WEBVTT 00:00:00.860 --> 00:00:08.359 There's a short phrase that tends to come up around about the last week of December, 00:00:08.859 --> 00:00:10.700 and it makes me feel ill. 00:00:12.419 --> 00:00:13.939 New Year's resolution. 00:00:15.880 --> 00:00:18.559 Now, let me just break down that phrase. 00:00:18.640 --> 00:00:23.800 It's three words, and in fact, with two of those words, I haven't got a problem with it all. 00:00:24.359 --> 00:00:26.240 The word resolution is a good word. 00:00:26.240 --> 00:00:29.740 In terms of Christian discipleship, it's about resolution. 00:00:30.000 --> 00:00:35.399 It's about responding to God's call, God's covenant with us, and saying, 00:00:35.539 --> 00:00:37.500 yes, I want to give this my all. 00:00:37.619 --> 00:00:43.179 I believe you've got plans for my life, and I believe that you want the best for me to live life to the full. 00:00:43.579 --> 00:00:45.700 So, you know, show me what to do. 00:00:45.780 --> 00:00:48.560 It's about setting out and making a fresh start. 00:00:49.260 --> 00:00:50.400 Resolution's a good thing. 00:00:51.600 --> 00:00:55.840 As is the word new, no problem with that whatsoever. 00:00:55.840 --> 00:00:58.960 Christian faith is about fresh starts, new beginnings. 00:01:00.080 --> 00:01:00.940 It's good stuff. 00:01:02.880 --> 00:01:07.380 My hang-up with the phrase New Year's resolution is to do with the word year. 00:01:08.560 --> 00:01:14.120 Because it locks all of that into the calendar in a fixed kind of way. 00:01:14.120 --> 00:01:16.780 If you like it, it calendarizes. 00:01:17.000 --> 00:01:17.640 Is that a word? 00:01:18.000 --> 00:01:18.740 It is now. 00:01:19.620 --> 00:01:21.180 It kind of calendarizes. 00:01:21.340 --> 00:01:26.260 It locks it in time as though you've got one chance to make a go of it. 00:01:26.500 --> 00:01:28.359 And it starts in early January. 00:01:28.900 --> 00:01:32.939 And if you get it wrong by January the 3rd, well, then that's it. 00:01:33.260 --> 00:01:34.200 Until next year. 00:01:34.300 --> 00:01:35.820 And in the meantime, you just feel a bit rubbish. 00:01:35.819 --> 00:01:43.799 It couldn't be further from New Testament spirituality. 00:01:46.359 --> 00:01:50.759 Romans 12 talks about being living sacrifices. 00:01:52.079 --> 00:01:54.560 That sounds like a contradiction in terms, doesn't it? 00:01:54.560 --> 00:01:56.959 If you sacrifice something, how can it still be alive? 00:01:57.859 --> 00:02:01.419 But that phrase is there to carry that duality of meaning there. 00:02:01.679 --> 00:02:04.479 That actually to be a Christian is to be alive. 00:02:05.819 --> 00:02:06.779 And it's to sacrifice. 00:02:08.000 --> 00:02:11.319 And as you sacrifice, as you make sacrifices, so you are truly alive. 00:02:12.699 --> 00:02:14.079 And yeah, we'll get it wrong. 00:02:14.459 --> 00:02:16.560 Because we're human and we're broken and we're weak. 00:02:17.680 --> 00:02:18.739 And we mess up. 00:02:20.019 --> 00:02:25.459 But you don't have to wait another 12 months before you make another set of New Year's resolutions. 00:02:26.060 --> 00:02:30.079 Now, I'm all for praying the covenant prayer at the beginning of the year. 00:02:30.159 --> 00:02:31.280 I think it's a good thing to do. 00:02:31.280 --> 00:02:38.039 But the danger is that it can get caught up in that similar sort of cycle that we think, well, you got one shot at this. 00:02:39.319 --> 00:02:46.599 If we're to understand the meaning of covenant properly, yes, by all means, say at the beginning of the year. 00:02:47.060 --> 00:02:49.560 Yes, at the beginning of the year, commit that year to God. 00:02:49.560 --> 00:02:54.039 But remember, that commitment is something that we're called to live out every day. 00:02:55.479 --> 00:02:56.740 And we will mess it up. 00:02:58.099 --> 00:03:02.199 But covenant says to us that we're accepted as messed up people. 00:03:02.860 --> 00:03:04.280 Because God knows. 00:03:06.659 --> 00:03:10.920 God knows what we can do and longs for us to grow and to grow and to grow. 00:03:10.919 --> 00:03:14.299 We're called to be living sacrifices. 00:03:15.280 --> 00:03:20.619 That means that it's about the right here and the right now, each and every day of our lives. 00:03:20.779 --> 00:03:25.139 That faith is something that's about fresh starts, new beginnings, new resolutions every day. 00:03:25.639 --> 00:03:30.099 And there's nothing wrong with the fact that we know, we look back at the last 24 hours and we see we've messed up. 00:03:30.259 --> 00:03:31.319 We make a fresh start. 00:03:31.419 --> 00:03:32.039 We move on. 00:03:32.159 --> 00:03:33.279 And we keep on moving. 00:03:33.319 --> 00:03:34.599 Because that's what faith is. 00:03:34.719 --> 00:03:35.439 It's dynamic. 00:03:35.619 --> 00:03:36.919 It's not locked into time. 00:03:37.019 --> 00:03:37.759 It's not frozen. 00:03:37.759 --> 00:03:40.639 It's something that keeps on moving. 00:03:40.859 --> 00:03:46.019 We are called to be living sacrifices every day, right here and right now. 00:03:47.579 --> 00:03:52.159 But I want to suggest that where we go wrong is when we actually do lock that into time. 00:03:52.399 --> 00:03:55.519 And we do so with our preoccupations with time. 00:03:55.799 --> 00:03:59.739 Either preoccupied on the future, what's ahead. 00:03:59.899 --> 00:04:01.439 Or we're locked into the present. 00:04:01.680 --> 00:04:03.280 Or we're locked into the past. 00:04:03.879 --> 00:04:05.459 Let me say what I mean by that. 00:04:05.460 --> 00:04:09.400 Firstly, what about that sense of preoccupation with the future? 00:04:09.580 --> 00:04:14.800 How might that actually stymie that sense of being a living sacrifice right here, right now? 00:04:15.100 --> 00:04:16.960 Well, I think there's two things that come to mind. 00:04:17.019 --> 00:04:23.460 The first is we're preoccupied by the future because of a sense of procrastination. 00:04:24.400 --> 00:04:26.960 In other words, we're saying, yeah, okay, I know God's saying this to me. 00:04:27.740 --> 00:04:32.439 Probably God's been challenging me to do this certain thing in my life for quite some time. 00:04:32.439 --> 00:04:34.600 But I will get on with it and I will do it. 00:04:35.719 --> 00:04:39.120 Whereas actually God perhaps is saying, you've waited long enough. 00:04:39.879 --> 00:04:41.000 Get on and do it. 00:04:41.399 --> 00:04:42.120 Right here. 00:04:42.860 --> 00:04:43.540 Right now. 00:04:44.279 --> 00:04:46.860 You might make a bit of a hash of it, whatever that is. 00:04:48.540 --> 00:04:49.939 But he's asking you to do it. 00:04:50.959 --> 00:04:52.000 Don't put it on hold. 00:04:52.000 --> 00:04:59.519 Whether that means putting yourself up to help out with our youth and children's work. 00:05:00.019 --> 00:05:03.939 Whether it means that God's calling you to a ministry of preaching or leading worship. 00:05:04.600 --> 00:05:08.399 Whether God's calling you to some kind of ministry throughout the week in some way. 00:05:08.620 --> 00:05:12.660 Maybe God's calling you to a particular type of job and to serve you in a workplace in a very different... 00:05:12.660 --> 00:05:14.959 Serve God in a workplace in a different way. 00:05:14.959 --> 00:05:20.939 Maybe God's calling you, yeah, I'm going to say it, to sign a standing order form. 00:05:23.419 --> 00:05:24.060 Don't wait. 00:05:24.979 --> 00:05:26.019 Be a living sacrifice. 00:05:26.219 --> 00:05:26.659 Right here. 00:05:26.839 --> 00:05:27.259 Right now. 00:05:27.479 --> 00:05:27.779 Do it. 00:05:30.240 --> 00:05:31.439 Procrastination is the first thing then. 00:05:31.659 --> 00:05:36.639 The second thing, and I want to say, by the way, I'm preaching to myself as much as anybody this morning. 00:05:36.779 --> 00:05:40.039 I hope I always do that, but especially this morning as I was getting ready for this. 00:05:40.479 --> 00:05:43.019 These are challenges to myself as much as anybody else. 00:05:43.019 --> 00:05:48.099 One of the ways in which we are preoccupied with the future is we worry about it. 00:05:49.159 --> 00:05:53.219 We worry like mad because we look into the future and we don't know what lies ahead. 00:05:53.279 --> 00:05:59.979 And in that uncertainty, we live out that anxiety through nervous energy. 00:06:00.779 --> 00:06:03.919 Corrie Ten Boom said this. 00:06:04.759 --> 00:06:12.299 Worry does not empty tomorrow of sorrow, but it empties today of strength. 00:06:13.019 --> 00:06:14.719 Let me say that again. 00:06:15.879 --> 00:06:24.699 Worry does not empty tomorrow of sorrow, but it does empty today of strength. 00:06:26.859 --> 00:06:27.680 Think ahead. 00:06:27.799 --> 00:06:28.240 That's good. 00:06:28.479 --> 00:06:29.019 Plan ahead. 00:06:29.099 --> 00:06:29.519 That's good. 00:06:29.779 --> 00:06:32.599 But worrying ahead actually serves no purpose. 00:06:32.600 --> 00:06:39.360 And I just wonder how much we expend that energy that actually God could use right here, right now. 00:06:39.360 --> 00:06:46.780 Because our minds are focused on that uncertain future that we're worrying about so much. 00:06:50.100 --> 00:06:52.259 Here's an idea that I'm trying to experiment with. 00:06:52.400 --> 00:06:55.780 I wouldn't say I've cracked it, but I'm finding it quite a helpful experiment. 00:06:55.779 --> 00:07:05.879 If you know how to worry, then you probably know how to pray because you know how to meditate, because you know how to go over things in your mind. 00:07:06.839 --> 00:07:13.559 So when you find yourself in that state of tension between the now and the uncertain future, and it generates those feelings of worry, 00:07:13.560 --> 00:07:21.860 why not try and translate that into an expression of prayer and use that energy as a kind of being held in that place of tension. 00:07:22.280 --> 00:07:28.139 Allow the uncertainty to be a living out of a prayer of faith. 00:07:28.139 --> 00:07:33.519 And instead of allowing it to turn in on yourself, turn it over to God. 00:07:35.300 --> 00:07:38.919 Let it go and make it your prayer. 00:07:41.039 --> 00:07:45.759 Allow it to be that living by faith, being a living sacrifice. 00:07:48.099 --> 00:07:50.519 So a preoccupation with the future can be the first thing. 00:07:50.560 --> 00:07:54.560 It can step in the way of the right here, the right now, the getting on with it. 00:07:54.560 --> 00:08:01.060 You know, the other thing, it makes me a strange thing to say, but a preoccupation with the present can also trip us up. 00:08:01.399 --> 00:08:02.420 Let me see what I mean by that. 00:08:04.579 --> 00:08:07.459 If we're not careful, we can get so caught up with that question, 00:08:08.259 --> 00:08:10.220 am I in the right place right now? 00:08:10.959 --> 00:08:13.079 Am I doing what God wants me to do right now? 00:08:13.120 --> 00:08:17.060 That actually, we never actually get on with doing things right now. 00:08:18.360 --> 00:08:23.660 We can be so caught up with that question, well, is God saying to me that right now I should be there doing that? 00:08:23.660 --> 00:08:25.939 Or perhaps I've made the wrong decision. 00:08:26.060 --> 00:08:27.580 I need to, I should be somewhere else. 00:08:27.620 --> 00:08:29.420 It's good to write, to ask those questions. 00:08:29.900 --> 00:08:37.019 For all intents and purposes, where you are at any given moment in time is where you are at that given moment in time. 00:08:38.779 --> 00:08:44.500 And therefore, whilst it's no bad thing to be asking God questions about what he might have in store, 00:08:44.720 --> 00:08:47.700 and perhaps he does have a change of plan in mind for you, 00:08:47.779 --> 00:08:49.940 as long as you're in that place, you're in that place. 00:08:49.940 --> 00:08:53.340 So it may be, for example, that you're in a job right now, 00:08:53.400 --> 00:08:56.320 that maybe you think God's calling you to something else. 00:08:56.400 --> 00:08:58.500 Maybe, but until you've left it, you're still there. 00:09:00.020 --> 00:09:03.600 Maybe that where you live is not where you're meant to be right now, 00:09:03.680 --> 00:09:05.580 but as long as you're there, you're there. 00:09:09.060 --> 00:09:13.320 Maybe your situation is something that is going to change and needs to change. 00:09:13.320 --> 00:09:16.820 But until it has, that's where you are. 00:09:19.340 --> 00:09:23.400 And the danger can be we can be so absorbed with the question of insecure, 00:09:23.540 --> 00:09:25.200 that we become insecure as to where we are, 00:09:25.260 --> 00:09:27.920 that we don't actually get on with the right here and the right now, 00:09:27.980 --> 00:09:29.600 and that's what God's saying to us every day. 00:09:31.879 --> 00:09:33.780 In the 11th century, this is a true story, 00:09:33.860 --> 00:09:35.140 there was a Bavarian king, 00:09:35.139 --> 00:09:37.220 and he was a Christian, 00:09:37.899 --> 00:09:43.860 and he felt that he was being called to join a monastery, 00:09:44.080 --> 00:09:44.679 to become a monk. 00:09:46.259 --> 00:09:50.199 So he decided that he was going to leave the throne, 00:09:50.919 --> 00:09:54.399 and he approached the prior, 00:09:55.399 --> 00:09:59.399 and he explained to him that he wanted to join that place as a monk. 00:09:59.399 --> 00:10:02.100 The prior said to him, 00:10:02.899 --> 00:10:09.179 Your Majesty, do you understand that your pledge here would be one of obedience? 00:10:10.579 --> 00:10:13.679 That will be very hard for you, having been a king. 00:10:15.259 --> 00:10:17.139 The king said, I understand. 00:10:18.539 --> 00:10:20.679 I want you to know that the rest of my life, 00:10:20.799 --> 00:10:23.539 I will obey you as Christ leads you. 00:10:26.679 --> 00:10:28.199 The prior replied, 00:10:28.200 --> 00:10:32.280 Then return to your throne, 00:10:33.440 --> 00:10:35.879 and serve faithfully where God has placed you. 00:10:42.200 --> 00:10:46.360 I think the third way in which we can be distracted by time is the focus on the past. 00:10:46.500 --> 00:10:49.220 And I need to say right at the beginning now, 00:10:49.280 --> 00:10:51.580 that this is perhaps the most challenging thing, I think. 00:10:51.800 --> 00:10:53.800 Particularly the longer we've been Christians, 00:10:54.520 --> 00:10:57.020 the more of that Christian past we've got. 00:10:58.200 --> 00:11:01.240 The danger is the longer you've been a Christian, 00:11:01.360 --> 00:11:05.220 you can look back at your previous spiritual experiences, 00:11:05.879 --> 00:11:06.400 wistfully. 00:11:09.480 --> 00:11:11.100 Whether that's kind of saying, 00:11:11.200 --> 00:11:16.900 I remember that day when I made that commitment at Billy Graham's rally in 1967. 00:11:16.899 --> 00:11:23.659 I remember that amazing experience of renewal I had at Spring Harvest in 1988. 00:11:25.419 --> 00:11:28.199 New wine 2011, it was just awesome. 00:11:30.699 --> 00:11:33.939 You know, it's good to look back at these things and to celebrate them, 00:11:34.360 --> 00:11:36.600 to draw on those things. 00:11:36.600 --> 00:11:42.940 But we lose something very dangerous. 00:11:43.740 --> 00:11:47.240 Dangerously lose something if we just live off that past. 00:11:47.960 --> 00:11:51.279 A married couple will look back at their wedding day. 00:11:51.700 --> 00:11:53.700 Will look back at when they first met and fell in love. 00:11:53.860 --> 00:11:57.659 And that sort of time, that moment in time, has a uniqueness of its own. 00:11:57.659 --> 00:12:03.240 But in marriage, it's not about looking back at that great day 00:12:03.240 --> 00:12:05.059 or that great moment when you first met. 00:12:06.399 --> 00:12:11.360 It's about the living outness of that over the decades. 00:12:11.459 --> 00:12:14.079 And that only deepens and strengthens over the decades. 00:12:15.139 --> 00:12:17.360 And when it comes to our relationship with God, 00:12:17.439 --> 00:12:20.620 the danger is that we look back wistfully at what was. 00:12:20.620 --> 00:12:23.919 And without discrediting that for one moment, 00:12:24.299 --> 00:12:27.899 the reality is, is God calls us to be living sacrifices 00:12:27.899 --> 00:12:31.919 right here, right now, wherever we are. 00:12:32.060 --> 00:12:35.360 Whether we are in this place or whether we are in the office, 00:12:35.519 --> 00:12:38.379 whether we're at the school gates, whether it's in our homes, 00:12:39.060 --> 00:12:41.679 wherever it is, that's where we're called. 00:12:42.299 --> 00:12:46.019 Right here, right now, to be living sacrifices. 00:12:46.019 --> 00:12:51.480 The danger can be that the longer we've been Christians, 00:12:51.879 --> 00:12:55.519 the more in danger we are of becoming tired 00:12:55.519 --> 00:12:59.439 and feeling, well, I'm exhausted and I've done that 00:12:59.439 --> 00:13:01.179 and, well, I've been there. 00:13:02.139 --> 00:13:04.340 Billy Graham, towards the end of his life, 00:13:04.500 --> 00:13:06.059 wrote a book called Nearing Home. 00:13:06.759 --> 00:13:09.840 There's a whole chapter where he says you don't retire from life. 00:13:11.879 --> 00:13:13.919 Wherever we are, however long we've been around, 00:13:14.039 --> 00:13:15.360 God's got plans for us. 00:13:15.360 --> 00:13:17.279 As long as we are in this world. 00:13:17.580 --> 00:13:20.639 They may have to change and adapt to our situation, 00:13:20.740 --> 00:13:22.379 to our circumstances, to our limitations. 00:13:22.539 --> 00:13:23.259 Of course they do. 00:13:24.440 --> 00:13:26.080 But as long as we're here, we're here 00:13:26.080 --> 00:13:27.680 and God's got a plan for us. 00:13:31.560 --> 00:13:33.860 I remember having a conversation with a couple, 00:13:36.120 --> 00:13:37.159 I need to say right at the outset, 00:13:37.279 --> 00:13:39.580 they weren't part of any of the churches 00:13:39.580 --> 00:13:40.920 that I'm minister of at the moment. 00:13:41.100 --> 00:13:42.779 Okay, so in case I'm telling you this story 00:13:42.779 --> 00:13:43.500 and you start thinking, 00:13:43.500 --> 00:13:44.860 I wonder if he's talking about something. 00:13:44.860 --> 00:13:46.680 You won't know these people, okay? 00:13:46.960 --> 00:13:48.419 But so I'm safe to tell this story. 00:13:48.580 --> 00:13:49.960 But it was a few years ago 00:13:49.960 --> 00:13:51.100 and I was talking to this couple 00:13:51.100 --> 00:13:53.700 and they were explaining to me 00:13:53.700 --> 00:13:56.300 what they had done over many, many years 00:13:56.300 --> 00:14:00.820 in terms of the youth work in their church. 00:14:00.919 --> 00:14:01.659 And it was amazing 00:14:01.659 --> 00:14:05.320 that what they had done over decades, 00:14:05.399 --> 00:14:06.060 I think it was, 00:14:06.100 --> 00:14:07.320 was just mind-blowing. 00:14:07.320 --> 00:14:09.500 They, they, they, they, weekends, 00:14:09.940 --> 00:14:12.740 Friday nights, Saturdays, Sunday, Sunday evenings, 00:14:12.879 --> 00:14:14.460 having young people round to their house, 00:14:14.900 --> 00:14:17.120 taking them off on different places, 00:14:17.340 --> 00:14:18.580 youth camps, the lot. 00:14:18.840 --> 00:14:20.520 They had worked hard. 00:14:21.500 --> 00:14:23.520 They had done an amazing job. 00:14:25.920 --> 00:14:27.520 And as they told me these things, 00:14:27.580 --> 00:14:29.020 I was full of admiration. 00:14:29.019 --> 00:14:31.539 And then, 00:14:32.340 --> 00:14:32.879 and they said, 00:14:33.179 --> 00:14:34.000 we've done our bit. 00:14:36.379 --> 00:14:37.539 Now for one moment, 00:14:38.240 --> 00:14:39.960 I think for one moment 00:14:39.960 --> 00:14:42.919 that I say this with any sense of disrespect, 00:14:43.579 --> 00:14:45.019 because I am sure 00:14:45.019 --> 00:14:46.980 that there are many, many people 00:14:46.980 --> 00:14:48.559 who are no longer quite so young, 00:14:48.759 --> 00:14:50.819 but who were, back in the day, 00:14:51.000 --> 00:14:52.360 who under their ministry 00:14:52.360 --> 00:14:54.940 became Christians 00:14:54.940 --> 00:14:57.060 and grew as Christians. 00:14:57.980 --> 00:14:59.220 And that what they did 00:14:59.220 --> 00:15:00.419 over many, many years 00:15:00.419 --> 00:15:01.960 had a huge impact 00:15:01.960 --> 00:15:03.779 for God's purposes in the world. 00:15:07.060 --> 00:15:08.460 But you know that phrase, 00:15:08.700 --> 00:15:09.519 I've done my bit, 00:15:10.300 --> 00:15:12.440 has no place in Christian discipleship. 00:15:13.240 --> 00:15:14.060 It doesn't. 00:15:14.980 --> 00:15:16.580 And that may be a painful thing 00:15:16.580 --> 00:15:18.159 for us to come to terms with 00:15:18.159 --> 00:15:20.940 when we want to be able to say, 00:15:21.060 --> 00:15:21.779 I've done my bit. 00:15:22.980 --> 00:15:24.120 It's not an option. 00:15:25.320 --> 00:15:26.500 It's not an option. 00:15:28.019 --> 00:15:29.039 Now, of course, 00:15:29.180 --> 00:15:30.139 it may well be, 00:15:30.180 --> 00:15:31.360 and to go back to that example, 00:15:31.680 --> 00:15:32.659 that that particular couple 00:15:32.659 --> 00:15:34.340 probably are not called to serve God 00:15:34.340 --> 00:15:35.899 in that way that they once did. 00:15:36.399 --> 00:15:37.159 In that sense, 00:15:37.220 --> 00:15:38.120 it's a chapter, 00:15:38.259 --> 00:15:39.480 a season that has passed. 00:15:40.080 --> 00:15:41.060 Give thanks for it. 00:15:43.779 --> 00:15:44.899 Things change 00:15:44.899 --> 00:15:46.259 as we get older 00:15:46.259 --> 00:15:47.600 and we change 00:15:47.600 --> 00:15:49.279 and our situations change 00:15:49.279 --> 00:15:51.779 and we have to re-discern 00:15:51.779 --> 00:15:53.919 what God's plan is for us 00:15:53.919 --> 00:15:55.879 as our circumstances change 00:15:55.879 --> 00:15:59.919 and as we have to accept 00:15:59.919 --> 00:16:01.019 limitations. 00:16:03.159 --> 00:16:04.759 But let's never, 00:16:05.019 --> 00:16:05.559 ever think 00:16:05.559 --> 00:16:06.759 for one moment 00:16:06.759 --> 00:16:08.500 that we can say, 00:16:08.500 --> 00:16:10.360 I've done my bit. 00:16:12.039 --> 00:16:13.580 Because as long as we are here 00:16:13.580 --> 00:16:14.299 in this world, 00:16:15.559 --> 00:16:16.639 God's got plans 00:16:16.639 --> 00:16:18.519 right here 00:16:18.519 --> 00:16:20.440 and right now. 00:16:20.440 --> 00:16:27.780 a relatively recently retired man 00:16:27.780 --> 00:16:28.540 was giving a talk 00:16:28.540 --> 00:16:29.600 to a group of students. 00:16:30.320 --> 00:16:31.020 He was a Christian. 00:16:31.200 --> 00:16:32.420 It was a Christian union event 00:16:32.420 --> 00:16:33.520 that he was talking to. 00:16:35.100 --> 00:16:35.780 And as he spoke 00:16:35.780 --> 00:16:36.440 to these Christians, 00:16:36.600 --> 00:16:38.600 this man who was recently retired 00:16:38.600 --> 00:16:39.400 was a very, 00:16:39.600 --> 00:16:40.860 very successful businessman. 00:16:41.540 --> 00:16:42.220 His whole life 00:16:42.220 --> 00:16:42.740 was a success. 00:16:42.860 --> 00:16:43.060 In fact, 00:16:43.060 --> 00:16:43.600 look at his life. 00:16:43.660 --> 00:16:44.380 Everything seemed to go 00:16:44.380 --> 00:16:45.600 really, really well for him. 00:16:45.600 --> 00:16:48.180 And he was talking 00:16:48.180 --> 00:16:49.139 to these young people, 00:16:49.240 --> 00:16:50.320 explaining to them 00:16:50.320 --> 00:16:53.279 how if you give everything 00:16:53.279 --> 00:16:54.080 over to God, 00:16:54.200 --> 00:16:55.220 God will honour that 00:16:55.220 --> 00:16:56.080 and will bless it. 00:16:57.240 --> 00:16:58.040 And he said to them, 00:16:58.100 --> 00:16:59.100 as I look through my life now, 00:16:59.159 --> 00:17:00.420 I see that my relationships 00:17:00.420 --> 00:17:01.320 have been successful. 00:17:01.540 --> 00:17:02.860 I've got a wonderful family. 00:17:03.420 --> 00:17:03.600 You know, 00:17:03.680 --> 00:17:04.599 everything is going 00:17:04.599 --> 00:17:05.440 really, really well 00:17:05.440 --> 00:17:07.180 and I've been blessed financially. 00:17:08.019 --> 00:17:08.660 But you know, 00:17:08.700 --> 00:17:10.319 it hasn't always been like this. 00:17:11.900 --> 00:17:12.319 In fact, 00:17:12.360 --> 00:17:12.960 I look back 00:17:12.960 --> 00:17:15.059 when I was 18 years old myself 00:17:15.059 --> 00:17:16.200 he said, 00:17:16.259 --> 00:17:17.759 I had just a few pounds. 00:17:19.579 --> 00:17:20.480 And yet, 00:17:20.759 --> 00:17:21.859 it was then 00:17:21.859 --> 00:17:22.700 as an 18 year old 00:17:22.700 --> 00:17:23.460 I just took that 00:17:23.460 --> 00:17:24.779 very small amount 00:17:24.779 --> 00:17:25.359 that I had 00:17:25.359 --> 00:17:27.419 and with the small amount 00:17:27.419 --> 00:17:28.319 of money that I had 00:17:28.319 --> 00:17:29.799 and with the very little 00:17:29.799 --> 00:17:31.000 possessions that I had 00:17:31.000 --> 00:17:31.740 I said to God, 00:17:32.599 --> 00:17:32.839 Lord, 00:17:33.119 --> 00:17:34.039 I want you to take 00:17:34.039 --> 00:17:34.839 my whole life 00:17:34.839 --> 00:17:35.879 and I want you to take 00:17:35.879 --> 00:17:36.399 everything 00:17:36.399 --> 00:17:37.779 and I want you to take 00:17:37.779 --> 00:17:39.460 every last penny 00:17:39.460 --> 00:17:40.220 that I have 00:17:40.220 --> 00:17:42.339 and use it 00:17:42.339 --> 00:17:43.899 as you see fit. 00:17:43.900 --> 00:17:45.100 take it, 00:17:45.100 --> 00:17:45.320 take it, Lord. 00:17:47.400 --> 00:17:48.360 And as I look back 00:17:48.360 --> 00:17:48.920 over the years 00:17:48.920 --> 00:17:49.660 I see that God 00:17:49.660 --> 00:17:51.019 took what I gave him 00:17:51.019 --> 00:17:51.980 and increased it 00:17:51.980 --> 00:17:53.160 in ever greater measure 00:17:53.160 --> 00:17:55.400 and he keeps on giving 00:17:55.400 --> 00:17:56.300 and keeps on giving 00:17:56.300 --> 00:17:57.259 and has blessed me. 00:18:01.660 --> 00:18:02.480 Towards the, 00:18:02.620 --> 00:18:03.700 as it came to the end 00:18:03.700 --> 00:18:04.300 of his talk 00:18:04.300 --> 00:18:06.560 one very, 00:18:06.920 --> 00:18:08.160 very courageous 00:18:08.160 --> 00:18:09.000 student 00:18:09.000 --> 00:18:11.120 on the front row 00:18:11.119 --> 00:18:13.059 put up her hand 00:18:13.059 --> 00:18:13.599 and she said, 00:18:13.699 --> 00:18:14.319 can I just say 00:18:14.319 --> 00:18:15.879 I found your talk 00:18:15.879 --> 00:18:17.079 so inspiring. 00:18:17.359 --> 00:18:17.919 Thank you. 00:18:19.479 --> 00:18:20.599 And what's challenged me 00:18:20.599 --> 00:18:21.299 so much 00:18:21.299 --> 00:18:22.339 is the way in which 00:18:22.339 --> 00:18:23.379 you have said 00:18:23.379 --> 00:18:24.739 that even though 00:18:24.739 --> 00:18:25.779 you have so much now 00:18:25.779 --> 00:18:26.379 there was a time 00:18:26.379 --> 00:18:27.099 when you had very, 00:18:27.259 --> 00:18:27.679 very little 00:18:27.679 --> 00:18:29.039 and how you had 00:18:29.039 --> 00:18:29.579 the courage 00:18:29.579 --> 00:18:30.379 and the boldness 00:18:30.379 --> 00:18:31.079 when you were 00:18:31.079 --> 00:18:32.339 the same age as we are 00:18:32.339 --> 00:18:34.819 to make your prayer, 00:18:35.039 --> 00:18:35.239 Lord, 00:18:35.459 --> 00:18:37.939 take everything I have 00:18:37.940 --> 00:18:40.460 and use it 00:18:40.460 --> 00:18:42.580 and you handed it over. 00:18:44.799 --> 00:18:45.740 He was nodding 00:18:45.740 --> 00:18:46.920 and was about to sit down 00:18:46.920 --> 00:18:47.539 and she said, 00:18:48.620 --> 00:18:51.320 I dare you to do it again. 00:18:57.120 --> 00:18:57.820 Let's pray. 00:18:57.820 --> 00:18:57.860 Let's pray. 00:19:07.940 --> 00:19:12.299 Lord, 00:19:12.400 --> 00:19:13.140 thank you 00:19:13.140 --> 00:19:16.279 that you are interested 00:19:16.279 --> 00:19:17.740 in the right here 00:19:17.740 --> 00:19:19.259 and the right now 00:19:19.259 --> 00:19:20.100 of our lives. 00:19:22.380 --> 00:19:23.120 Thank you 00:19:23.120 --> 00:19:23.880 that as we look back 00:19:23.880 --> 00:19:24.500 on the past, 00:19:24.799 --> 00:19:25.900 whether we were aware 00:19:25.900 --> 00:19:27.340 of it or not, 00:19:27.480 --> 00:19:27.940 you were there. 00:19:29.779 --> 00:19:30.480 Thank you 00:19:30.480 --> 00:19:31.140 that as we look 00:19:31.140 --> 00:19:32.019 to the future, 00:19:33.059 --> 00:19:33.820 even though that 00:19:33.820 --> 00:19:35.299 is an uncertain future, 00:19:35.799 --> 00:19:36.759 you are there 00:19:36.759 --> 00:19:38.000 and you have promises. 00:19:41.420 --> 00:19:42.720 You have plans. 00:19:42.980 --> 00:19:43.740 You have purposes 00:19:43.740 --> 00:19:44.460 for us. 00:19:48.000 --> 00:19:48.480 Lord, 00:19:48.559 --> 00:19:49.059 thank you 00:19:49.059 --> 00:19:51.420 that it's right here 00:19:51.420 --> 00:19:52.180 and right now 00:19:52.180 --> 00:19:54.099 that you're most interested in 00:19:54.099 --> 00:19:57.140 in our everyday life. 00:19:58.980 --> 00:19:59.420 Lord, 00:19:59.500 --> 00:19:59.920 forgive us 00:19:59.920 --> 00:20:00.640 for when we are 00:20:00.640 --> 00:20:01.339 preoccupied 00:20:01.339 --> 00:20:02.180 by the future 00:20:02.180 --> 00:20:03.099 or by the present 00:20:03.099 --> 00:20:04.000 or by the past. 00:20:05.279 --> 00:20:06.000 Forgive us 00:20:06.000 --> 00:20:06.900 for when we allow 00:20:06.900 --> 00:20:07.720 those things 00:20:07.720 --> 00:20:08.960 to get in the way. 00:20:09.559 --> 00:20:09.880 Lord, 00:20:10.099 --> 00:20:10.900 help us, 00:20:11.440 --> 00:20:12.160 help us, 00:20:12.859 --> 00:20:13.599 help us 00:20:13.599 --> 00:20:15.660 to be living sacrifices. 00:20:18.359 --> 00:20:19.380 Whilst our thoughts 00:20:19.380 --> 00:20:19.880 may go 00:20:19.880 --> 00:20:20.500 to the past, 00:20:20.579 --> 00:20:20.880 the present, 00:20:20.960 --> 00:20:21.420 the future, 00:20:21.859 --> 00:20:22.839 may our focus 00:20:22.839 --> 00:20:24.220 be on the right here 00:20:24.220 --> 00:20:25.359 and the right now 00:20:25.359 --> 00:20:26.319 of your presence. 00:20:26.819 --> 00:20:28.279 May we hear your voice. 00:20:28.720 --> 00:20:29.859 May we have the courage 00:20:29.859 --> 00:20:30.720 to respond 00:20:30.720 --> 00:20:32.480 where you are calling us 00:20:32.480 --> 00:20:34.299 to make sacrifices 00:20:34.299 --> 00:20:36.120 and to truly live. 00:20:40.920 --> 00:20:41.500 Lord, 00:20:41.559 --> 00:20:42.940 we hold our lives 00:20:42.940 --> 00:20:44.000 before you 00:20:44.000 --> 00:20:45.039 on this day 00:20:45.039 --> 00:20:45.960 in which we have said 00:20:45.960 --> 00:20:47.000 that covenant prayer. 00:20:48.360 --> 00:20:49.680 And as we continue 00:20:49.680 --> 00:20:51.019 to worship you now 00:20:51.019 --> 00:20:53.519 and on into this week, 00:20:54.519 --> 00:20:56.000 speak to us, 00:20:56.339 --> 00:20:57.160 challenge us, 00:20:57.480 --> 00:20:58.460 inspire us 00:20:58.460 --> 00:20:59.779 and lead us 00:20:59.779 --> 00:21:02.079 in the right here 00:21:02.079 --> 00:21:03.019 and right now 00:21:03.019 --> 00:21:06.220 that we may truly be 00:21:06.220 --> 00:21:07.620 living sacrifices. 00:21:09.420 --> 00:21:10.759 In Jesus' name. 00:21:12.519 --> 00:21:13.079 Amen. 00:21:13.079 --> 00:21:13.240 Amen. 00:21:13.240 --> 00:21:13.299 Amen. 00:21:13.299 --> 00:21:13.319 Amen. 00:21:13.319 --> 00:21:13.340 Amen. 00:21:13.340 --> 00:21:13.400 Amen. 00:21:13.400 --> 00:21:13.420 Amen.