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00:11 ♪♪♪ 00:21 Doug Batchelor: We're here on the beautiful coast of the 00:23 island of Puerto Rico. 00:25 And if you were to travel east about 2,000 miles, of course 00:28 you'd be out in the middle of the ocean. 00:30 But you'd also be in the middle of a mystical sea 00:32 called the Sargasso Sea. 00:34 It gets its name because of this common brown seaweed that can be 00:39 found floating in vast mass. 00:42 The area of the Sargasso Sea is about 700 miles wide 00:46 and 2,000 miles long. 00:48 Now, the seaweed itself is fascinating stuff. 00:51 It was first observed and called gulf weed 00:53 by Christopher Columbus. 00:55 It gets the name sargum from the Portuguese. 00:57 Some people use it as herbal remedies, but out in the middle 01:00 of the Sargasso Sea, the water is some of the bluest 01:02 in the world. 01:04 It's there you can see 200 feet deep in places. 01:07 It also has a great biodiversity and ecosystem that surrounds 01:11 the Sargasso Sea. 01:13 For years, scientists wondered where the American 01:15 and Atlantic eels were breeding. 01:17 They knew the adult eel swam down the rivers out into the 01:20 Atlantic, but they never could find the place 01:22 where they reproduced. 01:24 Finally, they discovered it was out in the middle 01:25 of the Sargasso Sea. 01:27 So, it's a fascinating place, but if you're an ancient sailor, 01:30 you did not want to get stuck there. 01:35 Being caught in the doldrums was extremely difficult 01:38 for the ancient sailors. 01:40 Of course, their boats were driven by wind and sail, and 01:43 they'd be caught in the vast mass of the seaweed that would 01:46 wrap around their rudder, barnacles would begin to grow. 01:48 It's an area that is notorious for light and baffling winds, 01:52 and so they'd make no progress, they'd get stuck. 01:55 The men would become extremely dispirited. 01:58 Sometimes violence and even insanity would break out 02:01 as people were trapped in the doldrums. 02:04 Well, friends, perhaps sometimes you felt that you're trapped 02:07 in the doldrums. 02:09 You've gone through episodes of depression, you feel like you're 02:11 going in circles, life seems stifling. 02:14 You know, the Bible offers good news, there is a way out. 02:17 The Bible talks about a famous character that was trapped 02:20 in a cycle of depression. 02:22 He was low as you could be. 02:24 Matter of fact, he even had seaweed wrapped around his head. 02:26 His name was Jonah, but God gave him a way of escape. 02:30 In Jonah chapter 2, verse 3 through 7, we read, 02:34 "For you cast me into the depths, into the heart 02:37 of the seas, and the floods surrounded me. 02:40 All of your billows and your waves passed over me. 02:43 Then I said, 'I have been cast out of your sight. 02:46 Yet I will look again towards your holy temple.' 02:49 The waters surrounded me, even to my soul. 02:51 The deep closed around me. 02:53 Weeds were wrapped around my head. 02:56 I went down to the moorings of the mountains. 02:58 The earth with its bars closed behind me forever. 03:02 Yet you've brought my life up from the pit. 03:04 O Lord, my God, when my soul fainted within me, I remember 03:09 the Lord, and my prayer went up to you, into your holy temple." 03:13 You know, friends, the way that Jonah got out of his 03:16 discouraging circumstances, he turned to God and he prayed. 03:20 And if God could hear Jonah's prayer, just think about it, he 03:23 was as far away from God as anybody could be. 03:25 He was in the belly of a sea monster in the bottom of the 03:28 ocean in the dark, yet he turned to God and God heard his prayer. 03:31 You know, these ancient sailors, when they were trapped on the 03:35 deck of a ship for weeks stuck in the doldrums, discouraged, 03:38 sometimes they would have a prayer meeting and pray that God 03:41 would send a breeze that would set them free 03:43 and get their boats moving. 03:45 They turned to God in prayer and often miracles would happen, 03:48 and the wind would flutter in the sails and bring them 03:50 out of their seaweed prison. 03:52 Friends, maybe you have been stuck in the doldrums. 03:55 Maybe you've been caught in a cycle of depression. 03:58 If God can do it for Jonah, if he can do it for the ancient 04:00 sailors, he can do it for you. 04:02 Turn to the Lord in prayer, trust his Spirit to blow through 04:05 your soul and to set you free. 04:08 ♪♪♪ 04:18 ♪♪♪ 04:28 ♪♪♪ 04:38 Jean Ross: Hello friends, 04:40 welcome to "Sabbath School Study Hour" 04:41 here at the Granite Bay Seventh Day Adventist Church 04:43 in Sacramento, California. 04:45 I'd like to welcome our online numbers and our friends who are 04:48 joining us across the country and around the world, 04:50 part of our extended Sabbath school class. 04:53 And also, we'd like to welcome our regular in person Sabbath 04:57 School members and those who are visiting with us today. 04:59 We're glad that you are here ready to study once again. 05:02 Our lesson dealing with the subject of family seasons. 05:06 Now, I know a number of you are aware that we are actually three 05:09 weeks ahead than everyone else because we prerecord these 05:12 for broadcast purpose later on, so today our lesson 05:16 is actually lesson number eight that is entitled 05:19 "Seasons of Parenting." 05:21 And we're going to be getting into that in just a few moments, 05:23 but we'd like to let our friends know about our free offer for 05:26 today, a study guide entitled "The Only Lifeboat" that's part 05:30 of our Amazing Adventure series, a series of Bible studies geared 05:33 specifically for kids. 05:36 Of course, adults can also learn from this, and we'll be happy 05:38 to send this to anyone who calls and asks. 05:41 If you'd like to receive a copy, the number to call is... 05:46 and you can ask for offer number 805. 05:50 And we'll be happy to send this to anyone who calls and asks, 05:52 or you can get a digital copy of the study "The Only Lifeboat" 05:56 by simply texting the code SH126 to the number 40544. 06:04 And you'll get a link and it'll show you a way you 06:06 can download just a fantastic lesson. 06:10 This is one in a series of lessons dealing with some 06:13 important Bible truths especially geared 06:16 for young people. 06:17 So, take advantage of that free offer. 06:19 Well, before we get to our lesson, we're going to begin 06:21 by lifting our voices in song. 06:23 We'd like to invite our song leaders to come forward. 06:27 male: We're going to have a song before we begin the lesson 06:29 study, and it's number 458, "More Love to Thee, 06:32 O Christ, More Love to Thee," number 458. 06:37 ♪♪♪ 06:42 ♪ More love to thee, O Christ, more love to thee ♪ 06:51 ♪ Hear thou the prayer I make on bended knee ♪ 07:00 ♪ This is my earnest plea, more love, O Christ to thee ♪ 07:10 ♪ More love to thee, more love to thee ♪ 07:20 ♪ Once earthly joy I craved, sought peace and rest ♪ 07:28 ♪ Now thee alone I seek, give what is best ♪ 07:37 ♪ This all my prayer shall be, more love, O Christ, to thee ♪ 07:46 ♪ More love to thee, more love to thee ♪ 07:56 ♪ Let sorrow do its work, send grief or pain ♪ 08:04 ♪ Sweet are thy messengers, sweet their refrain ♪ 08:13 ♪ When they can sing with me ♪ 08:17 ♪ more love, O Christ, to thee ♪ 08:22 ♪ More love to thee, more love to thee ♪ 08:32 ♪ Then shall my latest breath whisper thy praise ♪ 08:40 ♪ This be the parting cry my heart shall raise ♪ 08:49 ♪ This still its prayer shall be ♪ 08:54 ♪ more love, O Christ, to thee ♪ 08:59 ♪ More love to thee, more love to thee ♪♪ 09:11 male: Thank you for singing. 09:16 Jean: Let's bow our heads for a word of prayer. 09:20 Father in heaven, we thank you that we have this opportunity 09:23 together in your house and open up your Word and study 09:26 an important subject, that of parenting. 09:29 And we know, Father, you are the great parent, and we can learn 09:32 so many lessons in the way that you interact with us. 09:34 We also thank you for the counsel that you've given us in 09:37 your Word that could help us be even better parents. 09:39 So, we ask your special blessing upon our study time today in 09:42 Jesus's name, amen. 09:46 This morning, I'd like to invite Pastor Doug to come forward. 09:48 And we got two podiums up here, so we're going to try team teach 09:53 our lesson today on parenting. 09:56 We thought it was such an important, big subject, it's 09:58 going to take two pastors to try to unpack 10:01 all of the lessons that we find. 10:03 Good morning, Pastor Doug. 10:04 Doug: Good morning, Pastor Ross. 10:07 Folks, you're going to wonder why that sounded so funny. 10:12 But you know, we thought it'd be a good idea for us to team up on 10:16 this, and I didn't give him very much warning because I thought, 10:20 you know, we're really coming at this lesson on parenting from 10:23 two different perspectives. 10:25 Pastor Ross grew up in a Christian home, his parents 10:28 are still married today after many years. 10:30 I grew up with parents that were each married four or more times, 10:34 and my brother and I often lived with my mother, 10:37 who was a single parent. 10:39 We thought, well, we'll try to just add more perspective 10:41 to it that way. 10:43 So, the lesson today is on "Seasons of Parenting," 10:46 it's lesson number eight. 10:47 And we have a memory verse. 10:49 I hope you can say it with me, you should know it by now. 10:51 Psalm 127, verse 3, are you ready? 10:54 Psalm 127, verse 3, "Behold, children are a heritage 10:59 from the Lord, and the fruit of the womb is a reward." 11:05 Now, I have often thought, and it talks about this in the 11:08 lesson, can you imagine what it would be like for Adam and Eve 11:14 to have their first child? 11:17 You know, one of the reasons I have a hard time believing 11:19 in evolution is just the way that humans 11:23 and most mammals procreate. 11:26 Through a cooperative act of love, 11:28 they recreate in their image. 11:31 Evolutionists say that the early forms of life, cells would 11:34 simply come to the point where they would divide, and they 11:38 divide perfectly and evenly, where they keep their own 11:40 nucleus and DNA. 11:42 And they just when you want to start a family if you're 11:44 a single cell, you just split in two. 11:46 Why don't we do that today? 11:49 What along the way, what along the way in the process or scheme 11:54 of evolution would ever call for two people to fall in love to, 12:00 then through an act of love and cooperation, 12:03 procreate in their own image? 12:05 They've never explained that. 12:06 And that to me is a real mystery. 12:08 So, having families, and this is one thing I think made the devil 12:11 mad is that humans could recreate in their image, 12:15 and the devil can't create. 12:17 And he got to focus his wrath on this race made in God's image. 12:21 Can you imagine Eve, first baby? 12:23 I don't know that the suffering to be even after the curse-- 12:27 I know I'm rambling here. 12:29 When God told Adam and Eve because of their sin in sorrow 12:32 she would bring forth children, what would it have been like to 12:35 have children without sorrow? 12:38 I just picture Eve rolling over in the morning and nudging Adam 12:42 and say, "You're never going to believe 12:44 what happened last night. 12:46 I had a baby." 12:48 But you know, now it's with, you know, pain and sorrow and 12:53 a lot of bodily changes. 12:56 It's just all a miracle, you know-- 12:58 Jean: You know, usually when a lady's going to have her first 13:01 child, I know in the case of my wife when our firstborn 13:05 was--well, she was pregnant with our oldest one, there was 13:08 a special bond and relationship that she developed with my 13:12 mother and with her mother as they kind of walked her through 13:15 the process of pregnancy, what to expect, how this all works. 13:19 You think of Eve, she probably, I'd imagine, that there was a 13:22 special bonding that took place between God and Eve because God 13:26 was sort of leading her through the process of what to expect 13:29 and what to do. 13:31 This is the first pregnancy and the first baby to be born. 13:34 So, you can just kind of imagine that there was a special 13:36 relationship I'm sure that Eve experienced with God as he kind 13:40 of guided her or helped her through this process. 13:42 He was the only one who would've known what to expect 13:45 or how all this works. 13:47 Doug: Were there fig leaves for pampers back then? 13:51 Where do you buy them? 13:52 Anyway, so the early parents, they had-- 13:56 it must've been a very exciting experience. 13:58 And I think that Eve even thought that Cain might be 14:01 the first Messiah. 14:03 She says, "I have gotten a man from the Lord," 14:05 and perhaps she thought that. 14:07 We probably ought to jump into the first section here, 14:10 and it's talking about childless parenting. 14:12 Now, this may sound like an oxymoron, childless parenting, 14:17 but you know, there are quite a few examples in the Bible of 14:20 people that they wanted families and they couldn't have children. 14:24 Now today, things are different. 14:27 In Bible times, nobody said, "Well, shall we have children or 14:31 shall we not have children?" 14:32 In Bible times, everybody wanted children. 14:35 You don't find an example in the Bible of a couple that got 14:37 married and said, "Well, maybe we shouldn't have any children," 14:42 because that was your social security for one thing. 14:45 If you didn't have children to care for you in your old age 14:47 and help provide for you and do the work of the family business, 14:51 it was just unthinkable. 14:54 But there are several examples of barren women in the Bible. 14:57 And one thing I noticed, I was just sitting there thinking 15:01 about it, if you named someone that struggled with barrenness 15:04 in the Bible, I'll bet you they ended up having children. 15:09 In other words, all of those who were barren in the Bible 15:12 ultimately had children that I can think of. 15:16 So, let's look at some of them. 15:18 And while we're talking about this, just keep in mind it can 15:22 be very difficult, there was a terrible social stigma that went 15:25 with not having children. 15:27 It was like you were under a curse 'cause it says children 15:29 were a blessing. 15:31 And if you didn't have them, you thought, "What did I do wrong?" 15:34 And so, there was a lot of suffering that connected 15:35 with these parents that didn't have children. 15:38 Jean: And of course, probably the one that you're going to 15:40 start with, Pastor Doug, is that famous story of Sarah, who old 15:43 age, more than 90 years old, finally--you know, 15:47 God makes the promise both to Abraham and to Sarah, 15:49 but their faith was tested, and there were some things 15:52 that they had to learn through that experience. 15:53 But I think you mentioned, Pastor Doug, there's seven 15:56 miracle births that we read about in the Bible, and all of 15:59 them are somehow connected with revealing or explaining further 16:04 the plan of redemption, pointing in some way to the coming 16:07 of the Messiah. 16:09 Doug: Yeah, and let me see if I can remember. 16:11 You realize the three wives of the patriarchs, their primary 16:13 wives, Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob, were all barren. 16:17 And it's amazing 'cause you read that, of course, there was a 16:22 miracle when Sarah gave birth, but just imagine people say 16:26 to Abraham, "What's your name?" 16:28 "Abraham." 16:30 "Oh, father of a multitude. How many children do you have?" 16:32 "None yet." 16:33 "How old are you?" 16:35 "A hundred." 16:37 I mean, that must've been hard to explain. 16:39 But ultimately, of course, God fulfilled his promise. 16:42 Not only was it a miracle with Sarah and it brought great joy, 16:46 but it was also a miracle with Rebekah. 16:49 You can read here in Genesis 25:21, "Now Isaac pleaded 16:53 with the Lord for his wife because she was barren, 16:57 and the Lord granted his plea." 16:59 Now, the word "pleaded" there means years went by when they 17:02 had no children. 17:04 And finally, she conceived and she had twins. 17:06 And then you go to Rachel, who was the one that Jacob initially 17:09 wanted to marry, and it says, "Now Rachel saw that she bore 17:15 no children to Jacob." 17:17 Several years probably went by and Rachel envied her sister, 17:21 and said, "Give me children or I'll die." 17:24 Now, I want to pause here for a moment, Pastor Ross, because you 17:27 know, the church is built around assuming that we're ministering 17:32 to families, but you know, there are families in the church that 17:35 they feel a tinge of pain whenever they see the children's 17:38 story 'cause they wanted to have children. 17:40 I've got some dear friends and I--you know, they cooperated 17:44 with the natural methods and they just never had children. 17:48 And first thing people would ask when they'd say, 17:50 "Well, so how long have you been married?" 17:51 "Twenty years." 17:53 "How many children do you have?" 17:55 "None." 17:56 And there's always kind of like an awkward silence. 17:58 I think we need to be sensitive to that. 18:00 But when you're in a church family, 18:03 everybody can be a parent. 18:06 I think about growing up, you know, when you have divorced 18:08 parents and you have a single mom and, you know, 18:12 you didn't have Christianity modeled before you. 18:15 I am so thankful for grandparents, some adopted 18:20 uncles, camp counselors that modeled for me what it looks 18:24 like to be a father or to be a person of integrity. 18:28 And so all of us, whether you have children or not, you can do 18:32 some parenting to the children that come under your influence. 18:37 Jean: You know, as a child, I remember I was placed with 18:39 parents that loved the Lord and they modeled Christianity. 18:43 But in addition to that, there were a couple of older folks 18:46 when I was just a kid growing up, going to church every week, 18:49 I remember there was a song leader in particular, 18:51 just a great old man. 18:53 But his way of showing care and concern even to the children 18:58 is a powerful witness. 18:59 I remember that. 19:01 So, even though we might not have kids or we might be older, 19:04 we could still have a positive influence upon the young people 19:06 or the kids in the church. 19:08 And I think we all have a part to play as a church family in 19:10 encouraging and helping both young parents and the children 19:14 in setting an example of what it is to be a true Christian. 19:17 Doug: Yeah. 19:19 And kids, when they're young, don't ever underestimate how 19:22 much they're taking in, they're watching everything. 19:24 And they note when you make decisions of integrity, 19:27 and they note when you fail. 19:30 And they'll bring it back to you. 19:32 And so they're watching, so best way to teach them is what? 19:36 Example. 19:38 What's the second one? Example. 19:40 Third one? Example. 19:42 Be a good example for the children. 19:44 And then there's one other that it gives here in the lesson, 19:47 and I'll not read the whole passage. 19:49 You got Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, then you got Hannah. 19:52 And Hannah especially suffered because she had a sister wife, 19:56 Peninnah, and it calls her her adversary. 20:00 And you know, that's the same word for Satan, 20:02 he's called the adversary. 20:05 And she provoked her. 20:06 I mean, that's really cruel. 20:08 Hannah couldn't have children, Peninnah had many children, 20:10 and she would say, "Oh, well, I guess 20:12 you've done something wrong. 20:13 God's cursing you. 20:15 Look at all of my children." 20:16 And Peninnah was resentful because they had to share 20:18 the love of Elkanah. 20:20 And you know, that never works out in the Bible. 20:23 When you got one husband and several wives, there's always 20:26 some kind of competition for the affection of the husband. 20:29 Jean: Of course, we see the same situation taking place in 20:32 the wives of Jacob. 20:34 You have Rachel and Leah, and there's a little bit of jealousy 20:37 going back and forth. 20:39 And if you were the one that was able to have kids and you're 20:42 able to have more kids than the other, you kind of saw yourself 20:45 as being the first wife. 20:47 And there was some controversy that developed. 20:49 Well, we find the same thing taking place with Hannah. 20:52 Hannah turns to God and just open her heart in prayer, 20:55 and a very powerful story. 20:57 We don't have time to read the whole thing, and it's wonderful 20:59 how God hears and recognizes her heart, 21:01 and actually grants her request. 21:04 Doug: Amen. 21:05 So, I probably got to tie this off when we talk 21:07 about single parenting. 21:09 The seven barren women that had miracle births in the Bible are 21:12 you've got Sarah, Rebekah, Rachel, Hannah, the Shunammite 21:18 woman, John the Baptist's mother, and Samson's parents. 21:24 So, you got these seven miracle births. 21:26 And each one of those babies--they're all boys, 21:28 it's interesting. 21:29 Each one of those boys is a type of Christ in some way. 21:32 Isaac is the willing sacrifice on the mountain, right? 21:36 Joseph, he's sold by his brothers, but he forgives them 21:39 and he feeds the world. 21:41 And you just go down the line, Samson, he stretches out his 21:45 arms, lays down his life, he's a type of Christ. 21:47 And so, you just have some interesting stories here. 21:50 Now, one more thing, this is why we're talking about these 21:52 barren--it's so amazing that the wives of the patriarchs 21:57 are all barren until Jacob goes to Egypt. 22:00 God said, "I will multiply you there." 22:03 They go from being barren to being the most prolific people 22:08 in the world. 22:10 It says they multiply, they multiplied exceedingly, 22:11 they greatly multiplied. 22:13 So, even the Egyptians said, "What's going on here? 22:15 They're soon going to outnumber us." 22:18 And so, God did something finally when they went to Egypt. 22:20 While they were being persecuted, they grew. 22:24 And it seems like during times of persecution, 22:26 the church grows too. 22:28 Jean: Absolutely. 22:30 And it's mentioned each of those miracle childs-- 22:32 children played some part in God's plan of redemption. 22:34 Samson was a deliverer for Israel. 22:36 You have John the Baptist that prepared the way for Jesus. 22:39 And so, there's a lesson in each of these experiences. 22:42 And often those children came, or I think every time those 22:46 children came as a result of earnest interceding or prayer 22:49 on behalf of the mother. 22:51 The mother prayed and God heard and answered the prayer, 22:53 or the father prayed on behalf of the wife and God heard 22:55 and answered their prayer. 22:57 So, it's connected with prayer. 22:58 Doug: Amen. 23:00 Now, just before we leave that section about single or 23:02 childless parenting, some people choose not to have children. 23:07 Is there a time in the Bible where God says it may be really 23:10 difficult for those that have children in the last days? 23:13 You know, Matthew 24:19, Jesus said, "Woe to those who are 23:17 pregnant and those who are nursing babies in those days," 23:19 speaking of a time of great tribulation. 23:22 And on the way to the cross, he was talking about the 23:25 destruction of Jerusalem that was coming. 23:27 He said to the women that were weeping, "The days are coming in 23:30 which they will say, 'Blessed are the barren, the wombs that 23:33 never bear, and the breasts which never nurse.'" 23:36 With those exceptions, every other time in the Bible, 23:38 God wanted his children be fruitful, multiply. 23:41 But there was a time when he said you need to think about 23:44 time of trouble. 23:46 During the persecution of the Romans in the early church, 23:48 Paul said, "It might be better if you're like me and you 23:51 don't get married and have families now 'cause it can 23:54 inhibit the spreading of the gospel." 23:56 So, just keeping balance in the lesson, 23:59 there were also those occasions. 24:01 Jean: The next place that we look at, the next day, 24:04 as part of the lesson deals now with single parenting. 24:07 Not only do you have parents that want children and for some 24:09 reason they might not have kids, but there are situations where 24:13 maybe one of the parents pass away and the other parent 24:16 is left to raise the children. 24:18 Maybe there's a divorce and the children are 24:21 with one parent or the other. 24:23 Sometimes there's a situation where there might be a 24:26 grandparent that for some reason needs to take over the care 24:30 or the parenting of their grandchild. 24:32 So, these different scenarios, does the Bible have anything 24:35 to say with reference to single parenting? 24:37 Doug: Yeah. 24:39 And I forget what the statistics are. 24:41 It's somewhere, 25%, 30% of parents in North America, 24:43 at least part of their parenting, 24:45 they are single parents. 24:47 And even married parents, if your spouse travels, 24:49 you may be a single parent at times. 24:53 And so, you know, we need to be very sensitive to that when 24:56 there are family get-togethers and we have couples occasions, 25:02 we need to be sensitive to the single parents in there and, 25:04 as a church family, keep them in mind, give them support. 25:08 Who are some of the single parents? 25:10 Well, you read in Genesis 16 that after Sarah gave birth, of 25:16 course Abraham had already had a child with Hagar, 25:19 God said, "This is never going to work out." 25:22 At the encouragement of Sarah, Hagar was put out. 25:26 And she may have thought, "You know, I never asked to be--" 25:30 First of all, she was probably given as a slave to Abraham by 25:33 the Pharaoh during the famine. 25:35 When he left, Pharaoh gave servants to Abraham, 25:37 an Egyptian. 25:39 And then she never said, you know, 25:42 "I want to be a concubine for Abraham." 25:44 That was Sarah's idea. 25:46 So, she cooperates, she has a child, she loves her baby 25:48 and Abraham says, "Look, this was a mistake. 25:50 You've got to go." 25:52 You kind of--your heart goes out to Hagar. 25:54 And there was a time there when she just thought that she and 25:57 Ishmael were just going to die of thirst in the wilderness. 26:00 And God made her some promises. 26:02 You can look in--well, first he gave a promise when she ran away 26:05 when she was persecuted, and that's in Genesis 9--16, 26:08 verse 9 rather. 26:11 "The angel of the Lord said to her, 'Return to your mistress 26:13 and submit yourself to her hand, so I will multiply your 26:18 descendants exceedingly so they'll not be 26:20 counted for multitude.'" 26:22 And so, the angel encouraged her. 26:24 And then later when she was cast out, the angel said, 26:27 "I hear you." 26:29 And God supplied water for the boy when they were dying of 26:32 thirst out in the wilderness. 26:33 And he did grow up and become the father of a great clan, 26:36 and Ishmael had 12 sons of his own. 26:39 So, God took care of her during those difficult times. 26:42 Now, there's some others that you may want to mention. 26:44 Jean: Yes, another interesting one that the lesson 26:46 brings out is during a terrible famine that occurred in Israel, 26:49 the prophet Elijah was sent to a town, Zarephath by name, and God 26:54 prepared a place for him to stay with a widow that had two sons. 26:59 And you remember the miracle story, they had run out of 27:02 resources, and God performed a miracle to provide the oil. 27:04 So, we see God providing for a widow in this case 27:08 that was still raising her children. 27:10 Doug: Mm-hmm. 27:12 Yeah, and the Lord does miracles to sustain. 27:15 You know, I thought that there's some good promises here that you 27:19 can find for single parents. 27:22 Matthew 11:28, he says, "Come to me, you who labor 27:26 and are heavy laden." 27:28 Think about all the work in parenting. 27:30 When one parent has to do it all, it's not always, but it's 27:34 often the mother that ends up being a single parent, though 27:36 I've known some fathers that their wife passed away 27:39 and they had to raise the children on their own. 27:41 They never remarried and it is very difficult. 27:44 You got to take care the work that a father might do 27:48 and a mother might do. 27:50 It's everything from the yardwork, to the housework, 27:52 to the laundry, to the cleaning, to the school. 27:54 And it can be absolutely exhausting. 27:58 I remember with my mother, you know, she had two boys. 28:01 One of them was sick, my brother had cystic fibrosis. 28:04 She's in New York City, she's trying to run a career, 28:06 she's got us both in school, she's taking care 28:08 of medical appointments. 28:10 And I saw her have a few meltdowns, and I know now how 28:13 much pressure it really is to try and take care 28:17 of all those things. 28:19 So, Jesus says, "Come to me. 28:21 Cast your cares upon the Lord." 28:23 And then you can remember that promise in Philippians 4:13, 28:26 "I can do all things through Christ who strengthens me." 28:30 I'm just curious, do you mind my asking? 28:32 How many of you had single parents? 28:35 Mind raising your hand? 28:37 I see. 28:39 Yeah, quite a few hands went up, that looked like 28:41 just about 20% right there. 28:42 So, you understand. 28:44 You grew up in a home like that, it requires help. 28:47 Jeremiah 32, God said, "Behold, I am the Lord, 28:51 the God of all flesh. 28:53 Is there anything too hard for me?" 28:55 And then Jeremiah 29, he promises, 28:57 "I have a plan and a future for you." 29:00 So, there's a lot of promises that God gives to single parents 29:05 to support them. 29:07 But you know, I think it's great when churches have programs 29:11 where they say, "We are going to provide some child program so 29:15 the parents who have no spouse, they can come to these." 29:19 It's great. 29:21 It's such a blessing. 29:23 The people in the church who help with childcare deserve 29:27 double trophies, especially if you come to programs where you 29:30 can't sit in the program 'cause you're taking care of children, 29:33 but you're making it possible for single parents to maybe go 29:36 to an evangelistic program, or cooking school, 29:38 or whatever it is. 29:40 And it's such a relief and a release to them. 29:42 Jean: Because the Bible talks about the importance of the 29:44 church family helping to, in a special way, encourage 29:48 and be support for single parents and widows. 29:50 Matter of fact, we have this counsel given to us in James 29:53 chapter 1, verse 27, it says, "Pure and undefiled religion 29:57 before God and the Father is this, to visit the orphans and 30:01 the widows in their trouble." 30:03 So, part of the work of the church is in particular to take 30:05 special care or be there to help, and I think you can add 30:09 single parents to this category, the widows, the orphans. 30:12 Those who don't have immediate family, the church family needs 30:18 to step in and do what we can as a church to try and encourage 30:21 and support those who are raising children by themself. 30:24 Doug: Absolutely. 30:26 And the commandment that says honor your father and mother 30:29 is not just talking about your literal mom and dad. 30:31 I think children should be taught to honor the people of 30:35 age and experience that are around them, honor their elders. 30:40 In our little church we used to have up there in Covelo, 30:43 we told all the kids that all the parents--I don't know, 30:46 we never voted on it, we just had it as a practice 30:48 that the kids always called all the adults either, you know, 30:53 grandma or grandpa or aunt or uncle. 30:56 And to this very day, our adult kids call some of our friends up 30:59 there Uncle Joe, Aunt Roxie. 31:01 They just learned it as kids, and even though they're adults 31:04 now, it was just like it made the whole church feel like 31:06 a family when you do that. 31:09 Now, there's a quote from the book "Desire of Ages" in page 1 31:13 to 45 in your lesson. 31:15 And you think about Mary, the mother of Jesus. 31:18 Death had separated her from Joseph, who had shared her 31:22 knowledge of the mystery of the birth of Jesus. 31:25 Now, there was no one to whom she could confide 31:28 her hopes and fears. 31:30 The past two months had been very sorrowful." 31:33 Mary for a good part of her life was a single mother. 31:36 And so, you know, God can relate to all of us. 31:42 Of course, the Lord knows everything anyway. 31:44 We probably ought to move along. 31:46 Next section, we got a lot to say on these next three 31:48 sections, the joy and responsibility of parenting. 31:51 Now, we're just going to talk about general parenting, 31:54 and we'll repeat that verse that we find. 31:56 Why don't you read that, Pastor Ross? 31:58 Psalm 127, verse 3 to 5. 32:00 Jean: It says, "Lo, children are a heritage of the Lord, 32:02 the fruit of the womb, a reward. 32:04 As arrows in the hand of a mighty man, 32:06 so children of the youth. 32:09 Happy is the man that has his quiver full of them. 32:12 They shall not be ashamed, but they shall speak 32:15 with the enemies at the gate." 32:16 So, here it talks about having families with kids brings joy. 32:21 And indeed it does bring joy, especially when the kids are at 32:25 the age where they're beginning to toddle their way 32:28 around the house, and they're beginning to learn, 32:31 and they come up with some rather interesting things 32:33 that they say and the things that they do. 32:35 And as parents watch and they see their children develop 32:37 and grow and learn, it is indeed just a very exciting time 32:41 and a wonderful experience for parents. 32:43 I remember when my children were born, in a spiritual sense 32:47 I think you begin to understand even a little bit more the love 32:52 of our heavenly Father when you have your own children and you 32:57 think of, you know, how much time it takes to train your 33:01 kids and how much effort you have to put in. 33:04 You think of how much time and effort my heavenly Father 33:07 is putting to try and train me, to help me grow spiritually, 33:11 to learn to walk spiritually. 33:13 And so, there are some wonderful lessons--matter of fact, 33:15 Pastor Doug, the Bible tells us that after Enoch had his son, 33:19 then it says he began to walk with the Lord. 33:22 So, perhaps there was some special experience that he as 33:25 a father experienced that helped him understand even more 33:28 of the relationship of his heavenly Father towards him. 33:31 Doug: Mm-hmm. 33:33 Yeah, one thing is when you have young children, 33:36 looking at their sense of trust is humbling. 33:40 You know, they look up to their mother and their father, and 33:43 their eyes are full of wonder and the whole world is exciting, 33:46 and they just trust you every day that you're going 33:48 to take care of them, you're going to love them, 33:50 you're going to feed them. 33:52 And their lives depend on you. 33:54 And when you're young and you have your first children and you 33:57 realize, "Here's a human being and they are trusting me 33:59 with their entire life," it's humbling. 34:02 And then it helps you think something about how we 34:05 trust our heavenly Father. 34:07 And it's also a joy. 34:08 You know, God did not make his creatures to create stress 34:13 in the universe. 34:15 So often, people think about children, the responsibility, 34:17 the stress. 34:19 He did it for joy, love, wonder. 34:21 And you know, one of the most wonderful things, some of the 34:23 most fun things I can remember with our kids is sitting down on 34:28 the carpet in the living room wrestling with them, 34:32 building things with Lego, listening to them squeal 34:35 with joy, this total abandon of happiness. 34:39 And you know, when you see that kind of joy with your kids, 34:41 those are the times that are a real pleasure to be parents. 34:45 When they're firstborn and they keep you up 34:46 all night long crying, that's not near as wonderful. 34:50 But it balances out, amen? 34:54 Jean: You know, one of the things that I think in 34:57 particular sort of endears children to their parents is 34:59 when you begin to notice how that your kids are beginning 35:04 to copy what you do and what you say, 35:07 even just automatically they start picking it up. 35:09 And maybe it's a little different for little boys 35:12 and little girls, but I remember when my boys would start 35:15 copying the things I did. 35:17 I'd be driving and I'd be looking in the back seat, 35:19 and they'd be watching, and they'd be going like this 35:21 with their hands. 35:23 And I'd walk a certain way and they'd try to walk 35:24 a certain way. 35:26 And I'd say something and they tried to say it the same way. 35:28 They're just absorbing everything that they see. 35:31 And when the kids are around about eight, nine years old, 35:34 I remember that was a great time for my kids 'cause 35:36 at that point, the kids are not wise enough to realize 35:39 that mommy and daddy, there are things they can't do. 35:43 But at that age, they think daddy can do anything. 35:45 He's the biggest, he's the strongest, 35:48 and you hear your kids bragging on you to their friends. 35:50 "Oh, my dad can do this. 35:52 Oh, my dad can do that." 35:54 And it really endears the children to the parents when you 35:56 realize that here is a little being, little human being 35:59 that is following you, that looks up to you. 36:03 And it brings a degree of responsibility as well. 36:06 Are we going to train our children the right way? 36:09 And their minds are so open to learning around those ages. 36:12 Doug: Yeah. 36:14 And that brings us to that very familiar verse that is true, 36:17 Proverbs 22, verse 6, "Train up a child in the way he should go, 36:22 and when he is old, he will not depart from it." 36:25 It is so important that just from the very beginning 36:29 that they're guided with biblical principles. 36:32 And there's quite a few verses here that talk 36:34 about the importance of that, but just from the very-- 36:38 you know, it's mind-boggling. 36:40 If you ever read about Susanna Wesley, 36:42 her son John Wesley founded the Methodist church, 36:45 but you could really say she founded it 36:47 because through Charles, a great hymn writer, 36:49 and through John, they were people of incredible discipline. 36:53 She taught them to read just using the Bible as a textbook. 36:57 And by the age of five, all of her children read 36:59 through the Bible. 37:02 I mean, just this woman was mind-boggling. 37:04 She taught them to sleep on command, 37:07 and they said through their lives it'd help them. 37:09 Whenever they were tired, they can just make themselves 37:11 go to sleep. 37:13 And her house, she had like 19 children. 37:16 But she realized, "Look, it's going to be chaos in the home 37:19 unless you teach them from an early age some basics." 37:23 All the kids learned to work from very--they learned to pick 37:26 up after themselves, they learned not to cry loudly. 37:29 And she--it'd be interesting if you read some of the things 37:32 that Susanna Wesley introduced in raising children. 37:37 It was a wonderful thing. 37:39 Jean: Deuteronomy chapter 6 has two principles that I think 37:42 as parents would make a world of difference 37:44 if you keep remembering it. 37:46 And the principle is teach, talk, and the other one 37:50 is bind and write. 37:52 Teach, talk. 37:54 So, in your life, in your interaction with your children, 37:57 talk about the Lord. 37:59 Talk about the principles of right and wrong, 38:01 and give them an example. 38:04 Everything you say, if you're not going to follow it up with 38:06 your own example, isn't going to have half the impact 38:09 on your children. 38:10 So, teach, talk in all of the interaction with your kids. 38:13 The other one is bind and write. 38:16 Take every opportunity that you can to, by precept and example, 38:20 show them in what you do. 38:22 Talks about the law being on your hand and in your forehead, 38:25 that in all we do and in all we think, God is number one 38:29 in our marriage, in our home, in our parenting. 38:32 It's about God and his love for us. 38:35 Doug: And it's interesting that Moses would put that 38:39 instruction right after stating the Ten Commandments. 38:42 It's like, you know, here you've got God's perfect Word, 38:45 the holiest thing in the nation was the ark that had 38:48 the Ten Commandments inside. 38:50 The Word of God was really the treasure of the nation. 38:52 Right after giving that, he says, and Pastor Ross is 38:55 referring to this in Deuteronomy 6:6, "These words that I command 38:59 you today shall be in your heart," so you have to go 39:02 after the hearts of the children. 39:04 "Teach them diligently." 39:05 The word "diligently" there means almost 39:07 to the point of aerobic perspiration. 39:09 Make it just a regular process, faithful, persistent. 39:13 "Talk of them when you sit in your house, when you walk 39:16 by the way, when you lay down," that's evening worship, 39:20 "when you rise up," that's morning worship. 39:22 "You shall bind them for a sign on your hand." 39:25 That means in everything you do, it should be there. 39:27 Frontlets between your eyes, you've heard of the mark 39:29 of the beast and the hand in the forehead? 39:31 It's talking about in your actions and between your eyes. 39:34 "Write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates." 39:37 When you go out, when you come in, let them be reminded 39:39 with it everywhere. 39:41 So, they are surrounded with the principles of God's Word, 39:44 and that guides them as they grow through their lives. 39:47 Jean: Another important point that we want to remember, 39:49 not only are we wanting our children to first and foremost 39:52 have a relationship with God, have develop or developed 39:55 a Christ-like character, we want them in the kingdom. 39:58 That is our number one goal as parents. 40:01 But in addition to their own salvation, we also want 40:04 to teach them the principles of witnessing 40:06 or sharing with others. 40:08 So, we want to be disciple makers of our children, not only 40:12 teaching them how they are to live with reference to Christ, 40:15 but also teaching them how they can share 40:18 their faith with others. 40:20 I had the opportunity of growing up in a pastor's home. 40:22 And as far as I can remember, the work of ministry wasn't just 40:26 something that dad did, but it seemed the whole family 40:29 was involved in ministry in some capacity. 40:31 We had often moved to different places. 40:33 But even from a little by, I was remembered--I remembered 40:36 that this calling to be involved in sharing and witnessing 40:40 and evangelism was something not just for one member of the 40:43 family, but the family as a unit needed to make a commitment 40:47 to saying, "Lord, I want to do what I can to share the gospel." 40:50 And I think that principle is there whatever our family might 40:53 be, We want to teach our children how they can share 40:56 their faith with others. 40:58 Doug: Amen. 41:00 You do it by example, and the Bible also says sometimes 41:03 you need to exert authority. 41:05 You read here in Genesis 18:18, speaking of Abraham, "Since 41:09 Abraham shall surely become a great and mighty nation and all 41:14 the nations of the earth will be blessed in him, for I have known 41:17 him, in order that he may command his children and his 41:22 household after him that they keep the ways of the Lord, 41:26 to do righteousness and justice, that the Lord may bring Abraham 41:29 what he has spoken to him." 41:31 So, parents and families, you want to lead by example, 41:34 but sometimes you want to command. 41:37 And should discipline be part of a Christian home? 41:43 Is discipline part of God's order? 41:46 And that should all be done in love. 41:48 You can read in Ephesians 6:4, "And you fathers, 41:53 do not provoke your children to wrath." 41:56 Everything should be done in love and don't just agitate 41:58 your children, don't nag. 42:00 "But bring them up in the training and admonition 42:03 of the Lord." 42:05 Admonition, to admonish means to counsel somebody in a decisive 42:10 way and to guide them in what the right thing is. 42:14 Jean: I think it's important especially for those 42:16 who might have young children, little children. 42:19 Start teaching them the principles that are important 42:22 when they're young. 42:24 Sometimes parents will be very lenient on their children 42:27 when they're two, three, four years of age. 42:30 And then as they get older and they get to those teenage years, 42:32 then suddenly they try to reel them in, 42:35 and usually the result is rebellion. 42:37 But if we can train our children when they are young 42:40 the principles of right and wrong, and yes, as Pastor Doug 42:43 says, part of that training is involving some degree 42:47 of punishment if they don't follow the principles. 42:51 Now, that's not always, you know, a spanking. 42:54 There are other ways that we can train, but there's consequences. 42:57 We need to teach our children consequences. 43:00 If we can lay that firm foundation when they're young, 43:03 and as they get older and you go into those teenage years, 43:07 usually it's a little easier to kind of work with them 43:10 because they have that firm foundation. 43:13 If we get it backwards and be very lenient on the early days 43:16 and we don't lay those principles, 43:18 then we're probably setting ourselves up for some challenges 43:21 when they get a little older. 43:23 Doug: Yeah, you know, the lesson talks about 43:25 the children of Eli. 43:28 And you remember the counsel that God gave, you read in 43:31 1 Samuel chapter 3, Samuel has to bring a message to Eli, 43:36 "Behold, I'll do something in Israel at which the ears 43:39 of everyone who hears it will tingle. 43:42 In that day, I will perform against Eli all that I've spoken 43:45 concerning his house from beginning to end, for I told him 43:49 that I will judge his house for the iniquity which he knows 43:52 because his sons made themselves vile 43:55 and he did not restrain them." 43:59 A punishment was to come upon the house of Eli 'cause he did 44:03 not restrain his children and they brought other people down. 44:07 So, there's not only privilege in having children, 44:09 there's a big responsibility. 44:12 And we should do all we can to guide them in the right way. 44:14 Now, whenever you say this, a lot of parents are going 44:17 to think, "Oh, my kids, they messed up 44:19 and it's all my fault." 44:20 Not necessarily. 44:22 It might be some of your fault, but what did God do wrong 44:26 that made Adam go wrong? 44:29 And what did Adam and Eve do wrong where Seth was so good 44:32 and Abel was so good and Cain was so bad? 44:36 Every child must make their own choices. 44:38 Don't you all know somebody that had several children, 44:40 and so many of them turned out great and one turned out 44:43 to be a serial killer or something? 44:44 And you think, "What? 44:46 What'd that-- where'd that come from?" 44:49 Everybody ultimately makes their own choice. 44:51 And so, do all you can though. 44:53 When they're young, restrain them. 44:55 It's a lot easier when they're young. 44:57 Jean: I like the point the lesson brings, that it says, 44:59 "Being a good parent is our choice. 45:02 How our children turn out is ultimately their choice." 45:06 So, we want to do the best we can to train them, 45:09 but recognize they have freedom of will, they can choose. 45:12 So, lay those foundations. 45:14 And then, of course, prayer. 45:15 As they get older, pray for them, be the best example you 45:18 can be, and then place them in God's hands. 45:20 So, it's ultimately what we as parents can do, place them in 45:23 God's hands saying, "Lord, do the work only you can do 45:25 in the hearts and the lives of our children." 45:28 Doug: Amen: Now, there is a good quote that comes 45:31 in the lesson, it's from Testimonies volume 1, page 218. 45:35 "Parents, you should commence your first lessons of discipline 45:38 when your children are babes in your arms." 45:41 Now, that does not mean spanking them, 45:43 it's talking about your guiding them. 45:45 It might mean you say, "Shh, don't cry," 45:47 and just so they understand that. 45:49 "Teach them to yield their will to yours." 45:53 That's so different from what we're told in society today. 45:56 Don't tell your children what to believe, 45:58 let them discover for themself. 45:59 They should be free. 46:01 You heard that before? 46:03 Don't tell them they have to be Christians. 46:05 I've met Christian parents says, "Well, we're going 46:06 to let our children decide for themselves." 46:09 I thought you don't--you're not reading your Bible. 46:12 "Teach them to yield their will to yours. 46:14 This can be done by bearing an even hand 46:17 and manifesting firmness. 46:19 Parents should have perfect control over their own spirits, 46:22 and with mindness and firmness bend their will of the child 46:26 until it should expect nothing except to yield to their wishes. 46:30 Parents, do not commence in season. 46:32 The first manifestation of temper, if not subdued 46:36 and the children grows stubborn, which increases with growth 46:39 and strengthens with their strength." 46:41 So yeah, if you don't nip it in the bud, those little angels 46:45 turn into little monsters. 46:48 Any of you ever gone to the supermarket and you see-- 46:50 you hear this shrieking, and some parent 46:53 is trying to pull away from the parents, 46:55 and they're on the floor, and they're having a tantrum 46:58 and a fit because the parent said, 47:00 "No, you can't have that, you know, chocolate cereal," 47:02 or whatever it is that they wanted? 47:04 And they just--the parents, they just can't control them, 47:09 they're just out of control. 47:10 They're screaming, and everybody's looking, 47:12 and they don't know what to do. 47:14 And it's really sad if they get older and they start doing that. 47:17 So, when they're very young, in a loving way you've got to teach 47:20 them what is appropriate and acceptable behavior. 47:23 Jean: And of course, God does that with us, doesn't he? 47:25 He also teaches us, as we're all his children. 47:28 Even as adults, God is patient with us, but he does allow us 47:33 at times to bear the results of bad choices. 47:36 And he leads us through that process, 47:38 and we want to model that to our children. 47:41 We want to be the best examples that we can be, and then 47:43 provide some guidance, especially when they're young, 47:46 in the way that they need to go. 47:48 Doug: Amen. 47:50 Final section here, it's talking about fighting 47:52 for your prodigal child. 47:54 And of course, we all know the parable of the prodigal son. 47:57 How did that-- father had two boys. 47:59 You know, one stayed at home and one ran off, same father. 48:02 And how did that father fight for his prodigal child? 48:06 Unconditional love, prayed the whole time that boy was gone, 48:11 sometimes it means waiting. 48:13 Now, what are the three things you can do for a child 48:15 that's a prodigal? 48:17 They're actually the same three things you do for anybody 48:19 if you want to reach them. 48:21 There's only three things you can do. 48:23 If they'll listen, you share information, but you've got to 48:25 be careful not to nag your prodigal. 48:27 That usually drives them away. 48:29 But if they're open and they'll listen, give them something, 48:32 give them books or CDs, or talk to them about the Lord, 48:35 or Bible study. 48:37 If they'll listen to information, share information. 48:39 If that's not working, you pray for them. 48:41 And sometimes people make that sound like it's, you know, 48:44 last resort, it's dismissive. 48:46 "Oh, well, we'll pray." 48:48 Prayer is actually very powerful. 48:50 One father came to Jesus and he had a boy that was possessed 48:52 by a devil, and Christ later told the disciples, 48:55 "This kind does not come forth except by prayer and fasting." 48:58 It might mean you fast and pray for that prodigal. 49:02 And then finally, be a good example. 49:05 I said three things, there's really four. 49:07 Be a good example would be number three, 49:10 number four is do the above three persistently. 49:12 Keep at it. 49:14 God is very patient, sometimes it takes years. 49:17 Hezekiah prayed for his son Manasseh. 49:20 Hezekiah was long dead by the time Manasseh repented 49:24 at age 50. 49:26 So, it took a long time, but God answered his prayers. 49:31 And so, be persistent in continuing to pray for them. 49:34 Jean: You know, I think one of the tendencies as parents if 49:36 you do have a prodigal child is, especially when they're older, 49:40 we think, "Lord, what did I do wrong?" 49:43 When you look at the parable of the prodigal son and you see 49:46 a wonderful demonstration of the love of the father, he was, 49:49 you know, still reaching out to his son. 49:52 It's not necessarily that we as parents have failed 49:55 if we have a prodigal child. 49:58 Maybe God is--well, he is, he's still working in their hearts 50:01 and lives, and he'll bring them around. 50:03 We want to be faithful in doing our part, 50:06 and just trusting him that God will take care of the situation. 50:08 Doug: Amen. 50:11 You know, technically I was a prodigal. 50:13 I was the black sheep that ran away and just gave everybody 50:15 lots of trouble. 50:17 And God reached me, and he can reach your prodigals. 50:21 And if you have made a mistake in raising your children, 50:24 don't just beat yourself up. 50:26 Paul says, Philippians 3:13, "Brethren, I do not count myself 50:29 to have apprehended, but one thing I do, 50:32 forgetting those things which are behind." 50:34 Once you make a mistake, confess it, repent, 50:37 and believe that God forgives you, and move on. 50:40 "Forgetting those things that are behind, I reach forward to 50:43 those things which are ahead. 50:45 And I press towards the goal of the prize of the upward call 50:48 in Jesus Christ." 50:50 Then I'll close with this wonderful promise you find 50:53 in the book of Joel chapter 2. 50:55 He says, "I will restore to you the years that the swarming 50:58 locust has eaten." 51:00 You know, when you pray and you repent, don't give up believing 51:03 that God can, you know, reach those prodigal children 51:06 and he can restore. 51:10 You know, sometimes you might need to--like I said, 51:13 you'll repent, you admit your mistakes, you might need 51:16 to write a letter to your children and apologize to them, 51:19 and say, "You know, I wish I was a better parent." 51:21 Ask them for forgiveness. 51:23 And then you do all you can to show them unconditional love, 51:26 and you pray that God reaches and brings them back to the fold 51:30 if they're out there wandering. 51:32 Jean: You know, we do have a study guide that we'd like 51:34 to tell our friends who are joining us online about, 51:36 and it's part of our Amazing Adventure series. 51:38 Pastor Doug, this is probably, oh, about 10, 11 years old 51:41 that we did this series, but we go all over the place. 51:44 And we will meet now young people that are in college or 51:47 upper high school and they'll say, "Oh, the first time that I 51:50 really gave my life to Jesus or began to study or understand 51:54 the gospel was because of the Amazing Adventure series." 51:57 And we do have part of that series, a lesson entitled 52:00 "The Only Lifeboat," it's from the Amazing Adventure series. 52:04 I'd like to make this available to those who are 52:06 joining us online. 52:08 If you would like to receive a free copy of this study guide, 52:11 all you'll have to do is call the number... 52:15 and ask for offer number 805. 52:18 Or you can download for free a copy of our lesson 52:23 by simply texting the code SH126 to the number 40544. 52:30 Doug: Amen. God bless you, friends. 52:32 We'll look forward to studying his Word 52:34 with you again next week. 52:38 male announcer: Don't forget to request today's 52:40 life-changing free resource. 52:42 Not only can you receive this free gift in the mail, 52:44 you can download a digital copy straight to your computer 52:46 or mobile device. 52:47 To get your digital copy of today's free gift, simply text 52:51 the keyword on your screen to 40544, 52:54 or visit the web address shown on your screen. 52:57 And be sure to select the digital download option 52:59 on the request page. 53:01 It's now easier than ever for you to study God's Word with 53:04 Amazing Facts wherever and whenever you want, 53:07 and most important to share it with others. 53:11 male announcer: Can't get enough Amazing Facts Bible study? 53:14 You don't have to wait until next week 53:16 to enjoy more truth-filled programming. 53:19 Visit the Amazing Facts media library at aftv.org. 53:24 At aftv.org, you can enjoy video and audio presentations as well 53:29 as printed material all free of charge 24 hours a day, 53:33 7 days a week right from your computer or mobile device. 53:37 Visit aftv.org. 53:45 announcer: Amazing Facts changed lives. 53:55 Steve Johnson: I was heading south on Interstate 5. 53:58 This commercial came on KFBK radio about 54:01 a Revelation seminar by Amazing Facts. 54:04 I began--my chest began to tighten up, 54:07 I began sweating profusely. 54:09 I had difficulty in breathing. 54:12 There were this big rest area. 54:14 And at this time, I pulled into there, I thought, 54:16 "Well, maybe I'm having a heart attack." 54:19 I got out of my truck, walked into the men's restroom there, 54:22 and put cold water on my face, 54:24 and then finally things subsided. 54:26 A week later, again I heard this Amazing Facts commercial 54:30 come on the radio. 54:32 In fact, the meetings were going to start that very night. 54:34 And again, immediately I had these same symptoms. 54:37 I thought, "You know, this isn't my heart. 54:39 I have to go to that meeting." 54:41 And as I was going down to Sacramento, 54:44 I decided to park and go inside. 54:47 Well, I got in and walked into the furthermost rear seat 54:51 they had in the pew there. 54:54 And this particular evangelist, his name was Kim Kjaer. 55:00 It was like taking one layer off at a time of an onion. 55:04 He laid it out so perfectly that we could all understand it. 55:07 And I was really motivated, I couldn't believe it. 55:10 Well, I finished, I didn't miss a meeting. 55:12 In fact, on the fifth night, they had an altar call, 55:16 and my knees stood right up, and I walked forward, 55:18 and I gave my heart to Jesus Christ. 55:21 I've learned throughout this whole thing that when you-- 55:25 when you leave the devil's territory, he gets pretty active 55:29 in causing a lot of problems. 55:31 Well, I had the evangelist come out and they had prayer with me 55:35 about my business. 55:38 I would find a sick business and make it well and then market it. 55:42 I finally ended up with a business that I really enjoyed. 55:45 It was one that was building equestrian centers. 55:49 And they said to me, "Steve," he said, "you know, 55:51 if you're going to really keep the Sabbath, 55:53 you've got to shut your doors on the Sabbath." 55:55 Well, I did. 55:56 And so, I sold the business to my brother. 55:59 Took me 22 years to build that business, 56:02 and he lost it in 33 months. 56:05 My son, who was my business partner, I'd been giving him 10% 56:08 of the business every year. 56:10 He thought I'd just fallen off the bridge. 56:14 My son didn't talk to me for 5 1/2 years. 56:18 And then a few other things happened. 56:20 So, I had an ex-employee living in my guesthouse, 56:22 he kind of watched after our place. 56:25 And he said, "Steve," he said, "there's an Allied moving van 56:29 backed up to your front door in your home." 56:31 I said, "You're kidding." I said, "What do you mean?" 56:34 He said, "They're moving everything out of your house 56:37 into this truck, and your wife is out there supervising them." 56:41 And when I went home and opened the front door, 56:43 my voice echoed in that house. 56:45 There wasn't any furniture left anywhere. 56:47 There was one bed left in the house. 56:49 I knew my wife was upset because of my coming to this church, 56:54 but I had no idea that she would move out like this. 56:57 That was a total shock to me. 57:00 It was some time there I locked myself in the bedroom 57:02 and I began reading the Bible. 57:04 I spent about a half a year just every night getting home 57:08 and I would study. 57:10 It allowed me to have a personal relationship with Jesus Christ. 57:14 Well, to make a long story short, I met Crystal, 57:18 and she was a godly woman. 57:20 That was the Lord's doing, not mine. 57:22 And he was just there to let me know that, 57:25 "I'm with you all the way. 57:27 Even though you're going to have some trials and you're going to 57:29 have some hardships, I want you to know that I'll be with you." 57:32 Because no matter what I do now, he is my leader. 57:37 He's the leader of my marriage, he's the leader of everything 57:39 in my life today. 57:41 That one meeting with the Amazing Facts seminar 57:44 changed my entire life. 57:46 And to this day, I'm still on fire for God, 57:49 I'm still witnessing to my neighbors. 57:51 My name is Steve Johnson, and it's because of you 57:54 that Amazing Facts has changed my life. 57:57 ♪♪♪ 58:07 ♪♪♪ 58:17 ♪♪♪ 58:24 CC BY ABERDEEN CAPTIONING 1-800-688-6621 WWW.ABERCAP.COM |
Revised 2019-05-20