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>> It has stood
the test of time.
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God's book, the Bible,
still relevant in today's
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complex world. "It
Is Written," sharing
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messages of hope
around the world.
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>> Friends, thank
you for joining us on
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"It Is Written Canada."
We have been so privileged
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to have Lee Venden here with us,
and we have been talking about
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the three basic ingredients that
you need to have a meaningful
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relationship with God,
and we looked at, number one,
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being reading the
Word of God for the purpose
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of having a meaningful
relationship with Him.
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And number two, Prayer. Prayer
for the purpose of having a
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dialogue, not just a monologue,
just not speaking to God and
asking Him for things
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but actually listening to Him.
And then, thirdly and the
product of the first two,
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is sharing what you
have experienced with God.
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So, Lee, when I think about
the Word of God, now, I want
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to focus on number one today,
the Word of God -- I think of
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John 6:35, where Jesus
says, "I am the Bread of Life."
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And so the word of
God is the Bread of Life.
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And He says, "Whoever
comes to me will never hunger,
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and whoever believes
in me will never thirst."
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>> Mm-hmm. >> Yeah,
the metaphor that Jesus
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himself used about the bread.
I mean, everybody has bread,
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right? Pretty much.
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>> Yes. >> Even
gluten-free bread.
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[ Laughter ]
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And so Jesus is saying, like,
you know, "That's how important
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I am. I'm as important as your
bread." And I like to kind of
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work with a recipe for bread,
thinking about it as spiritual
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bread. And so when people ask
me, "So how do you spend time in
the word that's meaningful?"
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I say, "Let me give you a little
recipe for that, that Bread of
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Life." And then the recipe goes
like this -- time alone at the
beginning of every day in
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contemplation of the life
of Christ through His Word and
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through prayer. So that's it.
That's the recipe. >> That's the
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recipe. >> And, as you know,
recipes vary from one person to
another in terms of the way
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they apply them. Some people are
dump-and-stir and other people
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follow the book very carefully.
But in a recipe, regardless of
how you approach doing them,
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there are certain things -- if
you're gonna make bread, you're
going to have to use
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flour. Doesn't
matter how you do recipes.
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Still gonna have to use flour.
>> Mm-hmm. >> So what I like to
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do with that recipe is I like to
tell people, "These are some
suggestions, these are sort of
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like -- here's the flour
that needs to be included in the
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recipe. You figure out how you
want to put it and mix it. But
look for ways to use
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these ingredients in your quiet
time with Jesus, alright, your
daily time with Him."
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>> So you sit down and you open
the Word of God. What do you do
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before you open the Word of God?
>> Well, the very first thing I
do -- I'm glad you asked
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that question. Yeah, the
very first thing I do is I pray
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for three things in particular.
>> Mm-hmm. >> I say, "Lord
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Jesus, first of all I want to
have an increased sense of
appreciation for you." That's
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why I'm reading. I'm reading for
relationship. I'm not reading
for facts and information.
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I'm reading for relationship.
I'm reading like you'd read a
love letter from a fiancé.
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So I say, "I want my
heart stirred again."
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The two on the road to Emmaus,
when they got to the end of that
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trip, they said, after Jesus
vanished -- remember the story?
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They said, "Didn't our hearts
burn within us as He showed us
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Himself along the way?"
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Well, He was showing Himself to
them in scripture. So I want Him
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to show Himself to me in
scripture in such a way that
when it's done I can say,
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"Didn't my heart burn within me
as He showed me Himself again
today?" So that's the first
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thing I pray for. The second
thing I pray for is that that
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the devil's power to distract me
will be -- you know, that God
will prevent the devil from
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distracting me. >> Okay, so the
devil can put in some
distractions there. >> Mm-hmm.
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>> Yeah. What kind of
distractions does he usually put
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in your life, love? >> Well,
it's usually worrying about the
children and about our
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daughters and something would
come up and then I would think
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about that and the scenario
would play over and over, you
know, and so, for me, I think
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it's just worrying about the
girls. >> Yeah, and those
distractions become numerous.
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>> And there's nothing evil
about that. That's a beautiful
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thing. To be loving and caring
about your children is not a bad
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thing. So it's kind of sneaky
of the devil to use something
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that's not evil to keep you
preoccupied from having quality
time with Jesus. >> Mm-hmm.
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So we have to let that -- give
it to God. So we pray, number
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one. "Let me have appreciation
for Jesus." >> Yeah.
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And, number two, to just silence
the distractions of the devil.
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So, for me, I say, if it's quiet
time at the beginning of every
day, you know, in contemplation
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of the life of Christ, then I'm
picking up His Word and I'm
saying, "This is the first
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device that I'm going to look at
at the beginning of that day.
I'm not going to look
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at any other device or any I'm
not text, right?" >> What kind
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of device? What do you mean? Why
not? >> I could pick up my
phone, I could pick up my
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computer, any kind of device. >>
And what could happen if you did
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that? >> Well, it's going to
take me throughout the day --
I'm not gonna even read the
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Bible. I'm going to be looking
at so many other things. I've
just got, like, a herd --
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>> Probably e-mails. >> E-mails,
yeah, text messages. And so
God's saying, "This is
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the first text you're going to
read," and that's scripture. And
if I put the pause on
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everything else in my life, and
I say, "I'm just going to read
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the Bible first, that's the
first text, and I'm going to do
that for the first hour of my
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day," that's a commitment, a
solid commitment to God and to
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His work, yeah. >> Mm-hmm.
What about someone who is not a
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morning person... >> Oh, oh >>
And they just feel like -- yeah,
they just -- it's hard for
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them to do stuff in the morning,
because they're not a morning
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person. >> Well, boy, that
unpacks a whole different
element that I think it's
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important for us to address, but
think about -- think about,
okay, Jesus compared himself to
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bread. >> Yes. >> He's
really comparing himself
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to a meal, right? Okay, so
nutritionists tell you, what's
the most important meal
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of the day? >>
Breakfast. >> Breakfast.
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>> Breakfast. And they would
tell you not to call it a good
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breakfast if it's a Carnation
instant drink. >> Yeah, no. >>
They want you to have a
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hearty breakfast, okay? >>
That's right, yeah. >> And what
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would happen if you waited till
the end of the day to have the
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biggest meal? What would happen
to you? >> Oh, no. Yeah, you
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couldn't sleep at night. >>
And you'd probably gain a lot of
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weight. >> Yeah, you'd gain
a lot of weight. That's right,
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'cause you're not working out.
>> Yeah. So there's something
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about starting -- you know, it's
interesting that you mentioned
that because in John 6, which
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you quoted, Jesus also compares
himself to manna. Mm. Hmm.
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And He says, "I am the manna
that God sent down." And when
you think about Jesus
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comparing himself to manna, of
course, that takes you back to
the children of Israel
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traveling across the desert and
God giving them this
supernatural food, and it
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came at what time of day? >> In
the morning. >> Yeah. Now, Jesus
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is comparing himself to manna.
And the manna falls heavy in the
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morning. And if you go to Exodus
16, which is where God gives the
guidelines for gathering manna
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to the children of Israel. One
of the things He says is,
"Gather it in the morning,
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because it's going to melt if
you wait very long." >> That's
right. That's right.
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>> And what I think -- I tie
that back to what you just said
a minute ago -- what's the first
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device I'm going to open in
the morning? I'm gonna open the
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Bible rather than my cellphone
or my iPad. >> Otherwise, it's
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just going to melt away. >>
Yeah, it's gonna melt. That's
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what I consider the melting,
yeah. Those devils rabbits that
he releases that I chase after
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-- those e-mails that I need
to answer, whatever. But back to
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your question, if I'm not a
morning person... Jesus is more
interested in time with me
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than I am in time with Him, and
He's even offered to be my alarm
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clock. >> Wow.
Mm-hmm. >> Isaiah 50:4.
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He says that He will
waken us morning by morning.
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He will cause our ear to hear.
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And so I have discovered -- and
this is really fun. I could tell
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stories for hours that people
have shared with me in which
they decided to ask God to meet
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their alarm clock. >> Yeah. >>
And He wakens them. People who
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are not morning persons. And so
they say, "Okay, Jesus, if this
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is for real, if you really want
to hang out and you really want
me to grow in a relationship
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with you and you want this time
to be a way to start my day
before the distractions of the
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day have started to get in my
face, I give you permission to
fulfill the promise
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of Isaiah 54 for me. Wake
me up." And He will do it.
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And not only will He do it,
He'll make you alert. And then
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here's one more thing. If you
get up for Jesus... Let's just
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say that you're a person who
needs eight hours of sleep,
typically. But you get up
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after seven hours instead,
because you got up for Jesus.
This is amazing thing.
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Seven hours of sleep with the
blessing and the anointing of
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time with Jesus, will give you
more strength energy, and
efficiency for your day than 10
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hours of sleep would have given
you without the connection with
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Jesus. So if you're really
dialing in, you don't miss your
sleep and He'll even wake you
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up, if you're not a morning
person. >> He promises to give
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us strength. >> Yeah. >> So when
you when you pray, you open up
your Bible, you ask
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for an appreciation of Jesus,
you ask to appreciate Jesus more
and also you want to
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be able to... >> Be
free from those distractions.
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>> ...be free from those
distractions. What's the third
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thing? >> The third one. The
third thing I ask for is that He
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gives me spiritual eyeglass. >>
Ah, okay. >> Because, you know,
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spiritual things are spiritually
discerned. And if I read the
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Bible without spiritual -- I
call them the eyeglasses of the
Holy Spirit. >> Both: Mm-hmm.
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>> If I read the bible without
the eyeglasses the Holy Spirit,
do you know what I get?
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I get information. Remember
Jesus saying to those guys --
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you referenced in an earlier
episode, Mike, where Jesus said
to those guys, "You search the
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scriptures because then you
think you have eternal life, but
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you missed me." The reason they
missed Him is because they
didn't read with spiritual
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eyeglasses. They just read. >>
It was all for knowledge. >>
It's for knowledge rather
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than for heart as well, right?
>> So I ask Him to give me the
spiri-- back when I was a kid,
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someone gave me a Bible that had
blue-ink pictures, full-page.
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And the facing page was red
cellophane that was clear. And
if you laid the facing page
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over the blue ink, amazing
things happened. I almost
thought it was magic,
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because one of the pictures were
a bunch of sheep in a pasture,
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and as soon as you laid the red
over, it looked like there was a
shepherd in front of the sheep.
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I couldn't see the shepherd
until I laid the red cellophane.
If I held the red cellophane up
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to the sun or the light, I
didn't see the shepherd in it
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but there He was. We need the
red cellophane of the Holy
Spirit, or all we're going to
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see is the sheep. We're not
going to see the shepherd. And I
want to see the shepherd.
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That's the third thing I pray
for, spiritual eyes, yeah. >> So
how much should you study?
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How much of the Bible or
how long? >> How much time?
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>> Yeah, how much time? >>
Yeah, how much would you read?
00:11:58.18\00:12:00.78
I think that's -- I think it's
important to let the Holy Spirit
grow that for you, because the
00:12:00.78\00:12:07.52
manna -- back to the manna
again. One of the guidelines
00:12:07.52\00:12:10.69
for the manna, in Exodus 16,
said, "Each man must gather
according to his own need."
00:12:10.69\00:12:17.80
Now, remember Jesus is the one
who compared himself to manna.
If each one is to gather
00:12:17.80\00:12:22.17
according to his own need, then
time's going to vary from one
00:12:22.17\00:12:26.44
person to another, and I think
it would be dangerous for you or
me to tell people how much time
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they should spend with Jesus. >>
Right. >> Because, you know, one
00:12:30.08\00:12:32.81
of the things could happen is
people would say, "Okay, I got
my 15 minutes in -- check.
00:12:32.81\00:12:38.19
I'm good to go." And they turn
that relationship time into just
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another what you might call a
legalistic sort of a work thing,
you know? What if a husband said
00:12:42.49\00:12:47.23
to his wife, "Counselor said we
need to spend at least 30
minutes having meaningful time
00:12:47.23\00:12:51.60
together. I've got the clock
running. Let's get the 30
minutes going." You know?
00:12:51.60\00:12:54.77
Missed the whole point, right?
>> Exactly, yeah. Yeah, that
00:12:54.77\00:12:58.94
relationship wouldn't work very
well. I'm just guessing. >> [
Chuckles ] You're guessing.
00:12:58.94\00:13:04.25
Pretty good guess. >> Or someone
might say, "I read the Bible for
00:13:04.25\00:13:08.82
an hour-and-a-half this
morning," and you maybe didn't
read it for that long, and then
00:13:08.82\00:13:12.89
you might start, you know -- >>
"I'm a spiritual dud." >> Yeah.
00:13:12.89\00:13:18.29
"I'm a dwarf." Yeah, yeah, yeah.
And that's another thing. I
think we should avoid
00:13:18.29\00:13:22.40
comparing spiritual lives with
each other, 'cause the real deal
is we're walking with Jesus.
00:13:22.40\00:13:28.60
And our walk with Jesus is going
to be unique and special, each
00:13:28.60\00:13:33.04
person And He can be in charge
of growing the time we spend.
So, you know, a bodybuilder,
00:13:33.04\00:13:39.15
he might lift 100 pounds of
dumbbells. I might only be able
00:13:39.15\00:13:43.65
to lift 20 pounds. But
the bodybuilder would tell me,
00:13:43.65\00:13:46.82
"Don't worry that you can't do
100 pounds. just start lifting
00:13:46.82\00:13:49.09
your 20 pounds. And if you do
it every day, you will find that
00:13:49.09\00:13:53.16
you'll have more stamina, more
strength, and you can do heavier
weights." >> Right. Mm-hmm.
00:13:53.16\00:13:58.50
>> And I think the application
to the spiritual life and time
00:13:58.50\00:14:02.90
with Jesus sort of goes the same
way. >> Absolutely, yes. So you
00:14:02.90\00:14:07.91
get -- you get stronger
spiritually as you continue to
spend your time alone with Him,
00:14:07.91\00:14:14.02
so... >> And you talked about
worrying over your daughters.
Sometimes the time we spend
00:14:14.02\00:14:18.42
with God is driven by the need
that we have. You know, have you
00:14:18.42\00:14:22.42
ever noticed in physical life,
you can be more hungry sometimes
than you are others?
00:14:22.42\00:14:26.16
You could sit down and have
a heartier meal, could just eat
00:14:26.16\00:14:30.80
more. Maybe you've been out
working hard in the yard or
something, and you have a bigger
00:14:30.80\00:14:35.87
appetite. So I think that time
may have ebbs and flows with
00:14:35.87\00:14:42.81
Jesus. >> Right. >> And some
days you'll have an appetite
that just seems insatiable,
00:14:42.81\00:14:46.72
you can't quit, you're just
-- hours go by with Jesus. >>
00:14:46.72\00:14:50.65
Right, right. >> Other days, not
so long. >> Yes. >> But I think
00:14:50.65\00:14:53.82
it is important that you have it
every day. That little recipe I
gave? Time alone at the
00:14:53.82\00:14:58.49
beginning of every day. >>
In contemplation of the life of
00:14:58.49\00:15:03.00
Christ, yeah. >> Far too many
people just substitute church
for their daily walk with God.
00:15:03.00\00:15:06.60
They don't have a daily
walk with God. They just go to
00:15:06.60\00:15:09.30
church. >> That's once a week.
So one meal a week. >> Yeah, one
00:15:09.30\00:15:14.01
meal a week. >> Yeah. Yeah. How
well would you do with one
physical meal a week?
00:15:14.01\00:15:20.32
>> Yeah, you wouldn't survive.
Well, you'd lose a lot of
00:15:20.32\00:15:23.52
weight. [ Laughter ] >> You'd
lose so much weight. >> Yeah.
00:15:23.52\00:15:27.26
Yeah, but you'd be famished. I
mean, you would not -- you would
00:15:27.26\00:15:31.89
not be healthy. And, spiritually
speaking, I can see the
connection. You just do not want
00:15:31.89\00:15:37.00
to survive on one meal every now
and then. >> Mnh-mnh. The sad
truth is, if you ask
00:15:37.00\00:15:44.21
people who attend church how
much time they spend alone with
God -- this is a sad truth.
00:15:44.21\00:15:52.85
On the average, four out of
five people who attend church,
00:15:52.85\00:15:59.65
when asked to describe their
personal spiritual life, will
00:15:59.65\00:16:03.99
stay consistent in church
attendance, little or no time
alone with Jesus daily.
00:16:03.99\00:16:08.60
>> Wow. >> Four out of
five. >> Four out of five.
00:16:08.60\00:16:10.97
>> Yeah, that's forty years
worth of surveying in churches
that I just summarized
00:16:10.97\00:16:14.27
right there. I can support
that. It sounds outlandish,
00:16:14.27\00:16:19.21
but it's true. And so what that
means is that four out of five
00:16:19.21\00:16:23.75
-- can you imagine trying to be
a baker without using flour? Can
you imagine trying to be
00:16:23.75\00:16:29.22
a skydiver on a parachute? Or
a dairy farmer without any goats
00:16:29.22\00:16:33.92
or cows? Well, if I'm trying
to be a Christian without daily
00:16:33.92\00:16:39.83
time with Jesus, then I'm trying
to run a bakery without flour.
>> Yeah, impossible.
00:16:39.83\00:16:43.03
>> So this time alone with Jesus
is absolutely nonnegotiable. >>
Nonnegotiable, yeah.
00:16:43.03\00:16:49.77
So you're trying to be a
"Christian" -- that means "like
00:16:49.77\00:16:56.54
Christ" -- with no connection.
And without that connection,
you're just doing it --
00:16:56.54\00:17:00.75
>> You're basically a spiritual
anorexic, which you don't want
00:17:00.75\00:17:05.65
to be. >> You don't want to
be, yeah. >> We want to eat the
00:17:05.65\00:17:09.62
bread every day. >> Right. We
want to have just a short break
00:17:09.62\00:17:13.86
right now. And when we come
back, we're gonna take a view of
the Bible and make it applicable
00:17:13.86\00:17:21.74
so that so that our viewers can
actually look at, "How do you
00:17:21.74\00:17:27.24
study the Bible?" And so we'll
ask the Holy Spirit to guide us
in that and trust Him to guide
00:17:27.24\00:17:33.31
us in a practical application of
reading the Bible every day. So
let's just take a quick
00:17:33.31\00:17:38.09
break, and we'll come back and
do that after this. Do you ever
00:17:38.09\00:17:43.53
struggle in your spiritual walk?
I mean, do you ever wonder why
you just don't feel as close
00:17:43.53\00:17:49.13
to God as you would like to? The
truth is that, sooner or later,
this happens to each
00:17:49.13\00:17:54.27
and every one of us. >>
Mm-hmm. Yes, but did you know
00:17:54.27\00:17:57.77
that they are very real and
practical steps you can take to
00:17:57.77\00:18:02.64
help develop that closeness with
God? That's why today we want to
offer you this very special
00:18:02.64\00:18:08.95
book, "Help in Daily Living."
00:18:08.95\00:18:11.65
>> Mm, I
absolutely love this book.
00:18:11.69\00:18:14.09
It's, as it says
here, A practical guide
00:18:14.09\00:18:16.76
to everyday blessings
full of concrete steps
00:18:16.76\00:18:20.00
that you can take to
strengthen your walk with Christ
00:18:20.00\00:18:23.33
and at the same time
build stronger, more meaningful
00:18:23.33\00:18:26.17
relationships with
the people that you love.
00:18:26.17\00:18:28.97
And today this book
is yours absolutely free.
00:18:28.97\00:18:32.14
Just contact us through
the information on the screen.
00:18:32.14\00:18:35.28
And may God bless
you as you seek Him.
00:18:35.28\00:18:37.98
>> Mm-hmm. >>
Friends, what we are going
00:18:37.98\00:18:41.32
to attempt to do right
now is completely unrehearsed.
00:18:41.32\00:18:44.99
We are going to
open up the Word of God,
00:18:44.99\00:18:47.36
and we're going to trust the
Holy Spirit to guide us as we
00:18:47.36\00:18:50.79
study the Word of God together.
We're going to give you
00:18:50.79\00:18:53.83
a demonstration
of of an acronym.
00:18:53.83\00:18:56.43
It goes like this --
S.O.A.P. It shouldn't be hard to
00:18:56.43\00:18:59.10
remember. The
first thing is scripture.
00:18:59.10\00:19:01.47
So we're going to
open up a scripture, just
00:19:01.47\00:19:03.37
a random scripture, and
as we read through that,
00:19:03.37\00:19:07.61
before we do, we're gonna ask
God, we're gonna pray to Him,
00:19:07.61\00:19:10.68
because we want God's guidance
because this is spiritually
00:19:10.68\00:19:14.12
discerned, and so His Holy
Spirit is going to guide us
00:19:14.12\00:19:17.09
in the understanding of this
scripture and when we read it.
00:19:17.09\00:19:19.82
So we're going to --
"S" is for scripture.
00:19:19.82\00:19:22.02
"O" is for observation.
So we're gonna try and see
00:19:22.02\00:19:25.39
what we see from that scripture.
And so we're going to observe it
00:19:25.39\00:19:29.23
and then we're going to apply
what we see in the scripture,
00:19:29.23\00:19:32.67
a personal application to
our lives, and then, finally,
00:19:32.67\00:19:35.84
we're going to close off with
prayer, and we're going to thank
00:19:35.84\00:19:37.97
God for leading us
in this Bible study.
00:19:37.97\00:19:40.54
So you pray for us, and we're
gonna pray as we go through this
00:19:40.54\00:19:43.98
Bible study together.
00:19:43.98\00:19:45.65
>> 'Cause we want to give a
miniaturized sample of what
we're describing as
00:19:45.68\00:19:50.49
that quiet time in the Word with
God, morning my morning and day
00:19:50.49\00:19:53.99
by day. >> Absolutely. So,
Lee, can I ask you to open with
00:19:53.99\00:19:57.89
prayer before we open up the
scriptures? >> So, Lord Jesus,
we actually believe you when you
00:19:57.89\00:20:04.37
say that you are the Bread of
Life, and we would like to have
a fresh slice right now.
00:20:04.37\00:20:09.10
>> Amen. >> So we're going
to open up the passage here in
00:20:09.10\00:20:12.17
scripture that we haven't
rehearsed because we're trusting
you to speak to our hearts
00:20:12.17\00:20:16.34
and our souls right now. Give us
a deeper sense of love and
appreciation for you.
00:20:16.34\00:20:22.05
Give us concentration, freedom
from distraction, and just make
00:20:22.05\00:20:29.16
it real. For Jesus' sake, amen.
>> Amen. >> So here we are.
00:20:29.16\00:20:33.09
We're going to open it up.
00:20:33.09\00:20:34.76
>> Yeah, so we're gonna start
with "S," which is scripture,
00:20:34.83\00:20:39.00
and we're going to
take a look at some Mark 4.
00:20:39.00\00:20:44.77
>> There you go. >>
And we're going to look at
00:20:44.77\00:20:46.78
verses 35 to 41. So
I'll start reading at 35.
00:20:46.78\00:20:53.95
>> So you read the scripture.
And so that's the "S."
"Observation" -- this is
00:21:57.98\00:22:03.52
something that I observed as
soon as you started reading
there, that this was evening.
00:22:03.52\00:22:08.19
So they had come to the end
of the day, the light is not
00:22:08.19\00:22:11.99
at its brightest, and Jesus
says, "Let's go to the other
00:22:11.99\00:22:17.33
side." And they all get into
the boat together. So what am I
00:22:17.33\00:22:20.97
seeing? Well, I'm seeing that
it's dark and now the wind picks
up. And they're in the middle of
00:22:20.97\00:22:27.68
the lake. What are you
seeing? >> Well, I see that
00:22:27.68\00:22:33.28
what they did, they did at His
command, 'cause He said, "Let's
00:22:33.28\00:22:38.39
get in the boat. I want to go to
the other side." So, in a sense,
you could say they are workers
00:22:38.39\00:22:44.19
for Jesus and they're involved
in doing what He asked them to
00:22:44.19\00:22:50.63
do. >> Yes, yes. >> And then I'm
thinking about Him sleeping. So
I'm guessing He was pretty
00:22:50.63\00:22:54.94
exhausted. >> He was exhausted,
yeah. >> In fact, He must've
00:22:54.94\00:22:58.21
been major exhausted because if
the boat -- as you read, it said
00:22:58.21\00:23:03.08
the boat was filling with water,
and He's still asleep. >> Sleep,
00:23:03.08\00:23:07.35
yeah. >> So He must have been
really tired. >> Yeah, I don't
00:23:07.35\00:23:11.02
think I'd stay asleep in those
conditions. >> No, water coming
over, boat doing like so, you
00:23:11.02\00:23:15.76
know, and He's still sleeping?
>> And they must have been so
00:23:15.76\00:23:19.63
panicked, because I can just
imagine if the boat is filling
00:23:19.63\00:23:22.96
with water and you thinking,
"Oh, no, we're going down." So
you're gonna try and get rid
00:23:22.96\00:23:26.53
of that water. So I just see
them, yeah, baling, yeah, baling
00:23:26.53\00:23:31.01
water out and just panicking.
>> Yeah, the fear level is very
00:23:31.01\00:23:34.28
high. So their fear level's very
high. They had faith in Jesus
00:23:34.28\00:23:38.38
that -- >> Their fear level's so
high they forgot He was there.
>> Ah, they had faith
00:23:38.38\00:23:42.35
and they did what He asked them
to do when He said, "Let's go to
the other side," but now they're
00:23:42.35\00:23:46.69
totally panicked, their faith
has evaporated, and their faith
is pretty much zero
00:23:46.69\00:23:54.10
especially when they see, "Hey,
He's sleeping. What are they
00:23:54.10\00:23:58.53
doing sleeping?" >> It's almost
like they discover Him sleeping
as an after-- afterthought.
00:23:58.53\00:24:02.34
You know, have you ever
heard people say, "We tried
00:24:02.34\00:24:04.91
everything. There was nothing
left to do but pray." >> Yeah.
00:24:04.91\00:24:08.34
>> The last resort was prayer?
>> Yeah. >> It's like they tried
00:24:08.34\00:24:10.81
everything. They were so
panicked and so gripped by this
00:24:10.81\00:24:14.68
storm, they tried everything to
save themselves. And then, all
00:24:14.68\00:24:18.72
of a sudden, someone goes,
"Whoa!" >> Yeah. >> "How could
00:24:18.72\00:24:21.96
He be sleeping?" >> Yeah, yeah.
"Where are you, God? I mean, you
00:24:21.96\00:24:25.99
don't show up." And then they
wake Him up. >> Right. "Don't
you care?" >> Yeah, "Don't you
00:24:25.99\00:24:29.46
care?" >> "Don't you care?"
Honest, there have been times
where I've felt like God
00:24:29.46\00:24:34.74
doesn't care, you know? You
talked about your daughters a
00:24:34.74\00:24:39.31
few moments ago, about how you
have a concern sometimes over
them, things that -- and maybe
00:24:39.31\00:24:43.71
sometimes, as a parent, you're
praying for them, and it doesn't
seem like God's actually making
00:24:43.71\00:24:48.02
any kind of an answer to
that prayer. It's like, "Well,
00:24:48.02\00:24:52.42
doesn't He care? Is He sleeping
at the bottom of the boat?" >>
So, when we're going
00:24:52.42\00:24:56.19
through this exercise, you've
got a scripture, you got an
observation, now you're
00:24:56.19\00:24:59.09
making a personal application.
We're not just reading the
00:24:59.09\00:25:03.47
scriptures just to check it off
the list. We're personally
applying it to our lives.
00:25:03.47\00:25:07.70
So what am I seeing in there?
I'm seeing that they're worried.
They're asking questions.
00:25:07.70\00:25:13.84
"Is He really concerned
about me?" And panicking, yeah.
00:25:13.84\00:25:18.38
When have we panicked? How
do I personally apply that to my
00:25:18.38\00:25:23.85
life? >> Worry. >>
Yeah. >> It just seems
00:25:23.85\00:25:26.29
like a sort of second nature to
us as human beings to worry. And
I think what worry really is
00:25:26.29\00:25:31.03
saying is, "I don't know how I'm
going to get through this. I
don't see a solution.
00:25:31.03\00:25:37.57
And I don't see one solution. I
don't see two solutions. I don't
00:25:37.57\00:25:41.77
see any solution." >> Yes.
>> And all the time, He's right
00:25:41.77\00:25:47.28
there. >> He's right there.
>> Worry is blind and cannot see
00:25:47.28\00:25:51.75
the future, cannot see past your
circumstances right now. "If I
can't get past this --
00:25:51.75\00:25:57.45
No, I can't. I can't. I can't
see even God involved in it,"
and so they wake Him up.
00:25:57.45\00:26:02.66
>> But Jesus isn't
troubled at all. He wakes up.
00:26:02.66\00:26:06.70
This just boggles my mind to
think about. The guy stands up
00:26:06.70\00:26:10.80
in a boat that's rocking and
waves are coming over the top,
and He speaks to the star.
00:26:10.80\00:26:15.17
"Knock it off!" >>
Yeah, yeah, yeah. Quiet.
00:26:15.17\00:26:19.04
>> And just like that [inhales
sharply] the waves go [makes
00:26:19.04\00:26:23.18
whooshing noise]. And then this
is the thing that blows my mind.
He says, "Why were you guys
00:26:23.18\00:26:26.45
afraid? Did you think I had
forgotten?" You know? "I have
00:26:26.45\00:26:31.65
this. I got this." You talk
about application. When I
remember who He is,
00:26:31.65\00:26:39.26
and that only comes by reminding
myself of Him daily, by spending
00:26:39.26\00:26:42.36
time at His feet, focusing on --
When I remember who He is, then
00:26:42.36\00:26:50.01
I realize I can trust Him.
>> Yes. >> There's two things He
00:26:50.01\00:26:52.84
seems to say in Bible all
the time, to me. One is, "I love
00:26:52.84\00:26:56.04
you," and the other one is,
"I've got this." >> "I've got
this," yeah. >> Mm-hmm. Mm-hmm.
00:26:56.04\00:27:01.32
>> God showed up. >>
Yeah. >> [ Chuckles ]
00:27:01.32\00:27:03.95
So we've got scripture,
observation, application, and,
00:27:03.95\00:27:09.99
finally, prayer. So let's let's
close off with a word of prayer
and thank God for what He has
00:27:09.99\00:27:14.83
given us in these scriptures.
And I hope, friend, that you
have have really benefited
00:27:14.83\00:27:21.97
from this little demonstration
that we have. This hasn't been a
00:27:21.97\00:27:26.31
demonstration that we rehearsed.
This is something -- >> You
probably figured that
00:27:26.31\00:27:28.44
out. They probably figured that
out. >> And maybe when you apply
00:27:28.44\00:27:33.55
this in small groups and study
together, that you'll have the
same experience, right?
00:27:33.55\00:27:39.89
When you study the Bible, when
you apply S.O.A.P., that you
will also be blessed
00:27:39.89\00:27:44.89
like we have been blessed.
>> Let's close with a word of
00:27:44.89\00:27:49.23
prayer, okay? >> Father in
heaven, thank you for putting in
your Word messages that speak
00:27:49.23\00:27:56.04
directly to our hearts. And I
thank you, Father, that you have
done that for us now.
00:27:56.04\00:28:02.94
>> Mm-hmm. >> And for
teaching us through your word
00:28:02.94\00:28:06.51
that we can trust you fully even
when things seem absolutely out
00:28:06.51\00:28:12.02
of control. We pray this and we
thank you in Jesus' name. Amen.
00:28:12.02\00:28:14.42
>> Amen. >> So, friends, I just
want to remind you again of the
00:28:14.42\00:28:18.53
words of Jesus when He said, "It
is written man shall not live by
00:28:18.53\00:28:24.07
bread alone but by every word
that proceeds out of the mouth
00:28:24.07\00:28:28.80
of God. ¤¤ ¤¤
00:28:28.84\00:28:44.05
¤¤ ¤¤
00:28:44.05\00:28:59.17