WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.980 Last month in Tokyo, there was an exhibition. 00:00:04.700 --> 00:00:09.740 It was an exhibition that was put on for anybody who worked in, 00:00:09.820 --> 00:00:12.560 if I can use the phrase, the funeral industry. 00:00:13.560 --> 00:00:19.719 And at the exhibition, there was a particular thing that was launched. 00:00:19.719 --> 00:00:23.980 In Japan, apparently there is a shortage of human resources 00:00:23.980 --> 00:00:27.199 when it comes to people who can lead funerals. 00:00:27.199 --> 00:00:31.579 And so, a new robot has been designed. 00:00:31.859 --> 00:00:32.899 Hey, can we have a picture, please? 00:00:32.960 --> 00:00:38.479 This is Pepper, the robot, principally designed to lead Buddhist funerals, 00:00:38.640 --> 00:00:44.340 but I guess, bearing in mind he's a robot, you can program him to do whatever you want. 00:00:44.960 --> 00:00:51.659 But Pepper hasn't actually been hired yet to preside, funnily enough. 00:00:52.100 --> 00:00:54.560 But there it is. Watch this space. 00:00:54.560 --> 00:00:57.520 Clive, I was just wondering if we could get them to chair meetings for us 00:00:57.520 --> 00:00:59.840 and attend synods and stuff like that. 00:01:02.700 --> 00:01:04.460 In the reading that we had this morning, 00:01:04.719 --> 00:01:07.500 I want to focus in on one particular phrase that they said, 00:01:07.560 --> 00:01:10.700 which is what Paul and Barnabas, this comes from the book of Acts, 00:01:10.740 --> 00:01:12.659 which tells the story of the early church. 00:01:12.820 --> 00:01:16.879 So Jesus has been among his disciples, he's died, he's come back to life, 00:01:16.939 --> 00:01:17.879 he's gone back to heaven. 00:01:18.599 --> 00:01:23.240 He sends his Holy Spirit and we see the church in action at this time. 00:01:23.239 --> 00:01:30.259 And as this happens in this story, we see a healing take place. 00:01:30.759 --> 00:01:34.640 We see people are healed and the crowds begin to go around 00:01:34.640 --> 00:01:38.659 because they can't believe that someone has been healed miraculously. 00:01:38.979 --> 00:01:40.599 And they go nuts over it. 00:01:40.799 --> 00:01:46.599 And to the extent that they start actually bowing down to Paul and Barnabas, 00:01:46.699 --> 00:01:49.859 who have prayed just as this healing has happened. 00:01:49.859 --> 00:01:57.459 And they respond to this saying, no, look, we too are human. 00:01:58.819 --> 00:01:59.739 We're human. 00:02:00.819 --> 00:02:04.560 Now, robots didn't exist in those days, so they're not trying to say we're not robots. 00:02:04.659 --> 00:02:05.680 They're saying we're not divine. 00:02:05.680 --> 00:02:14.740 But yet, the point is, is that sometimes we can think that, you know, 00:02:14.800 --> 00:02:20.599 that the stories we read of in the scriptures that are mind-blowing, 00:02:21.580 --> 00:02:23.780 whether it's people healed or whatever it may be, 00:02:24.080 --> 00:02:27.719 these extraordinary signs and wonders of God, 00:02:27.920 --> 00:02:32.319 and they can be so removed from our own human experience, 00:02:32.319 --> 00:02:36.539 we can think, where's the humanity in this? 00:02:36.939 --> 00:02:38.699 These can't be human beings. 00:02:40.239 --> 00:02:45.400 These people must be robots, or must be divine themselves, 00:02:45.539 --> 00:02:48.180 but there's something that isn't human in it. 00:02:48.180 --> 00:02:55.340 What I actually love about not just this story, 00:02:55.460 --> 00:02:58.860 and not just the whole of the book of Acts, 00:02:58.900 --> 00:03:00.860 which tells the story of the earliest Christians, 00:03:01.760 --> 00:03:05.939 but the whole of scripture is that it actually talks, 00:03:06.080 --> 00:03:11.420 the stories that are there are stories about real human beings 00:03:11.419 --> 00:03:15.219 who experience an extraordinary God. 00:03:16.500 --> 00:03:18.479 And so they were made of flesh. 00:03:18.599 --> 00:03:19.539 They weren't robots. 00:03:20.019 --> 00:03:21.500 They weren't themselves divine. 00:03:21.599 --> 00:03:23.819 They were ordinary people like you and me, 00:03:23.899 --> 00:03:26.739 but experienced extraordinary things. 00:03:28.199 --> 00:03:35.759 They experienced the mix of the good and the bad and the ugly. 00:03:35.759 --> 00:03:41.079 stories of real people that experience both joy and suffering, 00:03:41.539 --> 00:03:43.620 who experience opportunity and opposition, 00:03:43.819 --> 00:03:45.699 who experience blessing and sorrow. 00:03:46.159 --> 00:03:47.819 And in just these few verses, 00:03:48.179 --> 00:03:50.419 we see people who are, on the one hand, 00:03:50.639 --> 00:03:52.759 coming to faith, and it's really exciting, 00:03:52.899 --> 00:03:54.120 and the early church is growing, 00:03:54.439 --> 00:03:56.399 and yet at the same time we hear of people 00:03:56.399 --> 00:03:57.699 who start to resent that 00:03:57.699 --> 00:03:59.819 and begin to plot against the early Christians. 00:04:00.579 --> 00:04:02.879 We see stories of healing and miracles, 00:04:02.879 --> 00:04:07.159 and yet we also see them trying to stone Paul to death. 00:04:08.120 --> 00:04:11.879 And that theme, that juxtaposition of the amazingly exciting 00:04:12.400 --> 00:04:15.780 and the horrific going hand in hand 00:04:15.780 --> 00:04:18.360 is something that runs right through the Bible, 00:04:18.740 --> 00:04:21.360 and we see it compacted in these few verses 00:04:21.360 --> 00:04:23.399 that we have read to us this morning. 00:04:25.139 --> 00:04:28.120 Now, whatever our own lives might look like, 00:04:28.379 --> 00:04:31.159 I think we can relate to all of that 00:04:31.160 --> 00:04:35.800 by the reality, the simple but very, very great reality, 00:04:35.980 --> 00:04:39.020 that life is a mix of the good and the bad. 00:04:39.820 --> 00:04:42.220 Whatever we have going on in our lives right now, 00:04:42.280 --> 00:04:44.720 whatever you have going on in your life right now, 00:04:46.000 --> 00:04:49.860 my guess is that it's going to be a mix of good stuff 00:04:49.860 --> 00:04:52.160 and the not so good. 00:04:53.020 --> 00:04:54.900 Sure, we might have a particular day, 00:04:55.000 --> 00:04:56.379 a week or a month or even a year, 00:04:56.580 --> 00:04:57.740 that is absolutely awful, 00:04:57.820 --> 00:04:59.200 where everything seems to be going wrong. 00:04:59.199 --> 00:05:01.759 On the other hand, we might be having a really good day. 00:05:02.420 --> 00:05:03.659 But most of the time, 00:05:03.899 --> 00:05:08.120 most of life is a bit of a mix of the good and the not good. 00:05:08.500 --> 00:05:12.620 And that is where this reading can really speak to us. 00:05:15.620 --> 00:05:18.159 Because we can ask ourselves the question, 00:05:18.339 --> 00:05:20.980 how was it then that these two people, 00:05:21.099 --> 00:05:22.180 Paul and Barnabas, 00:05:22.180 --> 00:05:29.900 dealt with that reality of the good and the ugly going on at the same time? 00:05:30.240 --> 00:05:32.259 And I think the hint lies in the verse, 00:05:32.340 --> 00:05:33.100 which wasn't read to us, 00:05:33.139 --> 00:05:34.680 but lies at the very end of the chapter, 00:05:34.819 --> 00:05:36.920 right before this story from the book of Acts, 00:05:37.139 --> 00:05:38.960 where we're told simply that the disciples, 00:05:39.139 --> 00:05:40.240 that is the followers of Jesus, 00:05:40.960 --> 00:05:43.780 were filled with joy and with the Holy Spirit. 00:05:45.639 --> 00:05:47.420 See, the reason why I think that is the insight, 00:05:47.420 --> 00:05:51.240 it's how they actually went through life and lived life like this, 00:05:51.420 --> 00:05:53.620 is because for them, 00:05:54.020 --> 00:05:55.560 they knew where their focus was. 00:05:56.300 --> 00:05:59.900 Even though there was the mix of the good and the painful in their lives, 00:06:00.060 --> 00:06:02.200 they knew where their focus needed to be. 00:06:03.040 --> 00:06:04.420 There's a saying, a phrase, 00:06:04.540 --> 00:06:07.080 and I don't know who first came up with it, 00:06:07.139 --> 00:06:08.620 but it's been around a few years, 00:06:08.620 --> 00:06:10.300 and it goes like this, 00:06:11.560 --> 00:06:13.180 glance at your problems, 00:06:14.220 --> 00:06:16.939 but gaze upon God. 00:06:18.899 --> 00:06:20.100 Glance at your problems, 00:06:20.860 --> 00:06:22.660 but gaze on God. 00:06:24.180 --> 00:06:26.540 And I think that's what we find in Paul and Barnabas 00:06:26.540 --> 00:06:28.180 and those early followers of Jesus. 00:06:28.459 --> 00:06:29.360 That is what they did, 00:06:29.420 --> 00:06:30.540 and that is how they survived. 00:06:30.660 --> 00:06:32.360 That is not only how they survived, 00:06:32.439 --> 00:06:33.360 but how they flourished, 00:06:33.620 --> 00:06:35.860 because they knew that that is the way to deal 00:06:35.860 --> 00:06:40.199 with the mix of the good and the not so good in life. 00:06:41.280 --> 00:06:42.379 Glance at your problems, 00:06:43.360 --> 00:06:44.439 but gaze upon God. 00:06:44.500 --> 00:06:45.860 Let's just think about what that might mean. 00:06:47.840 --> 00:06:49.080 When you're driving a car, 00:06:49.160 --> 00:06:50.139 if you're sat behind the wheel, 00:06:50.740 --> 00:06:51.860 and you're going along the road, 00:06:52.759 --> 00:06:53.379 my guess is, 00:06:53.980 --> 00:06:57.620 you're going to be gazing through the windscreen. 00:06:57.740 --> 00:06:58.939 Now, when I say gaze, 00:06:59.040 --> 00:07:00.340 I don't mean in a trance. 00:07:00.980 --> 00:07:02.980 I mean gazing as in focused. 00:07:03.120 --> 00:07:04.879 You're going to be looking at what's going on, 00:07:04.879 --> 00:07:06.659 hopefully immediately in front of you. 00:07:06.800 --> 00:07:07.719 You're also going to be, 00:07:07.879 --> 00:07:11.759 hopefully, looking ahead at what's further ahead of you. 00:07:11.899 --> 00:07:13.339 That's what I mean by gazing. 00:07:14.899 --> 00:07:15.600 But also, 00:07:15.699 --> 00:07:17.659 you're going to be taking the occasional glance 00:07:17.659 --> 00:07:18.879 in your mirrors, 00:07:19.240 --> 00:07:21.540 either side and in your rear view mirror. 00:07:23.920 --> 00:07:24.959 What would happen 00:07:24.959 --> 00:07:27.519 if you did it the other way around? 00:07:28.519 --> 00:07:29.279 In other words, 00:07:29.279 --> 00:07:30.719 your gaze was in your mirrors, 00:07:30.720 --> 00:07:35.300 and you took the occasional glance in front. 00:07:38.440 --> 00:07:40.740 And yet, that's exactly what happens, 00:07:40.940 --> 00:07:41.640 I think, 00:07:41.880 --> 00:07:44.040 with us in the way we live our lives 00:07:44.040 --> 00:07:45.640 when it comes to the relationship 00:07:45.640 --> 00:07:48.500 between the mess and the problems that we have, 00:07:48.500 --> 00:07:50.220 and we all have it going on in our lives, 00:07:50.420 --> 00:07:51.080 and God. 00:07:52.040 --> 00:07:54.400 That we instinctively 00:07:54.400 --> 00:07:57.420 gaze upon what's going wrong 00:07:57.420 --> 00:07:59.319 and take the occasional glance at God. 00:08:00.420 --> 00:08:02.259 You might even send up the occasional prayer. 00:08:05.759 --> 00:08:07.199 These people in Scripture, 00:08:07.460 --> 00:08:08.000 in the Bible, 00:08:08.180 --> 00:08:08.939 Paul, Barnabas, 00:08:08.980 --> 00:08:10.040 and all the rest, 00:08:10.200 --> 00:08:12.080 they were ordinary human beings, 00:08:12.200 --> 00:08:14.060 but they grasped 00:08:14.060 --> 00:08:17.439 the importance of getting it the other way around. 00:08:19.280 --> 00:08:20.280 To glance 00:08:20.280 --> 00:08:23.439 at your problems, 00:08:23.439 --> 00:08:26.160 but to gaze upon God. 00:08:29.500 --> 00:08:29.939 Now, 00:08:30.300 --> 00:08:31.199 let's see what 00:08:31.199 --> 00:08:32.440 that doesn't mean. 00:08:33.100 --> 00:08:33.940 It doesn't mean 00:08:33.940 --> 00:08:35.500 burying your head in the sand. 00:08:35.580 --> 00:08:36.600 It doesn't mean denying 00:08:36.600 --> 00:08:37.860 the reality of problems. 00:08:38.179 --> 00:08:38.980 It just means 00:08:38.980 --> 00:08:39.820 the way in which 00:08:39.820 --> 00:08:42.159 we allow ourselves 00:08:42.159 --> 00:08:43.779 to become preoccupied. 00:08:46.159 --> 00:08:47.419 A few years ago, 00:08:47.700 --> 00:08:49.080 when I used to live in Devon, 00:08:49.580 --> 00:08:51.120 I was going to buy 00:08:51.120 --> 00:08:53.200 a laptop one day, 00:08:53.440 --> 00:08:54.640 I went into 00:08:54.640 --> 00:08:56.120 this shop, 00:08:56.920 --> 00:08:57.200 and 00:08:57.200 --> 00:08:59.380 a sales assistant 00:08:59.380 --> 00:09:02.100 came over 00:09:02.100 --> 00:09:03.340 and asked 00:09:03.340 --> 00:09:04.340 what I was looking for. 00:09:04.420 --> 00:09:05.080 We got about 00:09:05.080 --> 00:09:06.280 a minute or so 00:09:06.280 --> 00:09:07.340 into a conversation, 00:09:08.300 --> 00:09:09.740 and his phone rang, 00:09:10.860 --> 00:09:11.660 and he said to me, 00:09:11.680 --> 00:09:11.820 sorry, 00:09:11.860 --> 00:09:12.860 do you mind if I just take that? 00:09:13.980 --> 00:09:14.780 Fair enough. 00:09:15.060 --> 00:09:16.060 And he said, 00:09:16.100 --> 00:09:16.240 sorry, 00:09:16.420 --> 00:09:17.100 it's just that I'm trying 00:09:17.100 --> 00:09:18.820 to sell my car right now, 00:09:18.820 --> 00:09:20.000 and I think this could be 00:09:20.000 --> 00:09:20.820 an important call. 00:09:21.360 --> 00:09:22.020 And off he went. 00:09:22.019 --> 00:09:23.600 Now, 00:09:23.720 --> 00:09:24.759 call me old-fashioned, 00:09:25.960 --> 00:09:27.100 but my understanding 00:09:27.100 --> 00:09:28.259 of a sales assistant 00:09:28.259 --> 00:09:29.100 in a shop 00:09:29.100 --> 00:09:32.100 is that their primary purpose, 00:09:32.519 --> 00:09:33.120 their role, 00:09:33.460 --> 00:09:34.480 is to sell 00:09:34.480 --> 00:09:35.240 the stuff 00:09:35.240 --> 00:09:36.399 that is in the shop. 00:09:37.259 --> 00:09:37.480 Now, 00:09:37.539 --> 00:09:38.159 let's just say 00:09:38.159 --> 00:09:40.199 this particular sales assistant 00:09:40.199 --> 00:09:41.860 didn't succeed 00:09:41.860 --> 00:09:42.679 in assisting 00:09:42.679 --> 00:09:44.259 a sale with me 00:09:44.259 --> 00:09:45.399 on that particular occasion. 00:09:45.399 --> 00:09:46.019 I've no idea 00:09:46.019 --> 00:09:46.899 if he sold his car. 00:09:49.299 --> 00:09:50.179 The thing is, 00:09:50.259 --> 00:09:50.600 you see, 00:09:51.679 --> 00:09:53.539 his mind was in the wrong place. 00:09:54.319 --> 00:09:55.379 His preoccupation 00:09:55.379 --> 00:09:56.139 was elsewhere. 00:09:57.559 --> 00:09:58.299 And sometimes people 00:09:58.299 --> 00:09:58.819 might think 00:09:58.819 --> 00:09:59.259 that Christians, 00:09:59.360 --> 00:10:00.480 when they talk about prayer, 00:10:00.799 --> 00:10:01.220 and particularly 00:10:01.220 --> 00:10:02.039 if they come out 00:10:02.039 --> 00:10:02.480 with a phrase 00:10:02.480 --> 00:10:02.919 like the one 00:10:02.919 --> 00:10:04.220 I'm using right now, 00:10:04.480 --> 00:10:04.679 you know, 00:10:05.220 --> 00:10:06.199 glance at your problems 00:10:06.199 --> 00:10:07.059 but gaze upon God, 00:10:07.319 --> 00:10:08.039 that it's that. 00:10:08.120 --> 00:10:08.659 It's kind of like 00:10:08.659 --> 00:10:09.919 being away with the fairies. 00:10:10.059 --> 00:10:10.500 It's just like, 00:10:10.720 --> 00:10:10.939 you know, 00:10:11.240 --> 00:10:12.399 you ignore, 00:10:12.600 --> 00:10:13.939 pretend that reality 00:10:13.940 --> 00:10:14.720 doesn't exist 00:10:14.720 --> 00:10:15.660 because you're 00:10:15.660 --> 00:10:16.460 preoccupied 00:10:16.460 --> 00:10:17.280 with this idea 00:10:17.280 --> 00:10:17.740 of a God 00:10:17.740 --> 00:10:18.600 in a distant heaven. 00:10:18.940 --> 00:10:19.240 No, 00:10:19.360 --> 00:10:20.540 it's not that at all. 00:10:20.700 --> 00:10:21.460 It really isn't. 00:10:23.400 --> 00:10:24.880 To gaze upon God 00:10:24.880 --> 00:10:25.460 means, 00:10:25.600 --> 00:10:25.680 yes, 00:10:25.760 --> 00:10:26.800 we glance upon our problems. 00:10:26.880 --> 00:10:27.600 We know they're there. 00:10:28.320 --> 00:10:29.220 Think of the car. 00:10:29.740 --> 00:10:30.660 You're driving along. 00:10:31.340 --> 00:10:32.400 You know what's going on 00:10:32.400 --> 00:10:32.760 in the mirror 00:10:32.760 --> 00:10:33.700 because you're glancing at it. 00:10:34.280 --> 00:10:35.260 But you're preoccupied 00:10:35.260 --> 00:10:36.060 by what's in front. 00:10:36.260 --> 00:10:36.460 Why? 00:10:36.560 --> 00:10:37.120 Because you need 00:10:37.120 --> 00:10:37.800 to keep moving. 00:10:39.840 --> 00:10:41.280 Gaze upon your problems. 00:10:41.279 --> 00:10:44.360 Gaze upon God 00:10:44.360 --> 00:10:46.439 but glance upon problems. 00:10:46.659 --> 00:10:48.120 It's not denying the problems. 00:10:48.319 --> 00:10:49.779 It does involve 00:10:49.779 --> 00:10:52.139 a shift of focus. 00:10:52.480 --> 00:10:52.659 Now, 00:10:52.720 --> 00:10:53.379 I'm not going to pretend 00:10:53.379 --> 00:10:53.939 that's easy. 00:10:54.059 --> 00:10:54.620 It's not. 00:10:55.679 --> 00:10:55.959 I'm, 00:10:56.319 --> 00:10:57.319 like anybody else, 00:10:57.980 --> 00:10:59.379 instinctively 00:10:59.379 --> 00:11:01.399 tend to gravitate 00:11:01.399 --> 00:11:02.740 towards what's going wrong. 00:11:04.919 --> 00:11:06.279 It's something I know 00:11:06.279 --> 00:11:06.980 takes effort. 00:11:07.720 --> 00:11:08.299 It's hard 00:11:08.299 --> 00:11:08.860 and it's 00:11:08.860 --> 00:11:09.959 counterintuitive. 00:11:09.960 --> 00:11:11.680 But I believe 00:11:11.680 --> 00:11:12.259 it's what we see 00:11:12.259 --> 00:11:13.340 Paul and Barnabas do. 00:11:13.420 --> 00:11:13.960 So let's just 00:11:13.960 --> 00:11:15.080 quickly go back 00:11:15.080 --> 00:11:15.780 to that reading 00:11:15.780 --> 00:11:17.800 and see 00:11:17.800 --> 00:11:18.620 what it is 00:11:18.620 --> 00:11:19.100 that they do 00:11:19.100 --> 00:11:19.360 because I think 00:11:19.360 --> 00:11:19.960 there's two things 00:11:19.960 --> 00:11:20.740 that stand out 00:11:20.740 --> 00:11:21.900 that gives us 00:11:21.900 --> 00:11:22.400 a little bit 00:11:22.400 --> 00:11:23.240 of practical advice 00:11:23.240 --> 00:11:23.820 as to what that 00:11:23.820 --> 00:11:24.980 actually might mean 00:11:24.980 --> 00:11:26.379 in real life terms. 00:11:28.080 --> 00:11:29.560 To glance at your problems 00:11:29.560 --> 00:11:31.379 but to gaze upon God. 00:11:31.519 --> 00:11:32.440 The first is this. 00:11:33.700 --> 00:11:34.700 They keep going. 00:11:35.860 --> 00:11:36.000 You know, 00:11:36.080 --> 00:11:37.200 when trouble 00:11:37.200 --> 00:11:38.300 comes their way 00:11:38.299 --> 00:11:39.399 and there's a fair dose 00:11:39.399 --> 00:11:40.099 of it in just 00:11:40.099 --> 00:11:40.859 these few verses 00:11:40.859 --> 00:11:41.459 of scripture, 00:11:41.799 --> 00:11:42.679 Paul nearly gets 00:11:42.679 --> 00:11:43.559 stoned to death. 00:11:44.620 --> 00:11:45.399 But they keep going. 00:11:45.599 --> 00:11:46.399 Verse 3 tells us 00:11:46.399 --> 00:11:47.179 Paul and Barnabas 00:11:47.179 --> 00:11:49.000 spent considerable time 00:11:49.000 --> 00:11:49.500 there. 00:11:50.339 --> 00:11:51.299 Then in verse 7 00:11:51.299 --> 00:11:51.599 it says 00:11:51.599 --> 00:11:52.719 they continued 00:11:52.719 --> 00:11:54.379 to preach. 00:11:55.319 --> 00:11:55.559 In other words, 00:11:55.599 --> 00:11:56.219 they didn't stop. 00:11:56.299 --> 00:11:56.819 They didn't give up 00:11:56.819 --> 00:11:57.559 the first hurdle. 00:11:58.839 --> 00:12:00.000 They carried on. 00:12:00.839 --> 00:12:01.779 They kept on 00:12:01.779 --> 00:12:02.539 keeping on. 00:12:02.539 --> 00:12:04.480 I've just had 00:12:04.480 --> 00:12:05.620 that amazing privilege 00:12:05.620 --> 00:12:06.599 of being on sabbatical 00:12:06.599 --> 00:12:07.539 for three months. 00:12:07.860 --> 00:12:08.500 I'm smiling. 00:12:08.699 --> 00:12:09.099 I'm happy. 00:12:09.219 --> 00:12:10.199 Even though it's September. 00:12:11.579 --> 00:12:12.740 But whilst I was 00:12:12.740 --> 00:12:13.259 on sabbatical 00:12:13.259 --> 00:12:13.860 one of the things 00:12:13.860 --> 00:12:14.500 I was able to do 00:12:14.500 --> 00:12:15.740 was go to a few churches 00:12:15.740 --> 00:12:17.139 where I'm not the minister 00:12:17.139 --> 00:12:18.980 and where I just pitched up. 00:12:19.299 --> 00:12:20.139 And a few churches 00:12:20.139 --> 00:12:22.179 not in the immediate vicinity 00:12:22.179 --> 00:12:23.299 but within the region. 00:12:23.500 --> 00:12:24.679 And it was a wonderful experience. 00:12:24.779 --> 00:12:25.759 One particular Sunday 00:12:25.759 --> 00:12:27.059 I was sat in a church 00:12:27.059 --> 00:12:27.559 in Bristol 00:12:27.559 --> 00:12:28.919 and somebody was telling 00:12:28.919 --> 00:12:29.559 a story. 00:12:29.899 --> 00:12:31.079 A story about how 00:12:31.080 --> 00:12:31.580 they were going through 00:12:31.580 --> 00:12:33.240 a really, really tough time. 00:12:33.920 --> 00:12:34.980 And because they were 00:12:34.980 --> 00:12:35.780 going through a tough time 00:12:35.780 --> 00:12:36.600 they were crying out 00:12:36.600 --> 00:12:37.180 to God in prayer. 00:12:37.280 --> 00:12:38.080 They were convinced 00:12:38.080 --> 00:12:39.020 and the phrase 00:12:39.020 --> 00:12:40.000 that they used was this 00:12:40.000 --> 00:12:41.540 that they were at the end 00:12:41.540 --> 00:12:42.379 of their tether. 00:12:43.060 --> 00:12:44.040 I don't know if you've ever 00:12:44.040 --> 00:12:45.180 used that phrase before. 00:12:45.360 --> 00:12:46.240 I know I have. 00:12:46.960 --> 00:12:48.040 They felt that they were 00:12:48.040 --> 00:12:48.879 at the end of their tether 00:12:48.879 --> 00:12:50.500 and that they made their prayer. 00:12:50.700 --> 00:12:51.860 And they cried out to God 00:12:51.860 --> 00:12:52.800 in their prayer 00:12:52.800 --> 00:12:55.280 Lord I am at the end 00:12:55.280 --> 00:12:55.879 of my tether. 00:12:57.980 --> 00:12:59.340 Now they said they felt 00:12:59.340 --> 00:13:02.259 a very, very real answer back. 00:13:02.360 --> 00:13:03.540 Not an audible voice 00:13:03.540 --> 00:13:05.600 but they sensed 00:13:05.600 --> 00:13:08.440 an overwhelming feeling 00:13:08.440 --> 00:13:10.500 that God was actually saying 00:13:10.500 --> 00:13:11.860 you're telling me 00:13:11.860 --> 00:13:12.500 that you're at the end 00:13:12.500 --> 00:13:12.980 of your tether. 00:13:14.019 --> 00:13:14.500 You're not. 00:13:16.100 --> 00:13:17.540 Now as another human being 00:13:17.540 --> 00:13:18.620 I would not ever say that 00:13:18.620 --> 00:13:19.420 to another human being. 00:13:19.500 --> 00:13:21.040 I wouldn't say to somebody else 00:13:21.040 --> 00:13:22.000 no you're not. 00:13:22.460 --> 00:13:23.180 Because that would 00:13:23.180 --> 00:13:24.340 that would seem like 00:13:24.340 --> 00:13:25.500 I'm not human. 00:13:25.639 --> 00:13:26.300 It would seem like 00:13:26.300 --> 00:13:27.540 I don't take them seriously. 00:13:27.539 --> 00:13:29.740 But I think God's entitled 00:13:29.740 --> 00:13:30.899 to talk like that 00:13:30.899 --> 00:13:32.019 to people when he wants to. 00:13:33.039 --> 00:13:33.839 Now this person 00:13:33.839 --> 00:13:35.000 they couldn't prove 00:13:35.000 --> 00:13:35.579 that it was God 00:13:35.579 --> 00:13:36.279 speaking to them 00:13:36.279 --> 00:13:37.360 but it was this overwhelming 00:13:37.360 --> 00:13:38.639 sense of liberation 00:13:38.639 --> 00:13:39.559 came over them. 00:13:39.860 --> 00:13:40.959 This sense of peace 00:13:40.959 --> 00:13:42.059 that actually God 00:13:42.059 --> 00:13:42.759 was saying to them 00:13:42.759 --> 00:13:43.860 no your perception 00:13:43.860 --> 00:13:45.019 your perception 00:13:45.019 --> 00:13:45.860 is that you've got 00:13:45.860 --> 00:13:46.860 no more left to give. 00:13:47.120 --> 00:13:47.759 That you're at the end 00:13:47.759 --> 00:13:48.279 of that tether. 00:13:48.399 --> 00:13:49.839 That you cannot go any further 00:13:49.839 --> 00:13:50.759 no matter how far 00:13:50.759 --> 00:13:51.959 you dig deep. 00:13:52.099 --> 00:13:53.120 There is nothing left. 00:13:53.799 --> 00:13:54.339 But no. 00:13:54.679 --> 00:13:55.079 You're wrong. 00:13:55.080 --> 00:13:56.460 There is far more there 00:13:56.460 --> 00:13:57.820 and I'm going to help you. 00:13:58.820 --> 00:14:00.540 And I think that is a basic 00:14:00.540 --> 00:14:02.100 simple reality 00:14:02.100 --> 00:14:03.220 that is there 00:14:03.220 --> 00:14:04.840 that often our perception 00:14:04.840 --> 00:14:06.700 is that we've hitched the end 00:14:06.700 --> 00:14:08.100 and we've got nothing left 00:14:08.100 --> 00:14:08.940 inside of us. 00:14:10.060 --> 00:14:11.100 I want to say to you 00:14:11.100 --> 00:14:12.379 that if you ever feel that way 00:14:12.379 --> 00:14:13.500 just remember that story 00:14:13.500 --> 00:14:14.240 I've just shared 00:14:14.240 --> 00:14:16.020 because God's view of you 00:14:16.020 --> 00:14:17.900 is different from your view of you. 00:14:19.080 --> 00:14:20.300 Paul and Barnabas 00:14:20.300 --> 00:14:22.220 kept on keeping on 00:14:22.220 --> 00:14:23.740 because they knew 00:14:23.740 --> 00:14:24.779 that the God 00:14:24.779 --> 00:14:26.420 upon whom they gazed 00:14:26.420 --> 00:14:27.700 was so much bigger 00:14:27.700 --> 00:14:28.620 upon the problems 00:14:28.620 --> 00:14:29.940 upon which they glanced. 00:14:31.060 --> 00:14:32.060 The second thing 00:14:32.060 --> 00:14:33.259 that we can put out of this 00:14:33.259 --> 00:14:34.940 and I want to come back 00:14:34.940 --> 00:14:36.200 to where we started 00:14:36.200 --> 00:14:38.980 is when they said 00:14:38.980 --> 00:14:40.139 to the crowds 00:14:40.139 --> 00:14:43.379 we too are only human. 00:14:44.480 --> 00:14:45.840 As the crowd started going 00:14:45.840 --> 00:14:46.720 absolute bananas 00:14:46.720 --> 00:14:47.740 over the response 00:14:47.740 --> 00:14:48.399 to the prayer 00:14:48.399 --> 00:14:49.180 that they just made 00:14:49.180 --> 00:14:50.180 when somebody had been healed 00:14:50.180 --> 00:14:50.899 they said no no 00:14:50.899 --> 00:14:52.600 there's nothing special about us 00:14:52.600 --> 00:14:54.120 we too are human. 00:14:55.399 --> 00:14:57.399 Translated into a practical strategy 00:14:57.399 --> 00:15:00.360 in terms of 00:15:00.360 --> 00:15:01.279 what it means to 00:15:01.279 --> 00:15:03.100 glance at your problems 00:15:03.100 --> 00:15:04.179 but to gaze upon God 00:15:04.179 --> 00:15:05.360 it tells us this 00:15:05.360 --> 00:15:06.759 quite simply 00:15:06.759 --> 00:15:07.919 they pointed away 00:15:07.919 --> 00:15:08.980 from themselves 00:15:08.980 --> 00:15:10.600 and to God. 00:15:11.659 --> 00:15:12.899 They pointed away 00:15:12.899 --> 00:15:13.539 from themselves. 00:15:13.860 --> 00:15:14.720 See that's what it means 00:15:14.720 --> 00:15:16.659 to gaze upon God 00:15:16.659 --> 00:15:17.679 means not to gaze 00:15:17.679 --> 00:15:18.840 inwardly on yourself 00:15:18.840 --> 00:15:20.440 not to become 00:15:20.440 --> 00:15:21.220 preoccupied 00:15:21.220 --> 00:15:21.920 with what you've got 00:15:21.920 --> 00:15:22.480 going on 00:15:22.480 --> 00:15:23.420 in yourself. 00:15:23.879 --> 00:15:24.259 Notice 00:15:24.259 --> 00:15:25.259 not only did they 00:15:25.259 --> 00:15:27.540 glance at their problems 00:15:27.540 --> 00:15:29.240 but they only glanced 00:15:29.240 --> 00:15:30.519 at the miracle as well. 00:15:31.000 --> 00:15:31.780 Somebody had just 00:15:31.780 --> 00:15:32.500 been healed. 00:15:32.879 --> 00:15:33.639 If you or I 00:15:33.639 --> 00:15:34.580 were in that situation 00:15:34.580 --> 00:15:35.660 that's where our attention 00:15:35.660 --> 00:15:36.240 would be 00:15:36.240 --> 00:15:37.379 but not theirs. 00:15:38.440 --> 00:15:38.960 You see it applied 00:15:38.960 --> 00:15:39.620 to everything 00:15:39.620 --> 00:15:40.720 both the good 00:15:40.720 --> 00:15:41.399 and the exciting 00:15:41.399 --> 00:15:41.899 and the amazing 00:15:41.899 --> 00:15:43.139 as well as the bad. 00:15:44.420 --> 00:15:45.580 They just glanced on it 00:15:45.580 --> 00:15:47.400 because their focus 00:15:47.399 --> 00:15:48.720 their preoccupation 00:15:48.720 --> 00:15:50.980 was on God.