(upbeat theme music)
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>>Welcome to "Sabbath School,"
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brought to you by It Is Written.
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We're glad to have you
with us again this week
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as we are taking a
look at lesson number five.
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This is looking at
some of the excuses
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that we often give in order to
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try to remove
ourselves from mission.
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They're not very
good ones, though,
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and we're gonna
dive into them this week.
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Let's begin with prayer.
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Father, we wanna
thank You for giving us
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an opportunity to learn more
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about how we can be more
effective witnesses for You,
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how we can share
Your love with others.
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And we ask that
today You would help us
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to bypass the many excuses
that often present themselves
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so that we can be
effective tools for You.
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We thank You, in
Jesus' name. Amen.
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Well, we're delighted to have
back with us again this week
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Amy Whitsett. She's
an associate director
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of the Institute
of World Mission.
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You've served, you and
your husband have both served
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as missionaries
for many, many years,
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and you're bringing
that wealth of experience
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and knowledge to us through
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this quarter's Sabbath school
lesson. We're very grateful.
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Welcome. >>Thank you.
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>>So this week
we're taking a look at
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"Excuses to Avoid Mission."
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Somebody might be wondering,
what is an excuse? (Amy laughs)
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It's--we can
start making excuses
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by not even
knowing what an excuse is.
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So what is an excuse? Give
us a definition for an excuse.
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>>I looked in
several dictionaries
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to kind of get an
idea of, you know,
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how would they phrase it,
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and basically what it
comes down to is justification
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for not doing
what we should be doing
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or for doing what
we should not be doing.
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So it's just
justifying our actions.
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>>And excuses
are--they come very easily,
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they come
unfortunately rather naturally,
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and we find a number
of people in the Bible
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who made excuses for
one reason or another.
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Moses springs to my mind.
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But we wanna take
some time this week
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and look at the story of Jonah.
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Help us to
understand this story.
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Give us a little bit of context
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and why this is
such a vivid example,
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a clear example
of what not to do.
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>>Yeah. So Jonah, as
we know, was called by God
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to go to Nineveh.
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And what everybody knows
is he didn't go to Nineveh,
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he ended up on the ship,
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ended up in the
stomach of the whale, you know,
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and...but there's a
lot more to it than that.
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If you really delve into it,
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if you look into
some of the archaeology
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and some of the
records of history,
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there's actually some
pretty significant reasons
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why Jonah didn't want to go.
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He had some pretty
legitimate excuses.
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He had some not
legitimate excuses as well,
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but the Ninevites, Nineveh
actually was not on the coast.
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Nineveh was 560 miles inland
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in the opposite direction.
And so when he went to Joppa
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and he took the ship, he
went the opposite direction
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to what is now southern Spain,
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complete opposite direction.
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And in my research, I
found it would've taken
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about a month for
him to get to Nineveh,
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and it would've taken him about
a month to get to Tarshish,
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you know, so, one month
(laughing) opposite directions.
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So he was escaping; the question
is, why was he escaping?
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Why was he not wanting to go?
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In some of the
historical records,
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Sennacherib or his
scribes actually record
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some of the invasions and
cities that they conquered
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and the stories of those
invasions. And the Ninevites--
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Nineveh, first of all,
was the capital of Assyria.
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And the Assyrians were
known for their brutality.
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They were ruthless people. And
there are, you know, carvings
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and things that depict
people impaled on spikes
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and beheaded,
and, I mean, just all,
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all manner of
brutality and torture.
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And so for Jonah to be called
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to take this weird
message, this scary message,
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that "God's gonna destroy you,"
I wouldn't wanna be Jonah--
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I'll be honest with you--not
to go face those Ninevites,
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'cause I know
it's coming, right?
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So he was legitimately afraid
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of what the
possibilities could be
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and what they
could possibly do to him.
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>>You know, the
Bible calls him a prophet.
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We have this
picture in our minds,
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I think, of prophets as
these courageous individuals,
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no matter what they're
called to do, off they go, and
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"I'm a mouthpiece for God,
and you need to listen to me."
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Jonah doesn't come across
with that vibe, as it were.
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He's...a little more hesitant.
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Ultimately, we know God
was still able to use him.
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What does that tell
us a little bit about us?
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>>Prophets are real people.
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You know, we do have
a picture of them almost
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with, you know, the prophet
cape on them, the Superman cape,
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but they were real,
actual people like you and I,
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and they had the same fears,
they had the same insecurities,
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they had the
same needs that we do,
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and so to recognize that they're
just people that God used,
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if you flip that around and say,
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"I'm just a
person like the prophets;
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God could use me, too"--
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not that I want to be
written in a Bible, (laughs)
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not that I want my story told,
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but I certainly
wanna be used by God.
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>>So this story of Jonah
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begins by
introducing us to Jonah
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and what God is
calling Jonah to do.
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As you mentioned,
Jonah knew a few things
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about the Ninevites. He
was not unfamiliar with them
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and some of the
things that they had done,
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and it was much more
real to him back in his day
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than it is to us
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many years later-- >>Right.
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>>...looking at
carvings and so forth.
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He didn't want to go.
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You might say he
was a little prejudiced
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against the Ninevites.
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Do we face
something similar to that?
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Can we face something
similar to that today?
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>>Absolutely. Absolutely.
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You know, not only were
the Ninevites brutal people,
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the Assyrians, brutal people--at
least their warriors--
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they were also the enemy of
Israel. You know, how many times
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had the Assyrians attacked
Israel and God's people?
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And so there was
this natural feeling
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that this was the enemy.
It was a cultural thing--
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"Their culture's
against our culture;
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their people are
against our people."
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And when you have
that kind of a situation,
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it does build natural prejudice
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that, "We don't
like those people.
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"They're the other,
they're not part of us,
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"they're not one of us,
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they're over there, and we're
gonna keep them over there."
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And that, we run
into danger with that
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because God is a God
of all people, right?
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And so if we
allow our prejudices,
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which we don't always recognize,
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if we allow our
prejudice to block us
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from being involved in
mission, we're limiting God.
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We're--I shouldn't
say we're limiting God.
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God isn't limited by humans,
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but we're limiting ourselves
to be used by God, right?
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We're not always clear
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that we're
prejudiced against somebody.
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>>Is there anything that
we could do to help ourselves
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see that more clearly,
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to be a little more
honest with ourselves?
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Any ideas of how we might
overcome some of that prejudice
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that exists? We may
not even recognize it.
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>>Yeah.
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My boss, Oscar
Osindo, great guy,
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one of his favorite
phrases is, "Withhold judgment."
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Withhold judgment. You know,
don't judge people's actions.
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Don't label people's actions
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as good or bad
or right or wrong.
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Instead label it as different
and seek to understand.
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So we need to listen.
We need to ask questions.
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We need to try to understand
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why people are
doing what they're doing,
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why they're acting the
way that they're acting,
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why they are who they are
before we cast judgment on them.
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And that does a big thing
to eliminate our prejudice
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and to help us to
recognize that we have it.
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>>We can begin to
understand that it exists.
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Withholding judgment,
I suppose prayer probably
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plays some role in this as well.
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Prayer should play
a role in everything.
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>>Absolutely. >>And this is not
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the exception to that.
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Talk about the role of
prayer here for a little bit.
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>>So we can pray that
God will open our eyes
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to the prejudice. But
then it also goes back
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to last week's
story with Abraham
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and asking God to give
us a heart of compassion,
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that God will help us
to see people as people,
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and help us to recognize
that as long as somebody
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is living and breathing, there's
hope, there's opportunity,
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there's possibility that
the Holy Spirit can reach them.
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And if we can see people as
people, see people as human,
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then that will help to
dissipate the prejudice as well.
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Because often our prejudice
isn't against individual people,
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it's against our
conception of a society,
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our perception of a
society or a culture
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or a group of people. But if
we can start to hear stories,
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it breaks down prejudice.
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When we were in Asia,
there were a number of
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asylum seekers
that came to Bangkok.
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And there was quite a
bit of prejudice between
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not just the local
people and these refugees,
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asylum seekers, but among
the asylum seekers themselves
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because there were Christians,
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and there was a
minority Muslim group
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and huge tension and
conflict between them.
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And as we helped people to sit
down and listen to each other
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and to listen to
people's stories,
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and there's
something about suffering
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that makes people human.
And it awakens in us compassion.
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And then we treat
people differently.
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We see people differently
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when we can have
that compassionate spirit
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and those compassionate
eyes towards people.
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>>So stories that help
us to connect with people
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in ways that we
wouldn't otherwise.
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You know, if we
run into somebody
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that's a different
culture, a different race,
00:10:02.13\00:10:04.67
a different faith,
a different worldview,
00:10:04.67\00:10:08.00
we tend to focus
on the differences.
00:10:08.00\00:10:10.61
>>Right. >>It's natural for us
00:10:10.61\00:10:11.84
to focus on the differences.
00:10:11.84\00:10:13.84
But when we can learn a
little something about them,
00:10:13.84\00:10:16.11
we find out that they
are men, they are women,
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they're mothers, they're
fathers, they're children,
00:10:19.41\00:10:22.25
they're struggling
with this subject in school
00:10:22.25\00:10:25.42
or that subject in school,
or they're trying to figure out
00:10:25.42\00:10:28.66
how to express themselves
in one way or another,
00:10:28.66\00:10:31.43
fit into a culture that's
maybe different than ours.
00:10:31.43\00:10:34.36
And you're right;
they become more human.
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They become
more like us. >>Yeah.
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>>And that can be
very, very powerful.
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>>And it's not just
across culture, either.
00:10:41.30\00:10:43.34
We can do that
in our own culture;
00:10:43.34\00:10:45.41
you know, the bum on the street,
00:10:45.41\00:10:47.54
the beggar on
the street, you know,
00:10:47.54\00:10:49.61
we often look down on them. Why?
00:10:49.61\00:10:52.45
We assume that
they're uneducated.
00:10:52.45\00:10:54.02
We assume that they
can't manage their money well;
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we assume that
they have addictions
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or habits that they
can't control, right?
00:10:57.62\00:10:59.29
So we make these assumptions,
00:10:59.29\00:11:01.12
but if we were to sit down
and to listen to their story,
00:11:01.12\00:11:03.86
I bet our story would change,
00:11:03.86\00:11:05.23
our attitude would
change towards them.
00:11:05.23\00:11:07.00
>>Yeah, one of the things
that my family and I enjoy doing
00:11:07.00\00:11:09.73
is on a variety of
times throughout the year,
00:11:09.73\00:11:11.90
but especially
around the Christmas season,
00:11:11.90\00:11:14.70
is there's a
Christmas banquet that's held
00:11:14.70\00:11:17.31
for a lot of the homeless,
00:11:17.31\00:11:19.04
the unsheltered
people in our area.
00:11:19.04\00:11:21.08
And so our
children and we get to go,
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and we get to feed them;
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we get to sit at the
table and talk with them
00:11:24.21\00:11:26.51
and hear their stories
and what they're going through
00:11:26.51\00:11:29.38
and what their
life was like before
00:11:29.38\00:11:31.49
and what they've experienced.
And now it's no longer
00:11:31.49\00:11:35.09
just that person
that you see out there.
00:11:35.09\00:11:37.63
It's a real person
that you have connected with
00:11:37.63\00:11:41.20
in a very
meaningful way. >>Mm-hmm.
00:11:41.20\00:11:43.40
>>But that does
take some intentionality.
00:11:43.40\00:11:45.33
>>It does. It
really does--and time.
00:11:45.33\00:11:48.37
And that runs into
another one of the excuses
00:11:48.37\00:11:50.51
that we have is
that it's inconvenient.
00:11:50.51\00:11:52.74
Mission is not convenient.
00:11:52.74\00:11:54.44
You know, it costs us
sometimes financially,
00:11:54.44\00:11:58.28
sometimes it costs us our
time, it costs us our energy,
00:11:58.28\00:12:02.92
especially our emotional energy.
00:12:02.92\00:12:04.72
But that's the cost, that's
the price we have to pay, right?
00:12:06.22\00:12:09.59
That's the price of
being a disciple of God,
00:12:09.59\00:12:11.76
and discipling others is being
willing to put our resources
00:12:11.76\00:12:16.73
to use in those areas.
00:12:16.73\00:12:18.70
>>If you stop
and take a step back
00:12:19.80\00:12:21.60
and look at the
big picture here,
00:12:21.60\00:12:23.20
it cost Jesus a
little bit of time
00:12:24.31\00:12:25.84
and a little bit of effort to
come down here and help us out
00:12:25.84\00:12:29.74
and to connect with us
00:12:29.74\00:12:32.05
on this human level. >>Mm-hmm.
00:12:32.05\00:12:34.28
>>Talk about taking a step down.
00:12:34.28\00:12:36.05
It's one thing from
being sheltered to unsheltered,
00:12:36.05\00:12:38.69
but it's a whole 'nother
thing to come from heaven
00:12:38.69\00:12:41.16
down to this sin-cursed
earth and take the time
00:12:41.16\00:12:44.26
and the effort and the ridicule
00:12:44.26\00:12:46.39
that He took in
order to reach us.
00:12:46.39\00:12:48.96
And this is just a small
glimpse that Jesus is giving us
00:12:48.96\00:12:53.97
of what He went
through to reach us.
00:12:53.97\00:12:56.81
And if we can catch a hold
of that, I think maybe we can
00:12:56.81\00:12:59.81
reach people a little
more effectively, too.
00:12:59.81\00:13:01.38
>>Absolutely. Yeah. >>Yeah.
00:13:01.38\00:13:02.84
We're gonna keep looking
here at the story of Jonah,
00:13:02.84\00:13:04.58
but if you are
enjoying this quarter's lesson
00:13:04.58\00:13:07.38
and want to get
even more out of it,
00:13:07.38\00:13:10.75
you're going to hear me continue
00:13:10.75\00:13:12.22
to recommend this book to you.
00:13:12.22\00:13:13.62
And I would highly
encourage you to pick it up.
00:13:13.62\00:13:15.92
It is "God's
Mission My Mission,"
00:13:15.92\00:13:18.33
and this is the companion
book to this quarter's lesson.
00:13:18.33\00:13:22.43
And you will get so
much out of this book.
00:13:22.43\00:13:25.40
You will be glad
that you have it.
00:13:25.40\00:13:27.04
It comes in very handy
00:13:27.04\00:13:28.40
if you are teaching
Sabbath school classes,
00:13:28.40\00:13:30.21
if you are participating
in Sabbath school classes,
00:13:30.21\00:13:32.77
or if you just
want to figure out
00:13:32.77\00:13:35.11
how you can be more
effective in mission for God.
00:13:35.11\00:13:38.75
It's a fantastic resource.
00:13:38.75\00:13:40.38
You can find it
at itiswritten.shop.
00:13:40.38\00:13:43.18
Again, that's itiswritten.shop.
00:13:43.18\00:13:45.95
I'm going to be back
in just a moment with Amy
00:13:45.95\00:13:48.22
as we continue looking
at excuses for mission.
00:13:48.22\00:13:51.43
We'll be right back.
00:13:51.43\00:13:52.63
(uplifting theme
music swells and ends)
00:13:52.63\00:13:55.26
>>[John Bradshaw] He
could be one of the most
00:13:57.20\00:13:58.93
perplexing
characters in the entire Bible.
00:13:58.93\00:14:02.84
Called by God, commissioned
by God, directed by God,
00:14:02.84\00:14:07.81
but instead of
following God's leading,
00:14:07.81\00:14:10.85
he ran away from God and
went in the opposite direction
00:14:10.85\00:14:15.42
to where God called him.
00:14:15.42\00:14:17.32
While fleeing from God,
he was apprehended by God,
00:14:17.32\00:14:21.22
swallowed by a
giant sea creature,
00:14:21.22\00:14:24.19
and given another opportunity
00:14:24.19\00:14:26.33
to allow God's will
to be done in his life.
00:14:26.33\00:14:29.43
Don't miss "Great
Characters of the Bible: Jonah."
00:14:29.43\00:14:34.14
We'll meet the reluctant prophet
00:14:34.14\00:14:35.97
who fled from the
presence of God and didn't want
00:14:35.97\00:14:39.67
to see a city
full of people saved.
00:14:39.67\00:14:41.88
What does the story of
Jonah teach us about Jonah,
00:14:41.88\00:14:45.38
about God, and about you and me?
00:14:45.38\00:14:48.22
Don't miss "Great
Characters of the Bible,"
00:14:48.22\00:14:51.19
the story of Jonah.
00:14:51.19\00:14:52.85
Watch now on It Is Written TV.
00:14:52.85\00:14:55.52
Thank you for remembering
that It Is Written exists
00:14:56.93\00:14:59.49
because of the kindness
of people just like you.
00:14:59.49\00:15:02.30
To support this international
life-changing ministry.
00:15:02.30\00:15:05.50
Please call us
now at 800-253-3000.
00:15:05.50\00:15:09.74
You can send your
tax-deductible gift
00:15:09.74\00:15:11.27
to the address on your screen,
00:15:11.27\00:15:12.71
or you can visit us
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00:15:12.71\00:15:16.48
Thank you for your prayers
and for your financial support.
00:15:16.48\00:15:19.35
Our number
again is 800-253-3000,
00:15:19.35\00:15:23.65
or you could visit us
online at itiswritten.com.
00:15:23.65\00:15:26.69
(uplifting theme music)
00:15:27.69\00:15:30.33
>>[Eric] Welcome
back to "Sabbath School,"
00:15:31.86\00:15:33.53
brought to you by It Is Written.
00:15:33.53\00:15:35.46
We're looking at
"Excuses to Avoid Mission."
00:15:35.46\00:15:38.93
And, Amy, there are
lots of different excuses
00:15:38.93\00:15:41.20
that we can offer for
why we don't need to do
00:15:41.20\00:15:44.81
what we realize we're
actually being called to do.
00:15:44.81\00:15:48.01
One of those is fear.
00:15:48.01\00:15:50.08
Share with me a
little bit more about fear.
00:15:50.08\00:15:52.35
>>You know, we mentioned
with the story of Jonah
00:15:52.35\00:15:54.52
that he understood
who the Ninevites were.
00:15:54.52\00:15:58.42
He understood the Assyrians
and how brutal they could be.
00:15:58.42\00:16:00.86
And so there was a real
fear of physical danger, right?
00:16:00.86\00:16:05.86
And we can
experience that sometimes,
00:16:05.86\00:16:08.56
depending on who
we're going to witness to,
00:16:08.56\00:16:11.10
who we're going to
talk to, minister to.
00:16:11.10\00:16:13.54
But there's other fears as well.
00:16:13.54\00:16:15.50
Ellen White has this
great quote in the book
00:16:15.50\00:16:18.17
"Prophets and Kings." Page 271,
00:16:18.17\00:16:20.58
she says, "When Jonah
learned of God's purpose
00:16:20.58\00:16:23.08
"to spare the city that,
notwithstanding its wickedness,
00:16:23.08\00:16:27.08
"had been led to
repent in sackcloth and ashes,
00:16:27.08\00:16:29.92
"he should have
been the first to rejoice
00:16:29.92\00:16:31.92
"because of God's amazing grace;
00:16:31.92\00:16:33.92
"but instead he allowed his mind
00:16:33.92\00:16:36.56
"to dwell upon the possibility
of his being regarded
00:16:36.56\00:16:39.66
"as a false prophet.
Jealous of his reputation,
00:16:39.66\00:16:43.10
"he lost sight of the
infinitely greater value
00:16:43.10\00:16:46.13
of the souls in
that wretched city."
00:16:46.13\00:16:49.07
Because of why?
00:16:49.07\00:16:50.57
His fear of
damaging his reputation.
00:16:50.57\00:16:54.91
When we were in
Asia, I experienced this,
00:16:54.91\00:16:57.81
but in a slightly different way.
00:16:58.78\00:17:00.75
I'm a nurse by training.
00:17:01.72\00:17:03.95
And so I would offer
nursing care, medical care
00:17:03.95\00:17:06.39
for people in the
community, people in the church.
00:17:06.39\00:17:09.06
And...I remember the struggle
00:17:09.06\00:17:13.76
to pray for people,
to pray for healing,
00:17:14.86\00:17:18.20
because what if God
doesn't answer that?
00:17:18.20\00:17:20.90
What are people
gonna think about me?
00:17:20.90\00:17:23.00
You know, are
people going to come to me
00:17:23.00\00:17:24.47
for more medical
care in the future?
00:17:24.47\00:17:26.94
My prayer isn't
answered. Probably not.
00:17:26.94\00:17:29.18
Okay, so that's a
hit to me personally.
00:17:29.18\00:17:31.78
But then beyond that, what
if God doesn't come through?
00:17:31.78\00:17:34.85
What does that do
to God's reputation?
00:17:34.85\00:17:37.09
And it hindered me for a
little while until I realized
00:17:37.09\00:17:40.99
that's not for me to decide;
00:17:40.99\00:17:44.09
that's for Him to decide, right?
00:17:44.09\00:17:46.36
If I'm called to
pray for somebody,
00:17:46.36\00:17:47.86
if I'm called to
care for somebody
00:17:47.86\00:17:49.43
or do something for somebody,
00:17:49.43\00:17:51.10
I need to just do it
and let the outcome be
00:17:51.10\00:17:53.03
what the outcome will be
regardless of my reputation,
00:17:53.03\00:17:55.80
regardless of God's reputation.
Let Him deal with that.
00:17:55.80\00:17:58.71
I just need to do. I'm
the gloves on His hand, right?
00:17:58.71\00:18:02.84
And the gloves don't need
to--they don't need anything;
00:18:02.84\00:18:05.75
they don't need any recognition.
00:18:05.75\00:18:08.12
You know, back to
that verse in Matthew
00:18:08.12\00:18:09.98
from the last
lesson: Do your good works
00:18:09.98\00:18:12.82
that people will glorify
your Father in heaven, right?
00:18:12.82\00:18:15.12
It's not about us; it's
not about our reputation;
00:18:15.12\00:18:17.29
it's about God, and
it's about people seeing
00:18:17.29\00:18:19.73
His loving
character, His true character,
00:18:19.73\00:18:21.66
'cause so many people have
a misconception of who God is,
00:18:21.66\00:18:24.90
and they need to understand
that He is a deeply loving,
00:18:24.90\00:18:28.04
caring God who has a deep
heart of compassion for them.
00:18:28.04\00:18:30.91
>>So it sounds
like in this excuse,
00:18:31.97\00:18:34.41
'cause that's what
we're talking about,
00:18:34.41\00:18:36.24
fear of what might
happen to my reputation
00:18:36.24\00:18:39.51
or God's reputation,
to some extent that might,
00:18:39.51\00:18:42.88
that might smack
ever so slightly of pride,
00:18:42.88\00:18:46.32
just a little bit. >>Yeah.
00:18:46.32\00:18:47.56
>>And that of
course is something
00:18:47.56\00:18:49.26
that we are called to avoid--
00:18:49.26\00:18:51.36
>>That's right.
>>...and to lay aside.
00:18:51.36\00:18:53.13
>>Yeah.
00:18:53.13\00:18:54.36
>>You know, some of
the excuses that Jonah had
00:18:54.36\00:18:56.26
for not wanting to go to
Nineveh, some of 'em were,
00:18:56.26\00:18:59.10
we might call them good,
00:18:59.10\00:19:00.64
but they're all
excuses-- >>They're legitimate.
00:19:00.64\00:19:02.27
>>They're legitimate
excuses. >>Understandable.
00:19:02.27\00:19:03.71
>>Sure, we wouldn't
fault him maybe for those,
00:19:03.71\00:19:06.61
some of them maybe a little
more of a stretch, not so good.
00:19:06.61\00:19:10.41
But as we look at
these excuses that he had,
00:19:10.41\00:19:13.68
all of them, I think, to
a greater or lesser extent,
00:19:13.68\00:19:17.12
whether good or
not, are familiar;
00:19:17.12\00:19:20.02
they sound like
maybe some excuses
00:19:20.02\00:19:22.09
perhaps that we have made,
00:19:22.09\00:19:24.09
maybe some excuses
that we are making right now
00:19:24.09\00:19:27.13
as God has called
us to do something
00:19:27.13\00:19:29.30
or go somewhere
or speak to someone
00:19:29.30\00:19:30.97
or minister to
someone or invite someone.
00:19:30.97\00:19:34.17
And we kind of, for one
reason or another, we hesitate.
00:19:34.17\00:19:37.44
Why do these sound so familiar?
00:19:38.37\00:19:39.91
>>(laughs) We're quick to
point the finger at Jonah.
00:19:39.91\00:19:42.74
And I think
because two reasons--
00:19:42.74\00:19:44.91
one, we know the
end of this well,
00:19:44.91\00:19:46.31
we don't know
the end of the story,
00:19:46.31\00:19:47.82
but we know what happens
later in the story, right?
00:19:47.82\00:19:49.95
This is one of those--
00:19:49.95\00:19:51.32
it's a story that's
unfinished in the Bible
00:19:51.32\00:19:54.32
and a lot of
debate on why that is.
00:19:54.32\00:19:56.73
But we kind of know
what's coming. We know what's
00:19:56.73\00:19:59.89
happening. We know that the
Ninevites are going to turn;
00:19:59.89\00:20:02.10
we know that God is
gonna get through to them
00:20:02.10\00:20:04.10
and change their hearts, right?
00:20:04.10\00:20:06.20
Jonah didn't know that.
00:20:06.20\00:20:07.57
So we're quick to
point a finger, I think,
00:20:08.70\00:20:10.61
because we know
that part of the story.
00:20:10.61\00:20:12.54
But we're also
quick to point the finger
00:20:12.54\00:20:14.14
because he was a prophet, right?
00:20:14.14\00:20:16.04
I'm not a prophet;
he was the prophet.
00:20:16.04\00:20:18.01
And to be a prophet,
you have to be really,
00:20:18.01\00:20:20.32
you know, the superhero
person who's willing to do
00:20:20.32\00:20:23.25
anything bold and brave for God.
00:20:23.25\00:20:25.75
And we forget
that, again, that prophet
00:20:25.75\00:20:28.39
is calling people back to a
loving relationship with God.
00:20:28.39\00:20:33.40
And that's what we're
called to do, isn't it?
00:20:33.40\00:20:35.73
So I think we have
to be careful not to go
00:20:35.73\00:20:38.70
around calling
ourselves prophets,
00:20:38.70\00:20:40.24
but that's the role that
we're also called to play,
00:20:40.24\00:20:42.60
especially as a
church; as an end-time church,
00:20:42.60\00:20:45.54
we do have a
prophetic word for this world,
00:20:45.54\00:20:48.34
that God is a God of love,
and He's seeking after you.
00:20:48.34\00:20:50.88
He's pursuing
you--stop and listen, right?
00:20:50.88\00:20:54.35
So we need to stop
pointing the finger,
00:20:55.55\00:20:57.85
and we need to maybe
hold up a mirror instead
00:20:57.85\00:21:00.32
and say, "God, you know,
where am I giving excuses?
00:21:00.32\00:21:03.79
"What excuses am I
using not to be involved?
00:21:03.79\00:21:06.36
"What excuses
am I giving for You
00:21:06.36\00:21:08.46
not to use me in the way
that You'd like to use me?"
00:21:08.46\00:21:12.23
And to be honest with you,
I don't know why we do that.
00:21:12.23\00:21:15.74
Because when God uses us, I
know when I've had experiences
00:21:15.74\00:21:18.71
that it's clear that God has
used me, I am blown away, whoa.
00:21:18.71\00:21:23.24
That it becomes a spiritual
mountaintop experience, right?
00:21:23.24\00:21:26.35
And why don't we wanna
live on the mountaintops?
00:21:26.35\00:21:28.88
I don't know. (laughs)
00:21:31.82\00:21:33.39
I mean, pick any of
these excuses as a reason why.
00:21:33.39\00:21:36.66
You know, it's
gonna cost me something.
00:21:36.66\00:21:38.19
It's gonna take my time. It's
gonna be just really difficult
00:21:38.19\00:21:40.86
and emotionally draining.
00:21:40.86\00:21:43.00
You know, maybe God's
gonna ask me to do something
00:21:43.00\00:21:45.43
that I'm afraid is
gonna...hurt my reputation.
00:21:45.43\00:21:49.80
You know, so many
excuses that we have,
00:21:49.80\00:21:53.27
but part of it, too,
is that we misunderstand
00:21:53.27\00:21:55.61
our role and God's role.
00:21:55.61\00:21:57.15
You know, God's role is to heal;
00:21:58.18\00:22:01.18
our role is to pray for people.
00:22:01.18\00:22:03.82
Our role is to bring
people to the foot of the cross
00:22:03.82\00:22:06.89
and allow God to do the healing.
00:22:06.89\00:22:09.69
Allow God to do the
fixing and the changing
00:22:09.69\00:22:12.49
and the
correcting and the caring
00:22:12.49\00:22:14.56
and whatever it is He needs
00:22:14.56\00:22:16.40
to do the
transformation in them.
00:22:16.40\00:22:18.30
And we're just
there to bring them
00:22:18.30\00:22:19.87
and to support
them through that.
00:22:19.87\00:22:22.24
>>So maybe if we start to think
00:22:22.24\00:22:25.41
that some of those
things are our job,
00:22:25.41\00:22:29.61
that maybe we'll
end up looking bad
00:22:29.61\00:22:32.75
or like maybe
we'll feel we've failed
00:22:32.75\00:22:35.38
if they're not healed, if
they don't make that decision
00:22:35.38\00:22:39.12
to accept Christ, if they
don't surrender their lives,
00:22:39.12\00:22:42.22
if they don't choose to be
baptized, if they don't choose,
00:22:42.22\00:22:45.19
that it feels to us like
a shortcoming on our part.
00:22:45.19\00:22:49.56
But that's really
not, that's not our part.
00:22:49.56\00:22:52.30
I, for one, I'm glad
I'm not the Holy Spirit.
00:22:52.30\00:22:54.67
>>Oh, amen. (chuckles)
00:22:54.67\00:22:55.90
>>He's got a whole
lot more on His plate
00:22:55.90\00:22:57.34
than I have on mine.
And He's much more capable
00:22:57.34\00:23:01.58
of doing what He
does than I would ever be.
00:23:01.58\00:23:04.25
But I get the
opportunity to see Him work.
00:23:04.25\00:23:07.62
I get the opportunity to
watch people's lives be changed
00:23:07.62\00:23:11.82
as a result of what He is doing.
00:23:11.82\00:23:14.59
And if I can take that
focus off of myself for a moment
00:23:14.59\00:23:18.09
and put the focus back
on Him where it should be,
00:23:18.09\00:23:21.16
then some of these fears
00:23:21.16\00:23:23.20
and
apprehensions should dissipate.
00:23:23.20\00:23:26.70
And I just get to watch
God do what God does best.
00:23:26.70\00:23:30.01
>>Yeah.
00:23:30.01\00:23:31.21
>>And that's
really, really powerful.
00:23:31.21\00:23:32.74
>>Yeah, one of the
best ways I've found
00:23:32.74\00:23:35.18
to be able to do that is
to keep a gratitude journal.
00:23:35.18\00:23:38.15
To start recognizing
where God is working in my life,
00:23:39.55\00:23:42.82
in the small things,
in the personal things.
00:23:42.82\00:23:46.32
And I think
that we can thank God
00:23:46.32\00:23:47.96
for anything good
that happens, right?
00:23:47.96\00:23:50.19
You know, oh, I saw an
amazing sunset tonight.
00:23:50.19\00:23:52.93
Oh, thank You,
God, for the sunset.
00:23:52.93\00:23:54.63
You know, that
was a small miracle
00:23:54.63\00:23:56.13
or that was a gift from God.
00:23:56.13\00:23:57.37
You know, so if we
can start recognizing
00:23:57.37\00:24:00.60
where God is in our
life, even in the mundane,
00:24:00.60\00:24:05.57
I think we're going to be
00:24:05.57\00:24:07.14
much more willing to be used.
00:24:07.14\00:24:11.35
We're gonna be much
less quick to give an excuse,
00:24:11.35\00:24:15.22
I would hope. (chuckles)
00:24:15.22\00:24:16.65
>>I hope so. >>I
know for me it's true.
00:24:16.65\00:24:17.92
>>Yeah. >>I know
for me it's true.
00:24:17.92\00:24:19.25
As I see God
working, it builds faith
00:24:19.25\00:24:21.99
that God is going
to do the right thing
00:24:21.99\00:24:23.59
and that God is
going to come through,
00:24:23.59\00:24:25.13
and that God is, you
know, God's gonna be there.
00:24:25.13\00:24:27.86
God's got this, you know?
00:24:27.86\00:24:29.93
So yeah, keeping our eyes open
00:24:29.93\00:24:32.20
to what He's doing
and thanking Him for it
00:24:32.20\00:24:34.10
and being open to it,
which brings up something else,
00:24:34.10\00:24:36.54
and that's the
power of testimony.
00:24:36.54\00:24:38.61
You know, a lot
of times we forget
00:24:38.61\00:24:41.11
that God's the one
that transforms hearts.
00:24:41.11\00:24:43.48
Our job is to share a testimony.
00:24:44.51\00:24:46.98
And a lot of times we
think that our testimony
00:24:46.98\00:24:48.85
was, "You know, 30
years ago when I was baptized,
00:24:48.85\00:24:51.55
and I had a reconversion
experience"--or whatever,
00:24:51.55\00:24:54.52
but really we need to
have testimonies every day
00:24:54.52\00:24:56.79
of how God is changing
me, how God is helping me,
00:24:56.79\00:24:59.93
how God is strengthening
me, how God is loving me.
00:24:59.93\00:25:03.03
Because that's
what people relate to.
00:25:04.13\00:25:06.07
That's what people understand.
00:25:06.07\00:25:07.57
You know, maybe you
have an issue with anger,
00:25:07.57\00:25:10.24
and you're praying,
and God is helping you
00:25:10.24\00:25:11.84
to overcome your anger.
00:25:11.84\00:25:13.07
That's a
testimony. That's a testimony
00:25:13.07\00:25:15.81
that, you know, "I
was in a conversation,
00:25:15.81\00:25:18.01
"somebody said something,
normally I would just--
00:25:18.01\00:25:19.85
(imitates explosion) but
this time I kept my calm."
00:25:19.85\00:25:22.45
That, praise God,
00:25:22.45\00:25:23.95
that's the testimony, how
God is using us day by day.
00:25:23.95\00:25:26.42
It's not just
about the big wins;
00:25:26.42\00:25:28.72
it's about the small
things that God is doing
00:25:28.72\00:25:30.76
and how He's
changing us as well.
00:25:30.76\00:25:33.09
>>And this story of Jonah
helps us to see some of that.
00:25:33.09\00:25:37.77
Give us one or two takeaways
00:25:37.77\00:25:40.20
that we can
take from this story,
00:25:40.20\00:25:43.71
concrete things that
we can apply to our lives
00:25:43.71\00:25:46.71
today to help us
overcome some of these excuses.
00:25:46.71\00:25:50.01
>>Mm-hmm. First of all, if
God tells you to do it, do it.
00:25:50.01\00:25:54.25
(laughs) And as we said
before, it takes courage.
00:25:54.25\00:25:57.85
So pray for the
courage. The Bible says if you,
00:25:57.85\00:26:00.29
if you lack
anything, ask for it:
00:26:00.29\00:26:02.99
"God, I don't have the
courage to do what You just,
00:26:02.99\00:26:05.03
"what I think
You're telling me to do.
00:26:05.03\00:26:06.63
Give me the courage to do it."
00:26:06.63\00:26:08.46
And then do it; make
that decision to do it.
00:26:08.46\00:26:11.13
One author says to
actually write it down;
00:26:11.13\00:26:13.40
you know, pray and ask God,
"What do You want me to do?"
00:26:13.40\00:26:15.50
When you feel the
impression, write it down.
00:26:15.50\00:26:17.84
Because in the act
of writing it down,
00:26:17.84\00:26:19.71
all of a sudden
it makes it real.
00:26:19.71\00:26:21.21
And then you have
to make the decision
00:26:21.21\00:26:22.64
of, what am I
gonna do about this?
00:26:22.64\00:26:24.35
What am I gonna do about this
thing that I just wrote down?
00:26:24.35\00:26:26.08
Is it gonna stay there on paper,
00:26:26.08\00:26:27.52
or am I actually
gonna put feet on that?
00:26:27.52\00:26:29.85
So choose to do what
God is calling you to do.
00:26:29.85\00:26:32.49
And then we have to
also choose to trust
00:26:32.49\00:26:36.42
that God's gonna come through.
00:26:36.42\00:26:38.43
>>And that's exactly what
He did in the story of Jonah.
00:26:38.43\00:26:41.43
Despite Jonah's hesitance,
00:26:41.43\00:26:43.53
despite
his..."malfunctioning compass,"
00:26:43.53\00:26:47.64
God was still able to
do what needed to be done
00:26:47.64\00:26:50.91
when Jonah chose to be used.
00:26:50.91\00:26:53.01
>>And if He can do
that for the Ninevites,
00:26:53.01\00:26:55.64
He'll come through for us.
00:26:55.64\00:26:56.91
>>I think He can
handle that. >>Absolutely.
00:26:56.91\00:26:58.45
>>Amy, thank you for
joining us this week,
00:26:58.45\00:27:00.68
and thank you for
joining us this week
00:27:00.68\00:27:02.32
again on "Sabbath School."
00:27:02.32\00:27:03.72
We are taking an
incredible journey together,
00:27:03.72\00:27:07.62
looking at "God's
Mission My Mission."
00:27:07.62\00:27:10.73
That involves
you, that involves me,
00:27:10.73\00:27:12.93
and week by week
we are looking at
00:27:12.93\00:27:15.16
ways that we can be
involved in that mission,
00:27:15.16\00:27:18.67
and each week, some
practical challenges
00:27:18.67\00:27:21.54
on Thursday's lesson.
00:27:21.54\00:27:23.57
So don't skip those
practical challenges,
00:27:23.57\00:27:26.51
grab them, apply
them to your life,
00:27:26.51\00:27:29.91
and let God use you in
powerful, powerful ways.
00:27:29.91\00:27:33.98
We look forward to
seeing you again next week
00:27:33.98\00:27:36.08
here on "Sabbath School,"
brought to you by It Is Written.
00:27:36.08\00:27:39.82
(uplifting theme music)
00:27:39.82\00:27:42.46
(music ends)
00:28:26.87\00:28:28.94