Well, good evening, folks. It is great to see you. Thank you so much for coming out today.
What a joyous day. I've loved it. Thank you so much for your encouragement.
And the fact that you're here this evening, I know today's been a long day as well.
It's going to be really good. I have really enjoyed getting into the life of Samson this week.
We're going to be looking at Samson this Sunday evening and next Sunday evening as we find him in Judges 13.
You might want to turn there now and grab a Bible. This fascinating character.
And it's been a real joy to walk with him this week and to think about Samson, the saviour, as we meet him in the book of Judges.
So what we're going to do, just to mix things up a little bit, is we are going to have a five-minute introduction to Samson.
I'm just going to take us through some of the big things to look for, particularly as we come to the reading.
We're going to read chapters 13, 14 and 15 together.
And then we're going to have a song and then we're going to come back for the rest of the sermon.
Does that sound okay?
Okay, Judges 13, that's where we are.
But why don't we pray just as we come to God's words together now.
Forever you are faithful.
Forever you are strong.
Forever you are with us forever.
Thank you, Father, that there is no shadow of change with you.
And it's to you we look this evening.
And Father, we ask by your Holy Spirit you would come.
And Lord, you would work in our midst.
Father, that as your word is preached this evening.
Father, that your voice would be heard.
And most of all, Lord, you would lift our eyes to the greatness of your Son, Jesus Christ.
In whose name we pray.
Amen.
So I wonder when was the last time you got really excited about a birth.
So in our household at the minute, our one-year-old daughter, Grace, her favorite cuddly toy is her panda.
She absolutely loves her panda.
So you can imagine when we heard news of a pregnancy.
Does anyone know who this is out of interest?
It's Chan Chan who looked up.
So when you heard that she was pregnant, you can imagine the excitement in our family.
Sadly, the rumors were going around that she was going to have some cubs later in the year.
Fascinated were our girls.
And this was a story, I don't know if you remember when it came out.
It was a story that captured the hearts of our nation.
Because it's something we'd been hoping for for a very long time.
I think I tweeted pandemonium.
And it got a few likes.
So the pandas.
We were interested in the pandas.
We were longing for this day to happen.
We were longing for these births or births to happen.
And then it was finally announced that it wasn't going to happen.
And I had to break the news to our little girls.
It's not going to happen.
Well, here we are in Judges 13 this evening.
And I want us to transition from a nation, from a people longing for a birth to happen that didn't happen.
So here we are in Judges 13.
And as the readers of the book up until this point, we've been accustomed to this cycle that we've seen in Judges.
This cycle that's been ongoing throughout the book.
Step 1 of the cycle, the people sin against God.
The people turn away from their Creator and their Redeemer.
They turn away from the Lord.
Step 2, slavery.
God judges the people and He delivers them into the hands of their enemies.
Step 3, the people say sorry.
They cry out to God.
God, would you have mercy on us?
God, deliver us.
And God in His grace, He hears the cry of a people who have absolutely no right to His ear.
And God, step 4, saves them.
People saved.
God raises up a judge who acts to save the people.
Step 5, silence or rest.
God gives His people rest through this judge.
Well, Judges 13, we kind of have it again.
And I'm thinking as I'm reading this through this week, oh, here we go again.
Here we go again.
We've seen this pattern before.
First one, the people of Israel, looking at the screen, people of Israel did what was evil in the sight of the Lord.
So they sin.
We've seen it before.
Seen it before.
Sin.
God delivers them into the hands of the Philistines.
For 40 years, do you notice that in the text?
40 years, that's a long time.
Long time for these people to be in captivity.
Slavery.
And what are we expecting next as we read this narrative?
This is where I'm looking for a bit of interaction here.
What are we expecting next?
Third step.
Sorry.
We're expecting the people at this point to cry out to God, are we not?
This is what we've seen in the cycle.
People to cry out to God.
God, would you save us?
God, would you have mercy on us?
God, would you deliver us from the hands of our enemies?
But here's the question.
Do you see, do we see any crying as we come to chapter 13?
There's no cry.
Why?
Well, you see, it's not just a repeating cycle that we've noticed that we've journeyed through judges.
It's a downward cycle.
And I think the author is telling us here that things have got so bad in Israel that the people have actually grown accustomed to a life of slavery.
And they are blind to seeing the folly of their ways because if they saw the folly of their ways, they would turn back to God and cry out to him and he would save them.
But these people aren't bothered about the situation as we step into chapter 13.
They're not crying out to God.
And so it's in this context that Samson is born.
To people, to a nation, not longing for a birth to happen that did happen.
So here's what we're going to do now.
We're going to read chapters 13, 14, and 15.
And this is the story of Samson's birth and life.
And here's what I want you to do as you read through these chapters.
I want to get us thinking.
I want to get us into the text this evening.
So Hazel is going to come and read chapter 13 for us.
And Neil is going to come and read chapters 14 and 15 for us.
They're the two sections.
Chapter 13, Samson's birth.
Chapters 14 and 15, Samson's life.
And after each reading, we're going to pause for 30 seconds.
And hopefully you've got a sermon outline.
I saw Alistair handing them out on your way in.
Hopefully you've got a sermon outline.
And here's what I want you to think about.
The question I want you to ask yourself.
How am I feeling after chapter 13?
And how as a reader am I left feeling after chapter 15?
If you could sum it up in one word, what would that one word be?
Now here's the big question of this sermon this evening.
Here's the big question that we're asked,
the writer asks us from this section of Judges.
Will the talk of Samson's birth be matched by the walk of Samson's life?
So that's the big question for us this evening.
The big question we're going to think about.
And hopefully the big question we're going to answer
as we journey through these chapters together.
Thank you, Hazel and Neil.
So here we go.
Will the talk of Samson's birth be matched by the walk of Samson's life?
So I wonder what words you scribbled down at the end of chapter 13.
I wonder if it was something like this.
Here's what I wrote down.
Optimistic.
Intrigued.
Anyone?
Excited.
Anticipating.
All those kind of words come to mind when you read chapter 13.
Now let me just help you see my thought process
as I travelled through chapter 13.
There were four grounds for hope that I saw in chapter 13.
Four signs that got me really excited
that we could be on to a winner here with Samson.
Here's the first ground for hope.
The numbers.
So there's been 11 judges so far in the book of Numbers.
Sorry, in the book of Numbers, in the book of Judges.
11 judges so far.
Samson is the 12th judge.
Now that gets me intrigued.
Thinking to myself,
will Samson,
will he be the judge who finally,
not only saves Israel from their enemies,
but will he be the saviour
who representatively leads Israel in worship and obedience to the Lord
that Israel so far in this book have failed to do.
He's the 12th judge.
And the arrival of Samson also marks the beginning of the sixth cycle in this book.
Each judge thus far has delivered Israel from their enemies,
brings in,
ushers in a period of rest for the people.
But that only lasts as long as the judge has lived.
And as a reader,
I'm thinking to myself,
will Samson be the judge who finally brings the nation of Israel,
as it were,
into the seven
and bring God's people lasting
and complete rest
from their enemies.
He's the 12th
and he's the 6th.
And as a reader,
I'm optimistic for Samson at this point.
Here's the second ground for hope,
the announcement.
We're introduced to this couple.
Do you see them opening verses?
Chapter 13.
Manoah and his wife.
Who appears to them?
An angel of the Lord.
An awesome messenger of God
appears to this woman.
And he delivers a message
that God once again is acting by his grace
to save his people,
his captive people,
his wavered people.
God is going to act in his grace towards them.
And the angel announces to the woman
that although she is barren,
that she will conceive
and she will bear a son.
Now this barren woman pattern
is something that is frequent in Scripture.
Sarah,
Rebecca,
Rachel,
after the book of Judges,
we've got Hannah,
we've got Elizabeth
and here again is God by his grace
looking upon the humble estate
of this barren woman.
And we're left as readers
wondering in anticipation,
what exactly is this child
going to turn out to be?
Third ground for hope is the calling.
This woman,
do you notice it?
She's given clear instructions.
Verse 4.
What is she to do?
Or rather,
what is she not to do?
Drink no wine.
Touch no unclean thing.
Presumably because if she does,
and she will vicariously
taint the child within her.
And what of this boy?
Two things.
Do you notice in the passage?
Firstly,
he will be a Nazarite.
Now a Nazarite was someone
who would yield their life
completely to God.
God,
you are wholly mine.
Wholly apart,
dedicated to him.
Wholly apart,
to be focused on him.
You find that vow
to be a Nazarite
laid out in number 6.
If you want to maybe
check it out later.
Three expressed things
that a Nazarite had to do.
Or rather,
three expressed things
that a Nazarite had not to do.
No wine,
no razors,
no contact with dead bodies.
And we're excited
because normally
this is a voluntary vow
that people make.
But here,
this child
is being called apart,
set apart by God
to be wholly devoted by him.
To see it,
this boy will be a Nazarite.
That's exciting.
Secondly,
he will be a saviour.
Verse 5.
He'll begin to save Israel
from the hands
of the Philistines.
This is what this child
in this woman's womb
is being called to be.
And this is what this child
in this woman's womb
is being called to do.
Oh,
that's greatly exciting.
And the fourth ground
for hope
is the stirring.
Verse 24.
Feel the anticipation
that the writer
is creating here.
Verse 24.
This woman bore a son.
And verse 25.
The spirit of the Lord
began to stir him.
And if we were to roll credits
at this point,
I'm sure it would say
Samson,
the saviour,
is here.
We have four massive grounds
for hope
in this passage.
So how,
as readers,
are we left feeling
as we finish chapter 13,
we are feeling wildly optimistic
for Samson.
So back to our question.
Will the talk of Samson's birth,
and you've got to say
it's a big talk,
will the talk of Samson's birth
be matched
by the walk
of Samson's life?
And we move
from four grounds
for hope
to four reasons
to sigh.
Now I wonder
what words
you scribbled down
that summarized
how you felt
at the end of chapter 15.
Do I wrote
deflated?
Gutted?
Disappointed?
Oh, Samson,
you had it all!
You'll notice
as we journey
through chapter 14,
maybe you want to
scan your eyes
over it just now,
chapter 14.
The deliberate repetition
of the word down.
Now it's used
five times
in chapter 14,
five times.
Verse 1,
down.
Verse 5,
down.
Verse 7,
down.
Verse 10,
down.
Verse 19,
down.
The writer's
trying to tell us
something,
that the trajectory
of Samson's life
ain't going up,
it's going down.
Again,
really quickly,
four reasons
to sigh
from this chapter.
The first one,
right?
The first one
is the woman.
verse 1 of chapter 14,
Samson goes down
to Timnah.
And what does he see?
It's going to be
a key word
in Samson's life,
his eyes.
What is he seeing?
He sees
a daughter
of one of the Philistines.
And immediately
at this point,
in our eyes,
there should be
a warning light flashing.
Sometimes you get them
in your car,
don't you,
when you need to
check your oil.
There's a warning sign
in your dashboard.
Well, this is what's
going on here.
The writer's just
dropping in
a little flashing
warning sign.
God has expressly
prohibited that his
people marry
one of their enemies.
And his parents,
Samson's parents,
they know that.
They know that.
Our little girl,
Chloe,
her favorite word
at the minute
is the word need.
Daddy,
I need a drink.
Daddy,
I need to watch
Bing on CBBs.
Daddy,
I need to wear a dress.
And we have to educate her.
You'd think she would
get it by now.
She's not.
Chloe,
that's not how you ask.
It's not how you ask.
What are you saying?
You see it a little
two-year-old mind
just thinking about it.
Daddy,
can I please have a drink?
Yes,
you can have a drink.
But there's none of that
here with Samson.
None of that here
with Samson.
Verse 2,
you can slightly
understand what
his mom and dad
are trying to do.
Samson is not one of
our daughters
you can marry.
He's not one of
our people
you can marry.
Surely there must have been.
But no,
and feel the force
of the passage here,
get her for me dad.
I want her.
I've seen her
and I want her.
Now not only
is Samson not honoring
his father and mother
at this point,
but he's acting
like a spoiled brat.
Is he not?
It's a bit like
if you remember
Charlie and the Chocolate Factory
when we were growing up.
Veruca saw,
Daddy I want,
Daddy I need.
This is Samson.
What Samson sees,
Samson wants
and Samson normally gets.
First reason to sigh
for Samson
is the woman.
Second reason to sigh
is the lion.
Verse 5,
it's Samson
and both his parents
are on their way
down to Temna.
This young lion
comes hurtling towards him,
quite literally
leaps out the pages
like a 3D book here
for us readers,
roaring.
And Samson,
as the spirit
rushes on him
with no weapon
in his hands
but his bare hands,
rips this lion in two.
I love how
the writer drops in there
as one would
rip a young goat
as if to say,
you should know
what that's like.
But he rips
this young lion
in two.
Spirit rushes on him
and here for the first time
in the narrative
we're given a taste,
a taste of what
Samson can accomplish
when the spirit
of God
rushes on him
and empowers him
for service.
Samson continues
to,
verse 7,
continues on
with Manoah.
He talks with this woman
that he sees
quite literally
flirting
with danger
and we get that little
phrase from the writer
which I think
summarizes
Samson's life
in a nutshell.
That he did
what was right
in the Lord's eyes?
No.
He did what was right
in his eyes.
And it's no great
surprise then
that as we read
of Samson
seeing the same
dead lion
on his return
journey home
that as he sees
the honey
that Samson
does what he does.
Now remember
his Nazarite vow.
What wasn't he to touch?
No unclean thing.
No dead bodies.
And here's Samson
proving that he's
more interested
in a little honey
to sweeten his tongue
than he is
to obeying
God's word.
Scraping it
onto his hands.
You see how the writer
lets us know
that he touched this.
Scraping it onto his hands.
Eating it as he went.
Without a care in the world.
Remember when we were
growing up
me and my brother
one of the highlights
of our holiday
was going to the sweet shop.
We'd get those
little flora tubs
and he would fill it up
with 20p mix
Haribos.
And we would just
walk on back to the house
without a care in the world
eating as we went.
Without a care in the world.
This is Samson
eating as he goes.
Not a care
in the world.
Not a second thought
as to what he's done here.
Second reason to sigh
is the animal.
Third reason to sigh
is the party.
You see the party?
Verse 10.
Samson throws a feast
to celebrate his marriage.
Now the Hebrew word there
suggests a party
but one with the highest
probability
that alcohol
is involved
in this celebration.
Again you see
Samson totally blasé
about his Nazarite vow
happy to blend in
with the Philistines
round about him.
And he gives his
Philistine companions
who come to be with him
at his party
gives him this little riddle.
And this riddle
may seem innocent enough
but do you see
that it puts his wife
in danger?
Now she's probably
thinking about
I'm on my honeymoon
I've just got married
I'm thinking about
a cruiser in the med
but instead
she's put in this
horrible position
because of Samson's
pride and arrogance.
Verse 15.
The Philistines say to her
tell us the answer
to that guy's riddle
tell us the answer
to his riddle
or else
we will kill you
and we will burn
your father's house
with fire.
They pressure her
she pressures him
and we see arguably
Samson's weakness
here exploited
because he tells her
the answer to this riddle.
And she to save
her own skin
tells the Philistines.
It's worth noting
the detail the author
gives us there
at verse 17.
Who does she tell?
She tells her people.
As if to tell us
readers again
where her loyalties lie.
These are her people.
And what does Samson
call his wife?
Do you see that
in verse 18?
You only know
because you ploughed
my heifer.
Now there are some phrases
that will never ever
stop being insulting
and that's one of them.
We see that Samson
is not one
he's not like
Mr. Darcy.
I'm not going home
tonight and using
that one with Alex.
That is not a
complimentary thing
to say about your wife.
Here is Samson here
just totally
in love of himself.
And they win
don't they?
They get the riddle
right.
Right.
They win.
Samson owes these men
these Philistines
30.
I think we can assume
that they're suits
30 sets of clothes.
Third reason to sigh
is the party
and that leads us
to the fourth reason
to sigh
and that is Samson's
attitude.
Where are these
Armani suits
going to come from?
Where are these suits
going to come from?
Verse 19.
Well in a rage
he goes
and he gets that spoil.
Where does he go?
He goes and he kills
30 Philistine men.
And in a rage
he rages back
to his father's house
and after he realizes
his wife has been
given to his best man
he rages against
the Philistines.
Now this guy
has got some serious
anger problems.
Serious anger issues.
And he ties
300 foxes together
which
is no easy thing
I might add.
He ties them together
with torches
and he sets them loose
and Philistine feels
to cause havoc
and devastation.
It's maybe worth
slowing down
just a little bit here
and asking Samson
what are you doing?
What are you doing?
We get the impression
here to be not
that he's toying
with the Philistines.
He's playing
with God's enemies.
Almost
having a bit of fun.
He's always showing off
look how
great I am.
That God has
greatly equipped him
and God has
highly called him
and what is he doing?
He's playing around
having a laugh
without any regard
for the consequences
because there are
consequences
because he's playing
around
notice at verse 6
it costs
his wife
and her father
their lives.
Just playing around.
Understandably
Samson is a
wanted man
in the Philistine
camp.
The Philistines
come looking
for him
and the men
of Judah
after a bit
of negotiation
with him
they present
him to the
Philistines
but God
as the spirit
rushes on
Samson again
defeats them
quite emphatically
you have to say
verse 15
of chapter 15
a thousand men
with a jawbone
why?
Why was he able
to do it?
Because the spirit
of God
rushed on him.
God
through
Samson
won this
victory
against
his people's
enemies
and Samson
calls out
to God
verse 18
he calls out
to God
verse 18
give me a drink
a little irreverently
perhaps
but nonetheless
here is Samson
praying to the Lord
what does he describe
himself as?
Your servant.
A little interesting
though that he calls
the Philistines
uncircumcised
at verse 18
all of a sudden
now he's concerned
as to who
these people
represent
he wasn't all
that concerned
about it
when he went
to marry
one of their
daughters
here is Samson
the first
the fourth reason
rather to sigh
is his attitude
so how as readers
are we left
feeling as we
finish chapter 15
well if the talk
of Samson's life
left us feeling
greatly optimistic
then the walk
of Samson's life
leaves us feeling
greatly deflated
will the talk
of Samson's birth
be matched
by the walk
of Samson's life
on the whole
we have to say
it wasn't
four grounds
for hope
four reasons
to sigh
and as we work
towards a close
this evening
and as we reflect
on his birth
and his life
let me give you
two truths
to ponder
one truth
to challenge
us
and one truth
to comfort
us from these
verses
firstly
here's the truth
to challenge
us
now here is
Samson
tragically
failing to live
up to the calling
that God
had placed
on his life
but it's
what we need
to understand
that it's not
just Samson
who is failing
to live up
to his call
because standing
behind him
is a whole
nation
who are failing
to live up
to the call
that God
has placed
on their lives
so here are
God's people
in the place
that God
had promised
he was going
to redeem
them
and bring
them to
here are
Israel
here are
God's people
his treasured
possession
here are
God's people
the people
who God
had covenanted
with and said
you will be
my people
you will be
my people
and I will
be your God
what an
enormous
privilege
incredible
honour
that these
people
are God's
people
but instead
of being
a shining
light
to the
nations
round about
them
instead of
being a
megaphone
to the
nations
round about
them
that's
belted
out
how great
is our
God
sing with
me
how great
is our
God
here they
are living
in disobedience
and here
they are
revelling
in rebellion
and here
they are
flat out
and conforming
not to
God's
image
but here
they are
flat out
and conforming
to be more
like the
likeness of
the people
round about
them
and undoing
not what is
right in
God's eyes
but undoing
what is
right in
their eyes
here are
God's people
failing to
live up to
their calling
and presumably
that is the
challenge that
the first readers
of this book
would have felt
as they read
this
and that is
the challenge
that comes to
us this
evening as
God's people
as we look
at the
failures of
a previous
generation
we've got to
examine our
own hearts
live up to
your calling
are we living
up to our
calling
of course
where we
stand
in history
we stand
the other
side of
the cross
God too
has redeemed
us in
Christ
in Jesus
Christ
God has
saved us
and as
Christians
that we
are in
Christ
and he
has set
us apart
to live
for him
in relationship
with him
and to
live for
his glory
alone
is the
constant
refrain
in the
New
Testament
dear
Christian
dear
Christian
see your
calling
see your
calling
and seize
your
calling
1 Peter 2
let me just
read one
verse 1 Peter 2
verse 9
Peter writing
to his
generation
of God's
people
but you
are a
chosen
people
a royal
priesthood
a holy
nation
a holy
nation
God's
special
possession
that you
may declare
the praises
out of
darkness
and into
his wonderful
light
so the
first challenge
of these
verses
is live up
to your
calling
live up
to your
calling
are we
living up
to our
calling
as God's
people
and secondly
the comfort
of these
verses
the
initiative
all the
way through
these
chapters
is the
Lord's
this God
who never
changes
who is the
same yesterday
today and
forever and
is full of
steadfast love
towards his
people is
why we
opened with
the song
that we
opened with
the Lord
the Spirit
of the Lord
all the way
through this
chapter
the great
and gracious
and loving
initiator
in these
chapters
is the
same who
is the
gracious
loving
initiator
in the
whole of
history
is this
great
God
the Lord
the one
who raised
up a
saviour
for a
people who
were not
interested
who were
not calling
out to
him who
raised up
a saviour
for his
people
it's another
wonderful
gospel truth
for us to
grasp
it's exactly
what we see
in the
Lord Jesus
Christ
and we'll
come back
to that
in a
minute
that when
we were
not looking
for God
God came
looking for
us and
saved us
it's another
wonderful thought
to think about
this evening
that God
did not wait
for us to
make the
first move
because we
wouldn't have
made the
first move
towards him
but he
stepped down
and acted
to save
us
the Lord
who heard
Manoah's
prayer
the Lord
who sent
his spirit
upon
Samson
time and
time again
to accomplish
his people's
deliverance
and look at
the very last
verse of
chapter 15
lives
that our God
is big
enough
he is
sovereign over
not just
the things
of this
chapter
he is
sovereign
over all
of life
all of
life
he is
sovereign
over our
problems
but the
other truth
is that
he is
near
he is
near
he is
near to
us
in our
problems
I think
it's
J.I.
Packer
who famously
called God
the one
who is
majestic
and the
one who
is
personal
that is
the God
that we
meet
here
that is
our
God
as the
old hymn
puts it
grace
God's
grace
that will
pardon
and cleanse
within
grace
God's
grace
that is
greater
than all
our sin
what loving
grace
the Lord
shows his
people here
what a
wonderful
God we
have
and the
lesson here
the big
thrust of
this passage
to the
readers
is come
to this
God
don't trust
in people
don't trust
in yourselves
don't trust
in the
nations
round about
you
don't
trust in
anything
but this
God
this gracious
God
come to
him
this
evening
come
to
him
foregrounds
for
optimism
four
reasons
to
sigh
two
truths
to
ponder
but as
we leave
this chapter
this evening
let me
leave you
with one
longing
to have
here's our
question again
will the talk
of Samson's
birth be
matched by the
walk of
Samson's
life
here's the
one longing
to have
what are we
left longing
for at the
end of these
chapters
we're left
longing for
a saviour
where the
talk of
his birth
matches up
to the
walk of
his life
that's the
saviour that
God's people
need
and that's
the saviour
that this
gracious God
one day
provided
now I don't
know how you
felt as you
read chapter
13 but I
felt very
Christmassy
felt like I
should be
putting on
my Christmas
jumper
getting the
crackers on
anyone else
feel Christmassy
chapter 13
striking
similarities
striking
similarities
between the
two births
an angelic
appearance to
the parents
the announcement
of a saviour
Jesus the
name meaning
that God
saves
that's what
that boy
was called
to do
striking
similarities
but one
striking
difference
Samson's
mindset
not your
will be
done God
but my
will be
done God
Jesus
throughout
the entirety
of his
life
tempted in
the wilderness
by the
devil
tempted in
the garden
of Gethsemane
and yet
what was
his cry
not my
will be
done Lord
not my
will
but your
will be
done
and so
obedient was
he that it
took him to
the cross
where he died
for our sin
three days
later he
rose again
and he rules
and he reigns
this is the
saviour that
God's people
need
the model
Israelite
the king
who lives
forever
and the
saviour who
has won
lasting
rest
for his
people
will
the talk
of Samson's
birth
live up
to the walk
of Samson's
life
no
but will
the talk
of Jesus'
birth
live up
to the walk
of Jesus'
life
gloriously
yes
so we
sing
oh come
all ye
faithful
joyful
and triumphant
come ye
oh come
ye to
Bethlehem
come and
behold him
born the
king of
angels
oh come
let us
adore him
oh come
let us
adore him
oh come
let us
adore him
Christ
the Lord
let's pray
together
and so
father we
thank you
so much
lord for
this
evening
and lord
we pray
for the
truths that
we have
seen in
your word
this
evening
father that
they would
resonate in
our hearts
way beyond
when we
leave this
building
this evening
father may
we be drawn
to put our
trust in
the god
who is
above all
things
and know
the peace
of the god
who is right
beside us
so father
thank you
for your
words
father thank
you for
your truth
go with us
now we ask
because we
ask in
jesus name
amen