WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:05.080 We hope that you enjoy this teaching from Christ Church. 00:00:05.719 --> 00:00:11.580 This material is copyrighted and no unauthorized duplication, redistribution, or any other 00:00:11.580 --> 00:00:15.280 use of any part is permitted without prior consent from Christ Church. 00:00:15.280 --> 00:00:22.640 Please consider donating to this work in the San Francisco Bay Area online at ChristChurchEastBay.org. 00:00:22.640 --> 00:00:36.280 Today's scripture reading is Psalms 131, 1-3, and Luke 5, 15-16. 00:00:37.760 --> 00:00:39.799 A reading from the Psalms. 00:00:41.140 --> 00:00:43.439 My heart is not proud, Lord. 00:00:43.880 --> 00:00:45.519 My eyes are not haughty. 00:00:45.980 --> 00:00:50.960 I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me. 00:00:50.960 --> 00:00:54.939 But I have calmed and quieted myself. 00:00:55.620 --> 00:00:58.120 I am like a weaned child with its mother. 00:00:58.840 --> 00:01:01.179 Like a weaned child, I am content. 00:01:02.679 --> 00:01:07.319 Israel, put your hope in the Lord both now and forevermore. 00:01:08.560 --> 00:01:15.140 The grass withers and the flowers fall, but the word of our God stands forever. 00:01:16.579 --> 00:01:19.799 A reading from the Gospel according to Luke. 00:01:20.959 --> 00:01:28.799 Yet the news about him spread all the more so that crowds of people came to hear him and 00:01:28.799 --> 00:01:31.039 to be healed of their sicknesses. 00:01:31.599 --> 00:01:36.459 But Jesus often withdrew to lonely places and prayed. 00:01:37.619 --> 00:01:40.019 This is the Gospel of the Lord. 00:01:40.859 --> 00:01:42.599 Praise to you, O Christ. 00:01:42.599 --> 00:01:45.640 All right. 00:01:45.759 --> 00:01:47.099 Good morning, Christ Church. 00:01:48.939 --> 00:01:54.299 We're in this new sermon series over the past three weeks called The Holy Habits of Grace. 00:01:55.439 --> 00:02:03.280 And the driving question of this series is, how do I grow in the Christian life? 00:02:03.679 --> 00:02:04.959 How do we develop? 00:02:05.179 --> 00:02:07.780 How do we mature in the Christian life? 00:02:07.780 --> 00:02:14.759 If Jesus is who he claimed to be and if he did all the stuff that the New Testament says that he did. 00:02:15.280 --> 00:02:16.960 And for some of us, that's a big if. 00:02:17.259 --> 00:02:21.800 You know, you're here exploring Christianity and we're really glad that you're asking your questions. 00:02:21.939 --> 00:02:28.340 But if you are here and you've trusted that Jesus is in fact the eternal son of God who became flesh. 00:02:29.060 --> 00:02:31.099 He died for the sins of the world on a Friday. 00:02:31.240 --> 00:02:33.460 He was raised from the dead on Sunday. 00:02:33.460 --> 00:02:37.219 He's seated on God the Father's throne. 00:02:37.360 --> 00:02:38.760 He's ruling over all things. 00:02:40.000 --> 00:02:46.400 He is right now building and protecting his church through the presence and power of the Holy Spirit throughout the world. 00:02:47.360 --> 00:02:53.159 And that he's coming again to raise us from the dead and to judge all the peoples of the world. 00:02:53.400 --> 00:02:56.939 And to bring the kingdom of God on the earth finally, fully, and forever. 00:02:56.939 --> 00:03:04.539 If you believe all the things that Christians believe about Jesus and you rest your life on these truths about his person and his work. 00:03:04.620 --> 00:03:07.879 Then the question is, how should we order our time? 00:03:08.979 --> 00:03:13.120 How should we direct our energy with respect to these things? 00:03:13.120 --> 00:03:16.900 To put it a little bit differently. 00:03:17.140 --> 00:03:20.659 If we've been externally called by the gospel. 00:03:21.340 --> 00:03:25.860 And if we've also been internally called and regenerated by the Holy Spirit. 00:03:26.599 --> 00:03:30.840 If we've received this gift from God of faith and repentance. 00:03:31.460 --> 00:03:33.500 And we've been justified by God. 00:03:33.640 --> 00:03:37.840 And we've had the righteousness of Christ put over us. 00:03:37.840 --> 00:03:43.800 And we've been adopted by the Father as precious daughters and treasured sons. 00:03:43.939 --> 00:03:45.659 We've been united to Jesus Christ. 00:03:45.740 --> 00:03:47.000 We've been filled with the Holy Spirit. 00:03:47.099 --> 00:03:53.599 We have an assurance that one day we're going to be glorified before God in the new creation. 00:03:55.300 --> 00:03:59.140 Again, some of you, that's the first time you've ever heard about any of those things. 00:03:59.379 --> 00:04:03.159 And you're here to explore them and ask if those could possibly be true. 00:04:03.159 --> 00:04:06.599 But all that I just described is what's true of a Christian. 00:04:06.599 --> 00:04:10.079 And so if that's true for you. 00:04:10.139 --> 00:04:12.219 If this has happened to you by God's grace. 00:04:13.379 --> 00:04:15.719 And if you're just shocked to be here today. 00:04:15.799 --> 00:04:18.480 You're shocked that of all people, you're a Christian. 00:04:18.839 --> 00:04:23.819 And you know yourself to be more flawed and more sinful than you ever dared believe. 00:04:23.920 --> 00:04:27.800 And yet also more accepted and more loved than you ever dared imagine. 00:04:30.060 --> 00:04:31.219 If all that's true. 00:04:31.220 --> 00:04:36.520 And you notice in yourself as a result of these things new life. 00:04:37.360 --> 00:04:38.420 New desires. 00:04:39.380 --> 00:04:41.960 A new sense of hunger and thirst. 00:04:42.640 --> 00:04:44.880 That you want to be with Jesus. 00:04:45.040 --> 00:04:46.540 And you want to become like Jesus. 00:04:46.660 --> 00:04:48.360 You want to do the things that Jesus did. 00:04:50.000 --> 00:04:50.980 What next? 00:04:51.640 --> 00:04:53.920 What should we do with that? 00:04:54.440 --> 00:04:56.300 How do we grow in the Christian life? 00:04:56.300 --> 00:04:59.160 How do we mature and develop as Christians? 00:05:00.060 --> 00:05:08.860 And what we're suggesting in this sermon series is that we really ought to give our time and our energy to these holy habits of grace. 00:05:08.860 --> 00:05:21.020 Now I saved you the time and the trouble this week by skimming seven books that were published from the year of my birth, 1978, to today. 00:05:21.660 --> 00:05:24.560 And the subject of all these books is the same. 00:05:24.680 --> 00:05:25.560 It's the practices. 00:05:25.939 --> 00:05:28.199 The predictable patterns. 00:05:28.540 --> 00:05:29.500 The habits. 00:05:29.660 --> 00:05:30.139 The rhythms. 00:05:30.360 --> 00:05:32.759 The disciplines of the Christian life. 00:05:32.900 --> 00:05:36.100 And I look for what do all these seven books have in common? 00:05:36.100 --> 00:05:40.000 What do they all say is essential for growing the Christian life? 00:05:40.379 --> 00:05:41.760 And we have a slide, I believe. 00:05:41.900 --> 00:05:44.020 If we can pull that slide up. 00:05:44.480 --> 00:05:48.700 And we'll just, you're going to see this hopefully a lot over this coming series. 00:05:49.260 --> 00:05:51.260 These are all the things that the book said. 00:05:52.460 --> 00:05:55.379 That need to be a part of our regular life. 00:05:55.640 --> 00:05:56.900 Daily, weekly, or monthly. 00:05:57.320 --> 00:05:59.280 If we're going to grow in the Christian life. 00:05:59.279 --> 00:06:07.439 And I would say that in the digital age with, you know, the infinity of our computers in our pockets. 00:06:07.659 --> 00:06:12.779 And the worldwide web at our fingertips 24-7. 00:06:13.559 --> 00:06:20.379 I would say that this holy habit of solitude and silence at the very top should be at the top. 00:06:20.459 --> 00:06:24.239 It should have priority and primacy in our lives. 00:06:24.240 --> 00:06:27.480 And hopefully you'll understand that as we go along this morning. 00:06:27.579 --> 00:06:35.420 But we're going to allow Psalm 131 to open up this first essential spiritual practice for us. 00:06:35.439 --> 00:06:38.199 And we're going to talk about three things over the next few minutes. 00:06:38.280 --> 00:06:45.620 We're going to talk about a weaned child, a calmed and quieted soul, and a mature life with God. 00:06:46.600 --> 00:06:46.920 All right? 00:06:46.980 --> 00:06:52.939 So a weaned child, a calmed and quieted soul, and a mature life with God. 00:06:52.939 --> 00:06:55.500 A weaned child. 00:06:55.620 --> 00:06:58.819 That's the primary metaphor in the Psalm 131. 00:06:59.719 --> 00:07:03.319 And a great preacher from London, Charles Spurgeon, he said this. 00:07:03.399 --> 00:07:07.000 He said, Psalm 131 is one of the shortest psalms to read. 00:07:07.420 --> 00:07:11.220 But it's one of the longest to learn and to experience. 00:07:12.759 --> 00:07:18.360 As we saw in Psalm 1 a few weeks ago, it begins with a series of three negatives. 00:07:18.519 --> 00:07:22.159 These three convictions about who I'm not going to be and how I'm not going to live. 00:07:22.160 --> 00:07:24.660 I'm going to walk not, stand not, and sit not. 00:07:24.700 --> 00:07:25.200 You remember that? 00:07:25.900 --> 00:07:28.439 Well, Psalm 131 begins very similarly. 00:07:28.600 --> 00:07:29.900 He says in verse 1, 00:07:30.900 --> 00:07:32.600 My heart is not proud, Lord. 00:07:32.660 --> 00:07:34.060 My eyes are not haughty. 00:07:34.420 --> 00:07:38.820 I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me. 00:07:38.819 --> 00:07:44.180 My heart and my eyes represent my inner life and my outer life. 00:07:45.099 --> 00:07:47.540 With my heart, I think and I know reality. 00:07:47.680 --> 00:07:52.159 With my eyes, I visualize things and I perceive reality. 00:07:53.180 --> 00:07:54.100 And the psalmist is saying, 00:07:54.100 --> 00:07:58.340 My heart is not me-centered and self-preoccupied. 00:07:58.879 --> 00:08:01.720 And my eyes are not arrogant and presumptuous. 00:08:02.439 --> 00:08:07.180 And all that human self-reliance that we see out in the world, 00:08:07.640 --> 00:08:08.800 he says, 00:08:08.860 --> 00:08:10.980 All that that displeases God, I reject. 00:08:12.000 --> 00:08:13.000 And then he says this. 00:08:13.140 --> 00:08:13.460 He says, 00:08:13.520 --> 00:08:17.580 I do not concern myself with great matters or things too wonderful for me. 00:08:17.579 --> 00:08:20.339 And this is not anti-intellectualism. 00:08:20.500 --> 00:08:24.819 It's not a discouragement from developing the life of the mind 00:08:24.819 --> 00:08:30.240 or pursuing knowledge and discovery and breakthrough in various fields of research. 00:08:30.839 --> 00:08:33.819 If you came to our Cal Scholars Series last week, 00:08:33.899 --> 00:08:34.759 God and the Created Order, 00:08:34.919 --> 00:08:40.980 we had like 45 people here after church talking about the difference between pure math and applied math 00:08:40.980 --> 00:08:43.559 and how that relates to the mind of God. 00:08:43.559 --> 00:08:48.199 So we're going to do that with biology and chemistry and philosophy. 00:08:48.399 --> 00:08:49.859 We could do that with all of your disciplines. 00:08:50.099 --> 00:08:52.559 So this is not about anti-intellectualism. 00:08:53.359 --> 00:08:54.059 What is it about? 00:08:54.139 --> 00:08:59.199 What are the great matters that the psalmist says I've not concerned myself with? 00:08:59.239 --> 00:09:04.039 He's talking about that which is above and beyond the realm of human knowledge. 00:09:05.099 --> 00:09:09.719 He's talking about those profound, mysterious things that are known only to God. 00:09:09.720 --> 00:09:13.600 I think about Deuteronomy 29. 00:09:15.139 --> 00:09:16.240 It says this, 00:09:16.340 --> 00:09:19.200 The secret things belong to the Lord our God, 00:09:19.779 --> 00:09:23.259 but the things revealed belong to us and to our children forever, 00:09:23.680 --> 00:09:26.279 that we may follow all the words of this law. 00:09:27.800 --> 00:09:31.000 The psalmist is saying instead of a restless discontentedness 00:09:31.000 --> 00:09:35.500 and feeling like I need to meddle with God's affairs 00:09:35.500 --> 00:09:39.039 that are way above my head and way above my pay grade, 00:09:40.039 --> 00:09:42.039 I'm just content for God to be God. 00:09:43.000 --> 00:09:46.039 I'm content with the fact that there are just secret things 00:09:46.039 --> 00:09:50.440 that only God can comprehend that I am never going to understand. 00:09:51.059 --> 00:09:52.559 And basically in this moment he's saying, 00:09:53.019 --> 00:09:53.700 I surrender. 00:09:53.700 --> 00:09:59.460 I've surrendered to the fact that I am a finite and limited, 00:10:00.580 --> 00:10:03.640 feeble and frail, dependent and humble creature 00:10:03.640 --> 00:10:06.660 before my transcendent and glorious creator God. 00:10:08.240 --> 00:10:10.960 And the question this psalm provokes for us is, 00:10:11.340 --> 00:10:12.120 have you surrendered? 00:10:13.580 --> 00:10:15.680 Have you opened your hands like that to God and said, 00:10:15.780 --> 00:10:16.320 I surrender? 00:10:17.800 --> 00:10:20.140 And then he goes on. 00:10:20.200 --> 00:10:22.920 Like Psalm 1 gives us these three negatives, 00:10:22.919 --> 00:10:24.759 walk not, stand not, sit not, 00:10:24.799 --> 00:10:25.339 and then says, 00:10:25.439 --> 00:10:29.019 blessed is the one who delights in the law of the Lord 00:10:29.019 --> 00:10:30.259 and meditates on his law day and night. 00:10:30.599 --> 00:10:32.299 Psalm 131 does something very similar. 00:10:32.439 --> 00:10:32.659 It says, 00:10:32.939 --> 00:10:34.199 my heart is not proud, Lord. 00:10:34.299 --> 00:10:35.399 My eyes are not haughty. 00:10:35.439 --> 00:10:38.019 I do not concern myself with great matters 00:10:38.019 --> 00:10:39.319 or things too wonderful for me. 00:10:39.379 --> 00:10:40.620 But here's the positive. 00:10:41.699 --> 00:10:45.399 I have calmed myself and quieted myself. 00:10:45.399 --> 00:10:47.419 I am like a weaned child with its mother, 00:10:47.519 --> 00:10:48.399 like a weaned child. 00:10:48.980 --> 00:10:50.519 I am content. 00:10:50.519 --> 00:10:56.840 The mother is this life-giving, life-nourishing figure. 00:10:58.059 --> 00:11:03.299 And the mother-child relationship is one of great intimacy and care. 00:11:03.939 --> 00:11:04.220 Right? 00:11:04.360 --> 00:11:07.220 So think about your children or think about when you were a child. 00:11:07.340 --> 00:11:10.860 In the heart of a child, in the eyes of a child, 00:11:11.519 --> 00:11:12.919 mom is very big. 00:11:13.860 --> 00:11:16.879 Mom is the most important person in the world. 00:11:16.879 --> 00:11:23.820 And so it's a very big deal when mom decides to wean the child from milk to solids. 00:11:24.779 --> 00:11:27.519 Fortunately, this is before my conscious memory. 00:11:28.419 --> 00:11:29.840 But I know it's difficult. 00:11:30.860 --> 00:11:33.080 And the psalmist is asking us to think about that. 00:11:33.159 --> 00:11:37.179 What's the difference between a nursing child and a weaned child? 00:11:38.320 --> 00:11:41.840 Well, what's a nursing child like when they're hungry and they're tired? 00:11:41.840 --> 00:11:45.600 Maybe we should have some parents come and give testimonies this morning. 00:11:47.040 --> 00:11:49.040 They're squirming and they're squealing. 00:11:49.820 --> 00:11:50.060 Right? 00:11:50.120 --> 00:11:51.560 They're disturbed and distressed. 00:11:51.720 --> 00:11:55.540 They're anxious and they're restless and they're frustrated and they're struggling. 00:11:56.280 --> 00:12:03.139 And this nursing child is just forcing its way to mom with this urgent impetuosity and loud cries, 00:12:03.259 --> 00:12:05.540 demanding satisfaction in my vital needs right now. 00:12:06.820 --> 00:12:08.120 That's the nursing child. 00:12:08.200 --> 00:12:09.280 What's the weaned child do? 00:12:09.279 --> 00:12:16.500 The weaned child has learned to wait calmly and quietly and patiently until the proper time. 00:12:17.779 --> 00:12:17.879 Right? 00:12:17.919 --> 00:12:25.759 The weaned child says that moms, I know that mom's love and mom's constancy is stuff that I can trust 00:12:25.759 --> 00:12:30.419 and I can rely on with my whole being and my whole life. 00:12:31.559 --> 00:12:36.199 The weaned child has come to terms humbly and submissively with the fact 00:12:36.200 --> 00:12:40.780 that mom knows what we need and when we need it. 00:12:41.500 --> 00:12:45.600 And she's going to make sure that we're going to get everything necessary for life. 00:12:45.700 --> 00:12:47.000 Our food and our protection. 00:12:47.780 --> 00:12:49.580 Our care and our consolation. 00:12:49.900 --> 00:12:56.400 The weaned child has made this transition from protest and indignation and restlessness 00:12:56.399 --> 00:13:01.159 to this calm and quiet trust and restfulness. 00:13:02.860 --> 00:13:11.199 The weaned child has become just a little bit less me-centered and a little bit more mom-centered. 00:13:12.379 --> 00:13:18.019 The weaned child is not necessarily here to get something but to just enjoy someone. 00:13:18.019 --> 00:13:23.139 Not necessarily to demand the gifts but to just enjoy the giver. 00:13:24.500 --> 00:13:28.279 The weaned child is content to just be with his mother, 00:13:28.439 --> 00:13:33.659 enjoying her closeness and her love without demanding anything else. 00:13:34.939 --> 00:13:40.779 And I love this quote from a German commentator on the Psalms. 00:13:40.779 --> 00:13:41.059 He says, 00:13:41.059 --> 00:13:45.419 The Christian is not like an infant crying loudly for his mother's breast, 00:13:46.120 --> 00:13:50.679 but like a weaned child that quietly rests by his mother's side, 00:13:50.919 --> 00:13:52.759 happy in being with her. 00:13:53.779 --> 00:13:56.059 No desire now comes between him and his God, 00:13:56.139 --> 00:13:59.679 for he is sure that God knows what he needs before he asks him. 00:14:00.439 --> 00:14:03.959 And just as the child gradually breaks off the habit of regarding his mother 00:14:03.959 --> 00:14:07.500 only as a means of satisfying his own desires 00:14:07.500 --> 00:14:10.399 and learns to love her for her own sake. 00:14:10.980 --> 00:14:14.679 So the worshiper after a struggle has reached an attitude of mind which, 00:14:15.960 --> 00:14:16.720 here it is, 00:14:17.000 --> 00:14:19.559 in which he desires God for himself 00:14:19.559 --> 00:14:23.340 and not as a means of fulfillment of his own wishes. 00:14:24.419 --> 00:14:26.879 His life center of gravity has shifted. 00:14:27.360 --> 00:14:32.299 He now rests no longer in himself but in God. 00:14:32.299 --> 00:14:37.859 We so often approach God only for what he can give to us 00:14:37.859 --> 00:14:41.859 rather than this more mature approach that we're presented here 00:14:41.859 --> 00:14:47.379 of simply enjoying his presence and joyfully content just to be with him. 00:14:48.459 --> 00:14:50.279 And so this list of holy habits, 00:14:50.459 --> 00:14:53.599 we're not doing that just to like lay more things on you. 00:14:53.779 --> 00:14:54.079 Actually, 00:14:54.179 --> 00:14:56.939 we're hoping to take some things off of you in this sermon series 00:14:56.939 --> 00:14:58.399 and to give you life. 00:14:58.479 --> 00:14:59.419 And these are the means, 00:14:59.419 --> 00:15:02.019 these are the tools that are going to enable you 00:15:02.019 --> 00:15:05.259 and equip you to enjoy God more. 00:15:06.079 --> 00:15:13.120 Which is the whole point of this great image of the child with his mother. 00:15:14.059 --> 00:15:14.559 You with me? 00:15:15.000 --> 00:15:15.659 The weaned child? 00:15:16.120 --> 00:15:17.799 It's a beautiful, amazing image. 00:15:18.059 --> 00:15:18.719 The weaned child. 00:15:19.179 --> 00:15:22.179 And I want to think a little bit more together about this phrase, 00:15:22.339 --> 00:15:24.039 a calmed and quieted soul. 00:15:25.259 --> 00:15:26.819 A calmed and quieted soul. 00:15:26.820 --> 00:15:30.560 Last week we looked at Psalm 42 and 43 00:15:30.560 --> 00:15:33.820 and those words that we just sang a minute ago. 00:15:33.920 --> 00:15:36.120 Why my soul are you downcast? 00:15:36.160 --> 00:15:36.900 And the psalmist says, 00:15:37.420 --> 00:15:38.940 soul, put your hope in God. 00:15:39.000 --> 00:15:42.520 It's like he sees his soul as a distinct entity 00:15:42.520 --> 00:15:46.040 that he can talk to and that he can work with and work on. 00:15:46.980 --> 00:15:48.920 And Psalm 131 is the same. 00:15:49.020 --> 00:15:50.980 And here's a bit of a different translation 00:15:50.980 --> 00:15:53.580 so it maybe hits you at a different angle. 00:15:53.660 --> 00:15:54.060 Here it is. 00:15:54.059 --> 00:16:00.039 Truly, I have brought my soul to stillness and silence. 00:16:00.799 --> 00:16:03.959 Like a child cuddles itself to its mother, 00:16:04.859 --> 00:16:07.279 so is my soul with God. 00:16:08.259 --> 00:16:09.159 Isn't that beautiful? 00:16:11.759 --> 00:16:12.839 I think it's beautiful. 00:16:14.519 --> 00:16:15.239 Thank you. 00:16:15.659 --> 00:16:16.719 I'm glad you're listening. 00:16:16.720 --> 00:16:22.840 If we hope to calm and quiet our souls before God, 00:16:22.899 --> 00:16:27.680 if we hope to bring our souls to stillness and silence in his presence, 00:16:28.399 --> 00:16:30.600 we've got some work to do, honestly. 00:16:31.620 --> 00:16:37.040 And what I want us to think about over the next few minutes is just to scrutinize for a second 00:16:37.040 --> 00:16:42.560 how we engage with our technology vis-a-vis the calmness and quietness of our souls 00:16:42.559 --> 00:16:49.619 and how we prioritize and manage our time vis-a-vis the calmness and quietness of our souls. 00:16:50.299 --> 00:16:55.839 And I'm hoping you might walk away today with a list of a couple things that you sense God wants you to stop doing 00:16:55.839 --> 00:17:02.959 with your technology and with your time in order that you can have a calm and quieted soul. 00:17:02.960 --> 00:17:06.120 So I'm just going to give you a brief diagnosis of the problem, 00:17:06.440 --> 00:17:10.240 and this is all footnoted in a great book called The Ruthless Elimination of Hurry. 00:17:10.600 --> 00:17:13.460 Thanks to John Mark Comer for doing all the homework for us. 00:17:14.180 --> 00:17:18.160 But that book argues that, of course, technology can be used for good, 00:17:18.819 --> 00:17:23.319 but that it can also destroy our soul, and it's destroying our souls. 00:17:23.579 --> 00:17:26.039 It's destroying our relationships with God. 00:17:26.039 --> 00:17:32.079 The average iPhone user touches their phone 2,617 times a day 00:17:32.079 --> 00:17:38.440 and is on their phone 2.5 hours over a series of 76 sessions. 00:17:39.539 --> 00:17:43.139 And a study of millennials put the number at two times what I just told you. 00:17:43.980 --> 00:17:45.779 And so the question is immediately, like, 00:17:46.000 --> 00:17:51.259 what would my life be like if God touched my mind as frequently as I touched my phone? 00:17:51.259 --> 00:17:56.240 One study says that just being in the same room as your phone, 00:17:56.400 --> 00:17:58.680 even if your phone is turned off, quote, 00:17:59.099 --> 00:18:02.440 will reduce someone's working memory and problem-solving skills. 00:18:03.099 --> 00:18:04.859 If you grow dependent on your smartphone, 00:18:05.079 --> 00:18:11.279 it becomes a magical device that silently shouts your name at your brain at all times. 00:18:12.720 --> 00:18:16.779 So much time is lost in the black hole of our phones. 00:18:17.579 --> 00:18:20.660 In fact, our phones are black mirrors when you think about it. 00:18:20.660 --> 00:18:23.480 They're these black mirrors, and we stare into them, 00:18:23.540 --> 00:18:25.380 and they reflect our image back to us, 00:18:25.400 --> 00:18:28.660 and we bow down to it for, like, hours at a time. 00:18:29.400 --> 00:18:33.140 And that adds up, actually, if you were to calculate it, 00:18:33.180 --> 00:18:36.180 to a huge amount of time in a given day or a given week. 00:18:37.759 --> 00:18:40.200 Much of this technology has been, as we know, 00:18:40.259 --> 00:18:43.680 it's been created to exploit the vulnerabilities in our human psyches. 00:18:44.700 --> 00:18:48.120 Multi-billion-dollar companies are asking the question, 00:18:48.119 --> 00:18:50.359 either right now or tomorrow morning, 00:18:50.679 --> 00:18:55.839 how can we consume and sell as much of Jonathan's time and conscious attention 00:18:55.839 --> 00:18:57.899 as he will give to us? 00:18:57.959 --> 00:19:02.699 And we become addicted to these dopamine dispensers in our pockets 00:19:02.699 --> 00:19:08.599 and the whole ecosystem of interruption technologies that they represent. 00:19:08.859 --> 00:19:10.559 And here's what's happening to your brain. 00:19:10.559 --> 00:19:13.379 Here's what's happening to your neural pathways, 00:19:14.019 --> 00:19:16.879 that as these things control our attention, 00:19:17.779 --> 00:19:20.659 they chip away at our capacity to focus, 00:19:21.319 --> 00:19:23.940 to concentrate, and to contemplate. 00:19:24.819 --> 00:19:27.779 A goldfish has the attention span of nine seconds, 00:19:28.619 --> 00:19:31.879 and an iPhone user, your average iPhone user, 00:19:32.220 --> 00:19:34.500 is beat by the goldfish by about one second, 00:19:35.240 --> 00:19:37.799 which doesn't bode well for preaching either. 00:19:37.799 --> 00:19:38.740 It's tough. 00:19:40.980 --> 00:19:44.680 Continuous partial attention has become the new normal in our society 00:19:44.680 --> 00:19:45.759 and in the church. 00:19:46.980 --> 00:19:49.759 And we're not even talking about the fire-breathing dragon 00:19:49.759 --> 00:19:51.299 of our streaming devices today. 00:19:51.379 --> 00:19:52.720 I'm not just going to leave that over here. 00:19:54.200 --> 00:19:55.220 Your phone says to you, 00:19:55.319 --> 00:19:57.279 you can be in two places at once, 00:19:57.299 --> 00:19:59.159 but in reality, you're at no place at all. 00:19:59.919 --> 00:20:00.980 Your phone says to you, 00:20:01.039 --> 00:20:02.119 you can be present everywhere, 00:20:02.319 --> 00:20:04.460 but in reality, you're present to no one. 00:20:04.519 --> 00:20:05.480 You're present nowhere. 00:20:05.480 --> 00:20:13.059 We have given ourselves willingly over to paying attention to distractions 00:20:13.059 --> 00:20:17.839 rather than paying attention to the most important things in our lives. 00:20:18.259 --> 00:20:19.660 First of all, God. 00:20:19.920 --> 00:20:21.259 Second of all, each other. 00:20:22.599 --> 00:20:24.279 This is where you should say amen. 00:20:24.500 --> 00:20:25.039 Amen. 00:20:25.319 --> 00:20:25.460 Okay. 00:20:26.700 --> 00:20:28.380 Gosh, I got to work on you guys. 00:20:28.380 --> 00:20:32.500 So I want to give you some suggested prescriptions 00:20:32.500 --> 00:20:36.460 for how to calm and quiet your souls with respect to your technology. 00:20:37.640 --> 00:20:41.760 And I think about these as habits of resistance or anti-habits. 00:20:42.340 --> 00:20:43.240 And so here they go. 00:20:43.380 --> 00:20:46.060 You just, whichever one works for you, just go with it. 00:20:46.420 --> 00:20:48.200 Turn off the notifications on your phone. 00:20:49.600 --> 00:20:49.880 Right? 00:20:49.980 --> 00:20:50.540 That's number one. 00:20:51.100 --> 00:20:54.160 Number two, turn off your phone for one hour a day. 00:20:54.160 --> 00:20:57.200 If you really want to be radical, 00:20:58.259 --> 00:21:03.880 don't look at or touch your phone for the first and last hour of your day. 00:21:04.860 --> 00:21:07.920 In fact, put your phone to bed before you go to bed 00:21:07.920 --> 00:21:10.019 and you wake up before your phone wakes up. 00:21:10.120 --> 00:21:13.160 And do not let your phone sleep in your bedroom. 00:21:13.900 --> 00:21:15.440 And if you want to be an extremist, 00:21:16.019 --> 00:21:19.220 not only start it in your day for the first hour without your phone, 00:21:19.400 --> 00:21:23.060 but turn your phone off for that hour when you get home from work. 00:21:23.059 --> 00:21:24.440 And here's the reason why. 00:21:25.000 --> 00:21:29.240 Blaise Pascal, great mathematician, philosopher, and theologian, 00:21:29.259 --> 00:21:29.559 he said, 00:21:29.839 --> 00:21:35.619 all man's problems stem from his inability to sit quietly in a room alone. 00:21:37.779 --> 00:21:40.839 We don't have the ability to do that anymore. 00:21:41.639 --> 00:21:43.579 And therefore, we have so many problems 00:21:43.579 --> 00:21:46.319 that are completely unnecessary problems. 00:21:48.000 --> 00:21:50.399 So what about the problem of our time? 00:21:50.400 --> 00:21:53.380 How do we prioritize and manage our time 00:21:53.380 --> 00:21:55.920 so that our souls can be calmed and quieted? 00:21:56.740 --> 00:21:59.400 All of us are plagued by this hurry sickness 00:21:59.400 --> 00:22:01.259 where we're chronically short of time. 00:22:01.519 --> 00:22:04.060 We're continually rushing and anxious. 00:22:04.380 --> 00:22:06.980 We're flustered when we encounter any kind of delay 00:22:06.980 --> 00:22:10.240 because we've built in zero margin into our lives. 00:22:10.740 --> 00:22:12.780 We're just in this continuous struggle 00:22:12.780 --> 00:22:15.160 and this unremitting attempt to accomplish 00:22:15.160 --> 00:22:17.580 or to achieve more and more things 00:22:17.579 --> 00:22:19.579 or to participate in more and more events 00:22:19.579 --> 00:22:21.039 in less and less time. 00:22:21.939 --> 00:22:24.359 The Apostle Paul wrote this in Ephesians 5 00:22:24.359 --> 00:22:26.579 to Christians 2,000 years ago 00:22:26.579 --> 00:22:28.019 in a city, the city of Ephesus. 00:22:28.159 --> 00:22:28.500 He said, 00:22:29.759 --> 00:22:32.159 look very carefully at how you live. 00:22:33.079 --> 00:22:34.879 Look very carefully at how you walk, 00:22:35.139 --> 00:22:37.339 not as unwise but as wise, 00:22:37.699 --> 00:22:39.839 making the best use of the time 00:22:39.839 --> 00:22:42.099 because the days are evil. 00:22:42.179 --> 00:22:43.740 And I think if the Apostle Paul were here, 00:22:43.740 --> 00:22:46.579 he would say to us that you have a spiritual enemy. 00:22:47.859 --> 00:22:49.359 He is a dark power 00:22:49.359 --> 00:22:52.500 and he wants to use busyness 00:22:52.500 --> 00:22:55.579 and hurry and noise and crowds 00:22:55.579 --> 00:22:57.799 and distractions and overload 00:22:57.799 --> 00:23:00.079 to keep you from God 00:23:00.079 --> 00:23:02.279 and to cause you to settle 00:23:02.279 --> 00:23:05.579 for a mediocre version of the Christian faith. 00:23:06.980 --> 00:23:09.880 And the solution to that over busy life 00:23:09.880 --> 00:23:13.019 is not magically to get 26 hours in the day. 00:23:13.019 --> 00:23:14.859 Nobody can add that on. 00:23:15.220 --> 00:23:15.879 It's just simple. 00:23:15.980 --> 00:23:18.839 It's to do what we're doing in this series, 00:23:19.200 --> 00:23:21.019 to simplify our lives 00:23:21.019 --> 00:23:22.599 back down to the essentials 00:23:22.599 --> 00:23:25.339 and then to organize our time 00:23:25.339 --> 00:23:27.480 around what really matters. 00:23:28.660 --> 00:23:29.900 And what does that mean practically? 00:23:30.579 --> 00:23:31.940 Well, for example, 00:23:32.299 --> 00:23:35.180 instead of one hour of TV before bed, 00:23:35.879 --> 00:23:38.519 you could actually read through the entire Bible 00:23:38.519 --> 00:23:40.519 in six months with that time. 00:23:40.519 --> 00:23:42.579 Or another example, 00:23:42.700 --> 00:23:44.879 instead of 20 minutes on social media 00:23:44.879 --> 00:23:45.440 in the morning, 00:23:45.839 --> 00:23:48.579 you could pray for every single one 00:23:48.579 --> 00:23:50.400 of your friends and family members 00:23:50.400 --> 00:23:52.700 and probably half of this church in that time. 00:23:54.639 --> 00:23:55.900 So here's what we're going to do. 00:23:56.339 --> 00:23:57.720 I'm going to stop preaching for a second. 00:23:58.859 --> 00:24:00.240 We're just going to pause for a moment. 00:24:01.379 --> 00:24:03.259 And I want you to listen to your heart. 00:24:03.259 --> 00:24:08.039 And I want you to ask your heart, 00:24:08.180 --> 00:24:11.579 what do I sense the Holy Spirit speaking to me right now 00:24:11.579 --> 00:24:14.519 that he wants me to stop doing 00:24:14.519 --> 00:24:17.960 with my technology and with my time? 00:24:19.379 --> 00:24:20.879 And whatever that first thing is 00:24:20.879 --> 00:24:21.980 that just popped into your head, 00:24:22.339 --> 00:24:22.920 write it down. 00:24:25.299 --> 00:24:26.819 Write down whatever that thing is. 00:24:26.900 --> 00:24:27.980 And then next to that thing, 00:24:28.019 --> 00:24:29.680 I want you to write down the name of the friend 00:24:29.680 --> 00:24:30.920 that you're going to tell about that thing 00:24:30.920 --> 00:24:31.900 that just came into your mind. 00:24:33.140 --> 00:24:34.320 And then next to that name, 00:24:34.360 --> 00:24:35.320 I want you to write down 00:24:35.320 --> 00:24:36.420 when you're going to stop. 00:24:37.220 --> 00:24:38.720 Like today or tomorrow 00:24:38.720 --> 00:24:41.060 or Wednesday after dinner or whatever. 00:24:41.600 --> 00:24:43.019 And then here's the deal. 00:24:43.259 --> 00:24:43.960 Go home today, 00:24:44.460 --> 00:24:45.100 tell your friend, 00:24:45.600 --> 00:24:46.580 and stop. 00:24:48.880 --> 00:24:49.960 What's the goal of that? 00:24:50.320 --> 00:24:52.120 What's the goal of these anti-habits 00:24:52.120 --> 00:24:53.400 and these habits of resistance? 00:24:53.800 --> 00:24:54.360 It's this. 00:24:54.359 --> 00:24:55.899 Truly, 00:24:56.099 --> 00:24:57.279 I have brought my soul 00:24:57.279 --> 00:24:58.779 to stillness and silence. 00:24:59.459 --> 00:25:01.639 Like a child cuddles itself to its mother, 00:25:01.740 --> 00:25:03.899 that is my soul with God. 00:25:04.839 --> 00:25:06.559 And we're never going to experience 00:25:06.559 --> 00:25:08.059 the fullness of what that means 00:25:08.059 --> 00:25:10.439 unless we get a handle on our technology 00:25:10.439 --> 00:25:11.479 and our time. 00:25:12.519 --> 00:25:14.000 Here's the last thing I want to talk about 00:25:14.000 --> 00:25:15.579 is a mature life with God. 00:25:16.099 --> 00:25:18.279 A mature life with God. 00:25:19.039 --> 00:25:20.500 And this comes out of verse three. 00:25:20.639 --> 00:25:20.859 It says, 00:25:20.859 --> 00:25:21.359 Israel, 00:25:21.839 --> 00:25:23.119 put your hope in the Lord 00:25:23.119 --> 00:25:25.119 both now and forevermore. 00:25:25.179 --> 00:25:26.419 The psalmist is inviting 00:25:26.419 --> 00:25:27.179 and challenging 00:25:27.179 --> 00:25:28.839 all the people of God 00:25:28.839 --> 00:25:31.459 to make his experience with the Lord 00:25:31.459 --> 00:25:34.159 their fundamental way of life. 00:25:34.899 --> 00:25:35.399 He says, 00:25:35.459 --> 00:25:36.619 I want you to hope in 00:25:36.619 --> 00:25:38.819 and trust in the Lord with me. 00:25:38.939 --> 00:25:39.899 I want you to give up 00:25:39.899 --> 00:25:43.119 your reliance on yourself 00:25:43.119 --> 00:25:45.199 and I want you to rely 00:25:45.199 --> 00:25:46.859 on the Lord alone with me. 00:25:46.939 --> 00:25:48.059 I don't want you to lift up 00:25:48.059 --> 00:25:49.339 your heart in pride. 00:25:49.339 --> 00:25:51.039 I don't want you to raise your eyes 00:25:51.039 --> 00:25:51.839 in arrogance 00:25:51.839 --> 00:25:53.919 as if we control the world. 00:25:54.059 --> 00:25:55.220 I'm asking you to come 00:25:55.220 --> 00:25:57.220 and just rest in the arms of the Lord 00:25:57.220 --> 00:25:58.059 with me 00:25:58.059 --> 00:26:00.459 because the Lord knows all that we need 00:26:00.459 --> 00:26:02.439 and he will provide it. 00:26:02.579 --> 00:26:03.599 So the psalmist says, 00:26:03.980 --> 00:26:04.279 trust him. 00:26:05.159 --> 00:26:06.099 Hope in him. 00:26:06.220 --> 00:26:06.679 And he says, 00:26:06.919 --> 00:26:08.000 do it now. 00:26:08.319 --> 00:26:09.259 Do it today. 00:26:09.619 --> 00:26:11.039 Do it from this time forth. 00:26:11.139 --> 00:26:13.639 Do it from this beginning point on. 00:26:13.640 --> 00:26:16.220 And as we get to the New Testament, 00:26:16.340 --> 00:26:17.720 we realize that really 00:26:17.720 --> 00:26:19.420 there was only one Israelite 00:26:19.420 --> 00:26:22.500 who fully and consistently 00:26:22.500 --> 00:26:24.380 and comprehensively embodied 00:26:24.380 --> 00:26:26.920 this hope in the Lord perfectly. 00:26:27.080 --> 00:26:28.280 And so I just want to take a look 00:26:28.280 --> 00:26:29.380 for a moment at Jesus 00:26:29.380 --> 00:26:32.480 and his practices of solitude 00:26:32.480 --> 00:26:33.220 and silence 00:26:33.220 --> 00:26:35.920 that enabled him to put his hope 00:26:35.920 --> 00:26:37.480 in God the Father. 00:26:38.020 --> 00:26:39.740 When we think about Jesus' holy habits, 00:26:39.820 --> 00:26:42.020 when we think about his predictable patterns, 00:26:42.019 --> 00:26:43.920 he was strengthened daily 00:26:43.920 --> 00:26:45.819 in solitude with his Father. 00:26:47.000 --> 00:26:49.680 Every day he began his day 00:26:49.680 --> 00:26:51.960 seeking out what he calls in his teachings 00:26:51.960 --> 00:26:53.500 the secret place 00:26:53.500 --> 00:26:55.039 or the solitary place. 00:26:55.619 --> 00:26:57.180 And he did that not as an activity 00:26:57.180 --> 00:26:59.079 done for its own sake, 00:26:59.160 --> 00:27:01.539 but he did it in order to give himself access 00:27:01.539 --> 00:27:04.019 to the Father's presence and power 00:27:04.019 --> 00:27:05.799 and to bring himself 00:27:05.799 --> 00:27:07.539 into more effective alignment 00:27:07.539 --> 00:27:08.440 and cooperation 00:27:08.440 --> 00:27:10.279 with the King of the universe 00:27:10.279 --> 00:27:11.000 and his kingdom 00:27:11.000 --> 00:27:13.819 and so that Jesus could live out of 00:27:13.819 --> 00:27:15.160 and operate out of 00:27:15.160 --> 00:27:16.940 the fullness of the Father's life 00:27:16.940 --> 00:27:18.660 and the wholeness 00:27:18.660 --> 00:27:20.579 of the Father's will. 00:27:20.680 --> 00:27:22.019 And if Jesus needed to do that, 00:27:22.099 --> 00:27:24.220 how much more do we need to do that? 00:27:25.180 --> 00:27:26.400 So how did he do it? 00:27:26.440 --> 00:27:28.660 How did he seek that external solitude 00:27:28.660 --> 00:27:29.900 so that when he entered back 00:27:29.900 --> 00:27:30.720 into the noise 00:27:30.720 --> 00:27:32.240 and the hurry of life 00:27:32.240 --> 00:27:32.900 and the crowds, 00:27:33.160 --> 00:27:34.980 he remained in that place 00:27:34.980 --> 00:27:37.460 of inward heart solitude? 00:27:38.160 --> 00:27:39.220 How did he do it? 00:27:39.220 --> 00:27:40.880 Well, here's some examples 00:27:40.880 --> 00:27:41.660 in the Gospels. 00:27:42.799 --> 00:27:43.839 In Mark chapter 1, 00:27:44.960 --> 00:27:47.180 we find this one long chapter 00:27:47.180 --> 00:27:49.059 about Jesus' first day on the job 00:27:49.059 --> 00:27:49.759 as the Messiah 00:27:49.759 --> 00:27:52.200 and it's an absolute marathon. 00:27:52.480 --> 00:27:54.319 He's up early teaching in the synagogue 00:27:54.319 --> 00:27:56.640 and then he goes and has lunch 00:27:56.640 --> 00:27:58.160 and he heals a woman over lunch 00:27:58.160 --> 00:27:59.240 and then late that night, 00:27:59.380 --> 00:28:00.440 he's up, you know, 00:28:00.559 --> 00:28:01.680 healing the sick 00:28:01.680 --> 00:28:02.440 and the demonized 00:28:02.440 --> 00:28:03.319 who've been brought to him 00:28:03.319 --> 00:28:04.940 and so he's probably pretty exhausted 00:28:04.940 --> 00:28:05.860 at the end of the day 00:28:05.859 --> 00:28:07.959 and it says in Mark 1 31, 00:28:08.139 --> 00:28:08.439 it says, 00:28:08.759 --> 00:28:09.759 very early in the morning 00:28:09.759 --> 00:28:11.339 while it was still dark, 00:28:11.459 --> 00:28:12.359 Jesus got up, 00:28:12.819 --> 00:28:13.599 left the house 00:28:13.599 --> 00:28:16.159 and went off to a solitary place, 00:28:16.199 --> 00:28:17.859 a calm and quiet place 00:28:17.859 --> 00:28:20.079 where he prayed. 00:28:21.439 --> 00:28:22.859 In Mark chapter 6, 00:28:23.139 --> 00:28:24.719 we learn about the disciples. 00:28:24.939 --> 00:28:25.579 They've been sent out 00:28:25.579 --> 00:28:26.659 by Jesus on a mission. 00:28:27.199 --> 00:28:28.459 They return from that. 00:28:28.879 --> 00:28:30.059 It's been physically demanding. 00:28:30.279 --> 00:28:32.259 It's been spiritually taxing 00:28:32.259 --> 00:28:33.920 and it says this in Mark 6, 00:28:33.980 --> 00:28:34.240 it says, 00:28:34.359 --> 00:28:35.900 the apostles gathered around Jesus 00:28:35.900 --> 00:28:36.859 and reported to him 00:28:36.859 --> 00:28:38.980 all they had done and taught 00:28:38.980 --> 00:28:40.799 and then because so many people 00:28:40.799 --> 00:28:41.960 were coming and going 00:28:41.960 --> 00:28:43.640 that they did not even have 00:28:43.640 --> 00:28:44.480 a chance to eat, 00:28:45.099 --> 00:28:45.799 he said to them, 00:28:46.539 --> 00:28:48.079 come with me by yourselves 00:28:48.079 --> 00:28:49.799 to a solitary place, 00:28:50.059 --> 00:28:52.440 to a calm and quiet place 00:28:52.440 --> 00:28:53.980 and get some rest. 00:28:55.440 --> 00:28:56.440 Shortly after that, 00:28:56.519 --> 00:28:57.740 he taught the 5,000 00:28:57.740 --> 00:28:58.420 and he fed them 00:28:58.420 --> 00:28:59.339 with the loaves and fishes 00:28:59.339 --> 00:29:01.359 and it says in Mark 6 45 00:29:01.359 --> 00:29:03.079 that after he'd taken leave 00:29:03.079 --> 00:29:03.819 of the crowds 00:29:03.819 --> 00:29:05.179 and of his disciples, 00:29:05.519 --> 00:29:07.500 he went up alone by himself 00:29:07.500 --> 00:29:08.259 on a mountain 00:29:08.259 --> 00:29:10.959 where he prayed. 00:29:12.339 --> 00:29:14.119 Our text from Luke 5 today 00:29:14.119 --> 00:29:15.279 is after Jesus healed 00:29:15.279 --> 00:29:16.439 a man with leprosy 00:29:16.439 --> 00:29:17.199 and it says, 00:29:17.799 --> 00:29:18.559 the news about him 00:29:18.559 --> 00:29:19.459 spread all the more 00:29:19.459 --> 00:29:20.679 so that the crowds of people 00:29:20.679 --> 00:29:21.579 came to hear him 00:29:21.579 --> 00:29:23.240 and be healed of their sicknesses 00:29:23.240 --> 00:29:24.740 but Jesus, it says, 00:29:24.799 --> 00:29:26.619 he often withdrew 00:29:26.619 --> 00:29:28.819 to solitary places, 00:29:28.919 --> 00:29:30.699 to calm and quiet places 00:29:30.700 --> 00:29:32.779 where he prayed. 00:29:34.500 --> 00:29:35.480 And even as Jesus 00:29:35.480 --> 00:29:36.160 was preparing 00:29:36.160 --> 00:29:37.180 for his highest 00:29:37.180 --> 00:29:38.200 and holiest work 00:29:38.200 --> 00:29:38.819 the night before 00:29:38.819 --> 00:29:39.680 his crucifixion, 00:29:39.960 --> 00:29:40.600 where did he go? 00:29:40.660 --> 00:29:41.380 He went to the garden 00:29:41.380 --> 00:29:42.019 of Gethsemane 00:29:42.019 --> 00:29:43.980 for solitude and silence 00:29:43.980 --> 00:29:45.080 and it says in Luke 22 00:29:45.080 --> 00:29:46.059 that Jesus went out 00:29:46.059 --> 00:29:47.299 to that place 00:29:47.299 --> 00:29:48.580 as usual, 00:29:49.319 --> 00:29:50.420 as was his custom, 00:29:50.580 --> 00:29:52.519 as was his habit. 00:29:55.039 --> 00:29:55.559 You know, 00:29:55.600 --> 00:29:56.440 people were clamoring 00:29:56.440 --> 00:29:57.480 for Jesus' attention 00:29:57.480 --> 00:29:58.680 all the time. 00:29:58.680 --> 00:30:01.080 they wanted his help 00:30:01.080 --> 00:30:01.840 all the time. 00:30:02.100 --> 00:30:03.140 We can barely imagine 00:30:03.140 --> 00:30:04.440 what that must have been like. 00:30:05.420 --> 00:30:07.279 And he also had the ability 00:30:07.279 --> 00:30:09.440 to help every single person 00:30:09.440 --> 00:30:10.279 who came to him 00:30:10.279 --> 00:30:10.820 and yet, 00:30:11.039 --> 00:30:12.640 he disciplined himself 00:30:12.640 --> 00:30:15.019 with this holy habit 00:30:15.019 --> 00:30:16.440 of withdrawing 00:30:16.440 --> 00:30:17.480 to these solitary 00:30:17.480 --> 00:30:19.279 and calm and quiet 00:30:19.279 --> 00:30:20.740 places with his father 00:30:20.740 --> 00:30:21.560 and that is how 00:30:21.560 --> 00:30:22.660 he was so grounded 00:30:22.660 --> 00:30:23.580 and so centered. 00:30:24.680 --> 00:30:26.779 It's how he stayed connected 00:30:26.779 --> 00:30:27.899 to God and to himself, 00:30:28.079 --> 00:30:29.879 it's how he remained clear 00:30:29.879 --> 00:30:31.819 about his identity 00:30:31.819 --> 00:30:32.579 and his mission, 00:30:32.740 --> 00:30:33.500 who he was 00:30:33.500 --> 00:30:34.779 and why he was there. 00:30:36.119 --> 00:30:37.059 In the centuries 00:30:37.059 --> 00:30:38.460 after Jesus was resurrected 00:30:38.460 --> 00:30:39.180 from the dead, 00:30:40.279 --> 00:30:41.059 men and women 00:30:41.059 --> 00:30:42.059 over generations, 00:30:42.299 --> 00:30:42.980 they imitated 00:30:42.980 --> 00:30:43.980 this practice 00:30:43.980 --> 00:30:44.759 of retreat 00:30:44.759 --> 00:30:45.660 and return, 00:30:46.119 --> 00:30:46.359 withdraw 00:30:46.359 --> 00:30:47.579 and engage, 00:30:48.039 --> 00:30:48.619 solitude 00:30:48.619 --> 00:30:49.519 to serve 00:30:49.519 --> 00:30:51.099 and it changed 00:30:51.099 --> 00:30:51.579 the world. 00:30:52.639 --> 00:30:53.319 And so the question 00:30:53.319 --> 00:30:53.920 for us is 00:30:53.920 --> 00:30:56.060 how is God calling you 00:30:56.060 --> 00:30:58.160 to purposefully 00:30:58.160 --> 00:30:59.180 abstain 00:30:59.180 --> 00:31:00.480 from interactions 00:31:00.480 --> 00:31:01.220 with other people 00:31:01.220 --> 00:31:02.019 in real life 00:31:02.019 --> 00:31:02.720 and online 00:31:02.720 --> 00:31:04.360 for this kind of 00:31:04.360 --> 00:31:05.680 temporary withdrawal 00:31:05.680 --> 00:31:08.220 and this strategic retreat 00:31:08.220 --> 00:31:09.740 just tomorrow? 00:31:11.240 --> 00:31:12.140 What does he want you 00:31:12.140 --> 00:31:12.700 to do tomorrow? 00:31:13.920 --> 00:31:14.820 What does he want you 00:31:14.820 --> 00:31:15.680 to do this week? 00:31:17.759 --> 00:31:18.840 People who have made 00:31:18.840 --> 00:31:19.820 the most rapid, 00:31:20.100 --> 00:31:20.539 consistent, 00:31:20.880 --> 00:31:21.720 and evident growth 00:31:21.720 --> 00:31:22.740 in Christ's likeness, 00:31:22.740 --> 00:31:23.920 they've developed 00:31:23.920 --> 00:31:25.079 this predictable pattern, 00:31:25.200 --> 00:31:25.940 this holy habit 00:31:25.940 --> 00:31:27.900 of daily calm 00:31:27.900 --> 00:31:28.880 and quiet time 00:31:28.880 --> 00:31:29.640 with God. 00:31:30.599 --> 00:31:31.420 And I want to just 00:31:31.420 --> 00:31:32.339 give you four steps 00:31:32.339 --> 00:31:32.960 as I close, 00:31:33.079 --> 00:31:33.960 four baby steps 00:31:33.960 --> 00:31:35.319 for how you can do it. 00:31:35.400 --> 00:31:36.400 First thing is this. 00:31:37.980 --> 00:31:38.940 In the morning 00:31:38.940 --> 00:31:40.680 and at night, 00:31:40.980 --> 00:31:41.519 first thing 00:31:41.519 --> 00:31:42.000 and last thing 00:31:42.000 --> 00:31:42.420 of the day, 00:31:43.099 --> 00:31:43.859 just take a second 00:31:43.859 --> 00:31:44.839 and step outside 00:31:44.839 --> 00:31:47.539 and look up 00:31:47.539 --> 00:31:48.140 at the sky. 00:31:50.160 --> 00:31:51.299 Notice what you see 00:31:51.299 --> 00:31:53.379 and say wow. 00:31:55.059 --> 00:31:56.059 Say thank you. 00:31:57.319 --> 00:31:58.480 Say help. 00:31:59.440 --> 00:32:00.079 Just sit there 00:32:00.079 --> 00:32:00.539 for a second 00:32:00.539 --> 00:32:02.720 and be with God. 00:32:03.839 --> 00:32:04.819 Baby step number one. 00:32:04.899 --> 00:32:05.799 Baby step number two. 00:32:06.480 --> 00:32:07.339 If you can't spend 00:32:07.339 --> 00:32:08.720 an hour with God 00:32:08.720 --> 00:32:10.019 in the morning 00:32:10.019 --> 00:32:10.700 and if you think 00:32:10.700 --> 00:32:11.460 that's impossible, 00:32:11.700 --> 00:32:12.519 it's not impossible, 00:32:12.899 --> 00:32:13.919 but if you're not there, 00:32:14.639 --> 00:32:16.299 start with 10 to 15 minutes 00:32:16.299 --> 00:32:17.480 and just pray a psalm 00:32:17.480 --> 00:32:18.680 and go walk around the block 00:32:18.680 --> 00:32:19.400 and talk to God 00:32:19.400 --> 00:32:20.620 about what's on your heart, 00:32:21.580 --> 00:32:22.440 what the day is about. 00:32:23.840 --> 00:32:24.880 If that's too much, 00:32:25.140 --> 00:32:26.420 start with five minutes. 00:32:26.600 --> 00:32:27.180 If that's too much, 00:32:27.279 --> 00:32:28.080 start with one minute. 00:32:28.160 --> 00:32:28.860 If that's too much, 00:32:29.279 --> 00:32:30.320 we just can't help you here. 00:32:33.200 --> 00:32:34.480 Baby step number three. 00:32:34.740 --> 00:32:35.680 Baby step number three 00:32:35.680 --> 00:32:37.240 is look for what I call 00:32:37.240 --> 00:32:38.180 little solitudes 00:32:38.180 --> 00:32:39.820 or little minute retreats 00:32:39.820 --> 00:32:41.400 when you're in the car 00:32:41.400 --> 00:32:42.060 and you're waiting 00:32:42.060 --> 00:32:42.740 for the bus 00:32:42.740 --> 00:32:43.600 and you're walking home 00:32:43.600 --> 00:32:44.220 and you're in line 00:32:44.220 --> 00:32:44.660 at the store 00:32:44.660 --> 00:32:45.320 and you would normally 00:32:45.320 --> 00:32:46.380 reach for that dopamine 00:32:46.380 --> 00:32:46.980 dispenser 00:32:46.980 --> 00:32:48.220 or you would normally 00:32:48.220 --> 00:32:49.220 turn on the TV 00:32:49.220 --> 00:32:50.720 or turn on the radio. 00:32:51.579 --> 00:32:51.900 Instead, 00:32:52.120 --> 00:32:53.700 just draw your mind's attention 00:32:53.700 --> 00:32:54.440 back to God 00:32:54.440 --> 00:32:55.559 and give yourself a second 00:32:55.559 --> 00:32:56.579 to just be refreshed 00:32:56.579 --> 00:32:57.799 by His love for you 00:32:57.799 --> 00:32:59.420 and His grace in your life. 00:33:00.759 --> 00:33:02.059 And the third baby step 00:33:02.059 --> 00:33:03.420 is plan on your calendar 00:33:03.420 --> 00:33:04.779 one time a month, 00:33:04.900 --> 00:33:06.360 October, November, December, 00:33:06.400 --> 00:33:07.140 we'll just start there, 00:33:07.860 --> 00:33:08.700 to go and spend 00:33:08.700 --> 00:33:09.559 two to three hours 00:33:09.559 --> 00:33:10.579 of solitude with God 00:33:10.579 --> 00:33:11.319 one time a month. 00:33:11.339 --> 00:33:11.960 If you have kids, 00:33:12.059 --> 00:33:12.920 trade off with your spouse, 00:33:13.180 --> 00:33:14.079 work it out with a friend. 00:33:14.559 --> 00:33:15.640 The main regret 00:33:15.640 --> 00:33:16.360 you're going to have 00:33:16.360 --> 00:33:17.100 after you do that 00:33:17.100 --> 00:33:18.420 is that you didn't start sooner. 00:33:19.040 --> 00:33:19.800 I promise you. 00:33:21.680 --> 00:33:22.700 And when you arrive 00:33:22.700 --> 00:33:23.560 in these little places 00:33:23.560 --> 00:33:24.220 of solitude 00:33:24.220 --> 00:33:24.740 that we're trying 00:33:24.740 --> 00:33:25.680 to claw back, 00:33:26.320 --> 00:33:26.680 okay, 00:33:27.100 --> 00:33:27.980 we're trying to claw back 00:33:27.980 --> 00:33:28.380 our time, 00:33:28.440 --> 00:33:29.259 we're trying to claw back 00:33:29.259 --> 00:33:29.700 our attention, 00:33:29.780 --> 00:33:30.920 and when you arrive 00:33:30.920 --> 00:33:32.180 in that place of solitude, 00:33:32.720 --> 00:33:33.880 allow your soul 00:33:33.880 --> 00:33:36.320 to settle into silence. 00:33:38.220 --> 00:33:39.060 Allow yourself 00:33:39.060 --> 00:33:40.180 to stop listening 00:33:40.180 --> 00:33:41.800 to all the voices 00:33:41.800 --> 00:33:42.680 in your head 00:33:42.680 --> 00:33:43.500 and in your heart 00:33:43.500 --> 00:33:44.880 and instead, 00:33:45.019 --> 00:33:45.960 do what Colossians 3, 00:33:46.039 --> 00:33:46.559 2 says, 00:33:46.619 --> 00:33:47.059 which says, 00:33:47.579 --> 00:33:48.559 set your mind 00:33:48.559 --> 00:33:50.099 on things above. 00:33:52.319 --> 00:33:53.339 Concentrate your heart 00:33:53.339 --> 00:33:54.000 on God. 00:33:54.079 --> 00:33:54.480 I know our, 00:33:54.759 --> 00:33:56.579 we got an eight second, 00:33:56.720 --> 00:33:58.019 seven second attention span 00:33:58.019 --> 00:33:59.019 less than a goldfish, 00:33:59.019 --> 00:34:00.579 but use even that 00:34:00.579 --> 00:34:01.519 to concentrate 00:34:01.519 --> 00:34:03.799 your mind on God 00:34:03.799 --> 00:34:05.240 and just enjoy 00:34:05.240 --> 00:34:08.000 being with God. 00:34:08.000 --> 00:34:11.199 and then listen 00:34:11.199 --> 00:34:13.519 to God. 00:34:15.380 --> 00:34:16.420 Here's what we're gonna do. 00:34:16.579 --> 00:34:17.179 I'm gonna give us 00:34:17.179 --> 00:34:18.219 one minute of silence 00:34:18.219 --> 00:34:18.860 right now. 00:34:22.360 --> 00:34:23.920 Just allow your soul 00:34:23.920 --> 00:34:26.260 to rest for a moment 00:34:26.260 --> 00:34:28.760 in the arms of God 00:34:28.760 --> 00:34:30.760 like a child rests 00:34:30.760 --> 00:34:31.400 in the arms 00:34:31.400 --> 00:34:32.719 of his mother, 00:34:33.300 --> 00:34:33.579 okay? 00:34:33.579 --> 00:34:33.659 Okay? 00:34:34.619 --> 00:34:35.639 Let's do that now. 00:34:38.000 --> 00:35:07.980 Let's do that now. 00:35:08.000 --> 00:35:37.980 Let's do that now. 00:35:38.000 --> 00:35:39.000 Amen. 00:35:41.579 --> 00:35:42.119 Truly, 00:35:42.260 --> 00:35:43.340 I brought my soul 00:35:43.340 --> 00:35:44.179 to stillness 00:35:44.179 --> 00:35:44.940 and silence. 00:35:45.900 --> 00:35:46.880 Like a child 00:35:46.880 --> 00:35:47.659 cuddles itself 00:35:47.659 --> 00:35:48.280 to its mother, 00:35:48.460 --> 00:35:49.559 so is my soul 00:35:49.559 --> 00:35:50.280 with God. 00:35:51.519 --> 00:35:52.039 Israel, 00:35:52.940 --> 00:35:53.820 put your hope 00:35:53.820 --> 00:35:54.360 in the Lord 00:35:54.360 --> 00:35:55.800 both now 00:35:55.800 --> 00:35:56.599 and forevermore. 00:35:57.380 --> 00:35:58.000 In the name 00:35:58.000 --> 00:35:58.440 of the Father, 00:35:58.579 --> 00:35:58.699 Son, 00:35:58.760 --> 00:35:59.320 and Holy Spirit, 00:35:59.380 --> 00:35:59.780 we pray. 00:36:00.639 --> 00:36:00.900 Amen. 00:36:00.900 --> 00:36:01.039 Amen. 00:36:01.039 --> 00:36:01.059 Amen. 00:36:01.059 --> 00:36:01.079 Amen.