
like
having
their
child
that
emotionally
dependent
upon
them
but
God
is not
one of
them
he
wants
us
to be
like
him
he wants
us
to
he's
created
us
to make
decisions
to grow
in maturity
to move
on
to be
wise
but to
trust
him
in our
wisdom
what I
do know
is that
even if
the choice
I make
is a
total
failure
God
is simply
planning
something
else
something
that I
can't
see
that's
all
he's
doing
and by
his grace
he will
navigate
my
total
failure
of a
decision
in such
a way
that good
will come
out of
it
in the
end
his
desire
for you
and for
me
is to
be like
his
son
the
Lord
Jesus
and he
will
allow
things
to
happen
in the
course
of
our
lives
that
will
cause
us
to
grow
in
humility
cause
us
to
grow
in
dependency
upon
him
make
a
decision
you
don't
have
control
over
the
end
you
can't
play
God
it's
not
you
make
a
decision
commit
your
deeds
to
him
and
make
a
decision
God
guidance
is
something
that
God
does
as
much
as
something
that
he
gives
and
he's
doing
it
for
you
right
now
where
you
are
and
as
you
stand
in
his
guidance
look
to
Jesus
the
author
and
the
perfecter
of
your
unconditional
trust
in
God
get
rid
of
the
sin
the
bad
deeds
that
trip
you
up
and
get
rid
of
all
the
things
that
are
not
black
and
white
but
slow
you
down
in
your
unconditional
trust
and
he
will
establish
your
plans
Amen