Hello! I'm Kathy Matthews and
this is "Thinking about Home"
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I'm glad you've
joined us and our guest
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today that we're going to
be discussing more about prayer
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with is Richard O'Ffill and he's
from the Florida Conference of
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the Seventh-Day Adventists
and Hal Gates from the
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Washington Conference of
the Seventh-Day Adventists.
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And we've just enjoyed going
back and forth at each other
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about prayer and it's become
spicy at times and I think
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it probably could
continue to be that way.
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When we prepare for our program,
we really get into it, don't we?
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When the cameras go on, we just
keep carrying on and sometimes
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we hope that we even remember
what we've said and were
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really discussing this.
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Thinking about home
should be thinking about prayer.
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Yes.
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Because I'm convinced that
if the home needs two things,
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if the home needs
one thing, yeah two,
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it will be prayer
and the Scripture.
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And the home of the
21st century is not a home of
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prayer and of Scripture.
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It's more than at risk.
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Its chances of
survival are greatly reduced.
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And so we're
doing a series entitled
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"The Priority of Prayer"
and we're talking about prayer.
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We're not trying to make it
difficult, we're not trying to
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say "If you don't
remember all these points, then
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God won't hear your prayers. "
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No, no, no!
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We're trying to make it
clear, not that God has to
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hear from us,
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but we definitely
need to hear from Him.
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In other words, He sees
everything that goes on,
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but the problem is
we don't see Him and
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I think that prayer in a
way opens our spiritual eyes
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and in this program if we could
entitle this program, it would
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be putting words into the
mouth of God respectfully.
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And it would be
"Give me another option. "
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As if it is God saying that?
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Because sometimes I think
when we come to God in prayer,
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its as if we lock it up on Him
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we say: This is
really what I want You to do,
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and this is the way
I want You to do it.
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And I'm hoping
You could be done...
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by the time my prayer's over.
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You know, sometimes I
think, Kathy, we treat God
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like we don't even
treat an auto mechanic.
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In other words if you got
trouble with your car, you don't
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go, at least I don't
go to another mechanic.
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Are you an auto mechanic?
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No. But I don't go to them
either, a ball pin hammer and
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a pair of pliers is what I use.
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But the fact is I can tell when
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my car's not working.
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But I really know
why it's not working and
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definitely I don't
know what to do about it
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and I don't have the resources.
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Now, let's use another
illustration, maybe this
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car thing isn't the way to go,
Kathy, but going to the doctor.
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What are you doing
when going to the doctor?
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Doc, I'm not feeling good.
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Well, what is it?
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Well, this is the way it is.
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And then we ask him
what to do about it.
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From the doctor we
want a correct diagnosis
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and a correct prescription.
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But I thought to
myself: "In prayer, oh, no, no!"
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We go to the God of
the Universe and we say,
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"God, this is what's
wrong with me and this is what
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You need to do about it. "
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I think that is so gross.
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Is that the word?
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We do a self-diagnosis,
prescribe our own remedy
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and then we wonder
why it doesn't work,
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we wonder why when
we ask God to do it...
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I think when we talk
about the option and getting
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another option, I
think about what is going on
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in our world
society with terror,
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What's the option that we have?
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A second option to terror?
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The peace of God that
passes all understanding,
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that keep our hearts and
minds, through Christ Jesus.
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You know, terror only
works when fear is in our heart.
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Perfect love casts out fear.
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So I think in an option, an
option to allow what's going on
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in the world to just encapsulate
this in this prison house
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of fear, to set us free to
recognize and realize that God,
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whether we think it
or not, by what we see,
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is in control.
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And if we can turn
ourselves to God and say,
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"I need an option to
this life I'm living. "
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"I need an option to the
dysfunctions that I have,
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"I need an option to the terror
that I sense when I go to get
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on an airplane and they run
this thing all over me and take
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my shoes off me and
treat me like some sort of
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second-class
person or a terrorist.
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I need an option to those things
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Give me that peace of God
that passes all understanding
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and keep my heart, my
mind through Christ Jesus.
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So I think that option is one
that really hits home to me in
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prayer and those are the
options, that I look for.
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I think he's spinning it
back in another way, because
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I think where I was coming
from was that we'll go up to God
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and tell Him what to do and we
want it done in a certain way,
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and what I was trying to
say was, that God would say
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"Don't you have any
other ideas, aren't there some
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other ways of doing
what you want to have done?
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I may have understood that!
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He is fun because
you've rolled it back,
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you roll it to him and
he roles it back to you!
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I have not seen very
many to do that to you Dick.
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It just got me,
I'm traumatized...
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Because we can take words
and I think this is important.
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We were saying
this between programs.
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You know, different
words mean different things
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to different people.
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When you and I stand up
as preachers and we say it,
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people can hear the
very words that we're saying
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and they're
putting other meanings.
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I'm coming from here
and they went there, but
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if it was edifying, it was
to the glory of God, so be it.
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I think that's the right
brain, left brain thing that
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we talked about.
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And I think in prayer sometimes,
you know, what is the option?
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What other options do we have?
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I don't
necessarily go to God and say,
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"Look, I'm looking for
You to give me two options
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and the answer. "
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I just go to God and say,
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"Look, I want an option
to this that's in the world,
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that's overwhelming me and
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give me an option to that.
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Your peace is that option. "
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But the option
you're talking about
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is something that
I've gone through too.
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Don't you go to God,
I mean, aren't you like
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the rest of us,
humans? I can't believe it.
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Don't you go to God and tell
Him what you want Him to do?
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I mean, don't you do that?
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I seldom do Dick, I seldom
tell God what I want Him to do,
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because I've found out that
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God really knows what's
the best for me and I don't.
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Because I spent 43
years, totally dysfunctional.
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I had success in business,
I was a successful city
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attorney, and I was all
of these kinds of things
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and they wanted me
to run for judge and
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I can't imagine me being a
judge that would be like...
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Having a stewed judge.
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That would be like having
a 3 year old brain surgeon
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or something, I mean
it's just not in the cards...
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but what I learned is: if
I just can let go of myself
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and surrender it to God, present
myself as a living sacrifice
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to God. I'm not much to
God, but I am all I got.
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The key is learning to let
go of yourself or dying to self.
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And that is because
we're not dying to self that
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God has to ask the question,
Is there another option?
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I think that his background is
definitely different from ours.
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I think he has, excuse my ways,
I think he has an innocence.?
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A child like approach, because
here he was in the pit of sin..
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My father was a minister.
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In other words, spiritual
things to me are a little
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more sophisticated.
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In other words, maybe
you've got started right and
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some of us who
haven't been through that.
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And I relate to him, I didn't go
through the things that you went
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through, I didn't do
the same kind of things,
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but I relate to that.
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I don't know any better.
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I don't know what
You want me to do.
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Help me to know
what You want me to do.
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But at the same time
I can understand because
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my heart is wicked
above all kinds of things and
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I know there're times that
we spin off from selfish motives
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and the Lord is trying
to teach us something else.
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I think of a time when
I had my first call, when
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I was going through
ninth quarter and that's where
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all the pastors were
coming out of the Seminary and
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I didn't go to the
Seminary, so I came out of my
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little taskforce position
and and all these guys are so
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excited because they are
going to their new callings
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and I'm going back to
my little old taskforce and
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I'm happy with that.
Pretty soon I got in that spirit
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well Lord I want to go
somewhere, I've been through
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this and so I was praying to
the "Lord, I just want you to
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and they called me to do a
Sabbath out in a little church,
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out on the water and
there was a perfect place there,
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and I had a
boat, I lived on a boat
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and there was a
perfect place to moor my boat,
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it was just
perfect, so I go back Lord
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Open that up for
me! Open that up for me!
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And it was a church that was
opened and an elder came to me
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and said to me, "We
want you as our pastor!"
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Oh this must be the Lord's will
So I pray and prayed and prayed.
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Finally, one Sunday
morning I'm in prayer and
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my wife said, "I don't
want to hear any more of this!"
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"Let God do what God wants to do
but I'm going to but I want Him
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to do... so I am pressing...
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I don't know if you have
ever had that kind of thing
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in a Pastor but boy I
was really pressing the Lord
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and all of a sudden, in my
mind was this big neon sign
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that said West Seattle.
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Now, I never ever
thought of West Seattle
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It was the
furthest thing from my mind.
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Who wants to go to a big city,
when you can go to a beautiful
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little place with a
moorage out in the water,
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you live on a boat,
there is no place to put
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a boat in Seattle,
oh well, at any rate
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What happened is two days
later, the committee meets
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and one of the
committee members comes up
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and says, "You've got a call!"
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Oh boy "Poulsbo! Poulsbo!"
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and I said where?
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and he said "I can't tell
you I said is it West Seattle?"
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And he looked at me and his
face got white, and so then the
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president calls me up
the next day on the phone and
00:12:01.23\00:12:04.15
he said, you have a call and
I want you to think about it and
00:12:04.18\00:12:07.88
I'm going to call
you to West Seattle. "
00:12:07.91\00:12:09.76
The option was that
God gave me the call where
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He wanted me to go.
00:12:16.35\00:12:17.32
The interesting part about
that is that my second call
00:12:17.33\00:12:19.87
was to Poulsbo.
00:12:21.31\00:12:22.28
You know as I listen to him
talk, again this goes back to
00:12:22.29\00:12:27.74
the graciousness of God, where
00:12:28.89\00:12:29.86
I think He deals with
us from where we come from.
00:12:29.87\00:12:31.70
I do too.
00:12:31.73\00:12:33.04
Here I am, my dad is a minister,
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God has led in my life, of that
there is no doubt but I can't
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come at it with these mystical
little.. I can't tell you those.
00:12:41.32\00:12:43.81
I don't see them that way.
00:12:43.84\00:12:46.05
That's true, but they're both
to be seen, because yours is
00:12:47.00\00:12:50.86
valid and yours is valid.
00:12:50.89\00:12:53.96
What we don't
want to do is to say,
00:12:54.00\00:12:56.50
"If God is not answering
your prayers and working like He
00:12:56.60\00:12:58.62
works with Hal,
then you are a nobody.
00:12:58.65\00:13:01.16
Because you see I can't
tell those stories and I have
00:13:01.20\00:13:03.87
one story but my lands
it was a career crisis.
00:13:05.30\00:13:10.55
To me it was so clean cut,
it was the good guys against the
00:13:10.59\00:13:15.43
bad guys, I know I'm
not a perfect person,
00:13:15.47\00:13:20.00
but if you were to know
what was going on you would have
00:13:20.10\00:13:21.56
just said, Dick
you just pray about it.
00:13:21.59\00:13:23.83
You know the Lord is in control,
by the way when I hear that
00:13:23.86\00:13:25.70
word the Lord is in control.
00:13:25.74\00:13:27.70
What does that do for you?
00:13:27.74\00:13:29.67
I will say yes He is
in control of the ship
00:13:29.70\00:13:31.75
but He isn't sponsoring
everything that is going on.
00:13:31.78\00:13:33.58
So He's in control ultimately
but you can take some huge hits
00:13:33.61\00:13:38.68
along the way.
00:13:38.71\00:13:40.05
He allows man's will to
be worked out if that's what
00:13:40.09\00:13:42.25
man wants.
00:13:42.28\00:13:43.25
So here I was, I was praying,
Lord, this is easy, this is the
00:13:43.26\00:13:47.59
good guys against the bad guys
00:13:47.62\00:13:49.21
and you know it just
continued to go down the hill
00:13:49.24\00:13:54.50
pretty soon I knew what was
like to be hated, excuse me,
00:13:54.70\00:13:58.59
I knew what was like to
feel that bitterness, that hate
00:13:58.62\00:14:01.40
it just all kind of crumbled.
00:14:01.43\00:14:03.24
And here I was
praying, "This is easy, Lord,
00:14:03.28\00:14:06.16
this is easy!"
00:14:06.19\00:14:07.16
But you know David even
says in Scriptures that at times
00:14:07.17\00:14:10.38
it looks like the bad guys win.
00:14:10.41\00:14:12.12
But you know as I look it back
now, and this is why I think
00:14:12.15\00:14:16.42
that there is always other
options God really answered my
00:14:16.45\00:14:19.57
prayer because I wanted to be
the most affective that I could
00:14:20.03\00:14:24.10
in serving Him.
00:14:24.13\00:14:25.16
So that was the
deeper need that I had.
00:14:27.10\00:14:30.30
So I saw it as a need
to maintain my present job,
00:14:30.50\00:14:34.38
so I was praying, "Lord,
hold this position together!"
00:14:34.41\00:14:38.55
The Lord was looking deeper.
00:14:38.60\00:14:39.57
In other words, He could
say, Dick "You can be much more
00:14:40.60\00:14:42.17
to Me, if you were
doing something else
00:14:42.20\00:14:46.00
Did you realize
that at the time?
00:14:46.10\00:14:49.20
Of course, not!
00:14:49.25\00:14:50.45
I went through the
trauma of disappointment,
00:14:50.50\00:14:53.20
"Oh, God, why aren't
You hearing my prayer?"
00:14:53.23\00:14:55.90
I changed careers entirely
and that wasn't the end of it
00:14:56.00\00:14:59.49
not only did I get like
this, then I went to my new job.
00:14:59.52\00:15:03.74
And I was supposed to take
somebody else's place and they
00:15:03.77\00:15:07.00
didn't want to quit it.
00:15:07.03\00:15:08.00
Do you know what they did to
me? They said, "You sit out here
00:15:11.50\00:15:14.56
at the secretary's
desk, months then. "
00:15:14.59\00:15:16.87
So, here I was... I
got a new job and the other
00:15:16.90\00:15:20.00
guy didn't want to quit.
00:15:20.03\00:15:21.96
So I was setting at a
secretaries desk waiting for
00:15:22.00\00:15:24.79
an all clear, it wasn't long
after that, that we began to
00:15:24.82\00:15:28.62
have this drug
problem in the kids.
00:15:28.65\00:15:31.48
In other words, I was just
being just twisted and broken.
00:15:31.51\00:15:35.64
But you know, what
happened during that whole time?
00:15:35.67\00:15:39.50
I began to preach!
00:15:39.53\00:15:40.50
Instead of administrator
at the General Conference.
00:15:43.99\00:15:45.06
Someone said to me one time,
"When's the best time in your
00:15:47.00\00:15:51.34
ministry?" In other
words would it be when
00:15:51.37\00:15:53.39
you were here or there,
"Right now!" "It's right now!"
00:15:53.44\00:15:57.80
Because God answered my
prayer and NO was really YES.
00:15:58.10\00:16:04.60
He said NO to my prayer,
but He said YES to my heart.
00:16:04.70\00:16:10.65
In fact, I could even say
He returned me to the ministry,
00:16:10.68\00:16:15.16
now I was doing a
ministry, but not the ministry
00:16:15.19\00:16:18.05
that I do now.
00:16:18.08\00:16:19.05
When you send up the
prayer, the Lord may have said,
00:16:20.00\00:16:22.73
Dick "Give Me another option!"
00:16:22.76\00:16:25.13
I'm going to give
you another option.
00:16:25.16\00:16:29.32
Sort of a comment.
00:16:29.35\00:16:30.45
I'm going to say no to
what you are praying about
00:16:30.48\00:16:35.45
but it's really YES, because
I'm going to give you the desire
00:16:37.00\00:16:39.50
of your heart.
00:16:39.53\00:16:41.00
Your heart is to serve Me and to
be of the greatest contribution
00:16:41.10\00:16:45.60
in My work I will make
it happen, but it won't be
00:16:45.63\00:16:48.78
anything like you do.
00:16:48.81\00:16:49.78
Just broaden your horizons
1,000% beyond what you thought
00:16:49.81\00:16:54.62
it was going to be.
00:16:54.65\00:16:55.62
There was a time in my
life when I used to think big.
00:16:55.80\00:17:00.30
I've been all over the
world, I've been with kings and
00:17:00.33\00:17:04.34
with presidents and I was
thinking big, I was even dealing
00:17:04.37\00:17:07.33
with millions of
dollars, and everything
00:17:07.36\00:17:09.76
I'm glad I got past that.
00:17:09.79\00:17:11.18
If you come to me and say Dick
I've got some big thing for you.
00:17:11.21\00:17:15.62
I would say I've already
done that, I've got something
00:17:15.65\00:17:18.43
important for you,
I've already done that.
00:17:18.46\00:17:20.34
The best part of
all now I think small.
00:17:20.37\00:17:27.00
What do you mean?
00:17:27.10\00:17:28.14
I think small.
00:17:28.17\00:17:29.14
Remember what Jesus said,
"He who is faithful in that
00:17:29.15\00:17:31.70
which is least. "
00:17:31.73\00:17:32.76
Life may have its big things,
00:17:34.60\00:17:37.60
but the big things are the
product of the small things.
00:17:37.70\00:17:42.70
So, I'm so thankful to God
that He answered my prayer with
00:17:42.90\00:17:48.70
a big, fat NO that became a Yes,
00:17:48.90\00:17:53.88
and He changed my mind.
00:17:53.91\00:17:55.67
That's not the story that you
tell about laying in your vomit.
00:17:55.70\00:17:59.03
Praise God!
00:17:59.06\00:18:01.52
But it's the same miracle, God.
00:18:01.58\00:18:04.10
It's these feelings.
00:18:04.13\00:18:05.56
But is this the sustaining
power of God at that time
00:18:05.60\00:18:09.68
when you were struggling?
00:18:09.71\00:18:10.68
Answering a prayer, and
it's important, that those who
00:18:11.70\00:18:16.40
you were saying a moment
ago your background is different
00:18:16.43\00:18:19.29
than his background, but
lots of times because you said
00:18:19.32\00:18:22.91
it's not that story,
those stories sound so converted
00:18:22.94\00:18:27.20
so transformed, so dramatic.
00:18:27.23\00:18:29.53
I've never been a dope addict.
00:18:29.56\00:18:31.24
But God kept you during a
situation even though He didn't
00:18:31.27\00:18:37.52
give you that option.
00:18:37.55\00:18:38.52
That's right.
00:18:38.53\00:18:39.50
He may have been thinking in His
mind ok Dick "Give Me another
00:18:41.10\00:18:43.91
option because this is
not what you really need. "
00:18:43.94\00:18:45.95
I think the message that
we would want our viewers
00:18:47.00\00:18:52.96
to appreciate is that God sees
a bigger picture than we see.
00:18:53.00\00:18:57.00
Amen.
00:18:57.05\00:18:58.02
He sees farther wider and
He's deeper and I think of
00:18:58.03\00:19:02.00
this beautiful
testimony of Joni Erickson Tada.
00:19:02.10\00:19:05.60
She was just a lovely teenage
girl, she's swimming one day,
00:19:05.70\00:19:11.70
she breaks her neck. I
was reading her biography
00:19:11.73\00:19:15.20
the other day.
00:19:15.23\00:19:16.20
How they prayed! I'm
sure they had the annointings
00:19:16.21\00:19:19.04
and prayer and we'll just
pray, and we'll have faith and
00:19:19.07\00:19:22.48
we'll have prayer,
and so God said NO!
00:19:23.20\00:19:25.84
but really He said YES!
00:19:26.50\00:19:28.72
But she came to
know Him more than ever.
00:19:28.75\00:19:33.00
"Look at her ministry!" "Yes. "
00:19:33.03\00:19:34.51
If this woman had been healed,
00:19:35.50\00:19:37.09
it would have been a
wonderful thing, because
00:19:37.13\00:19:39.49
but the poor thing has
spent her life..., but you know
00:19:39.52\00:19:41.97
she's a painter with her
teeth, she's a song writer,
00:19:42.70\00:19:45.50
she's a preacher.
00:19:45.53\00:19:46.50
But if she had been healed,
she would have probably been a
00:19:46.51\00:19:48.91
nobody, I mean who ever
heard of Joni Erickson Tada?
00:19:48.94\00:19:52.77
But in this brokenness as
she prayed "God, heal me!"
00:19:52.80\00:19:58.45
He really did, because He healed
her spirit, He formed her.
00:19:59.60\00:20:04.90
He gave her a ministry.
00:20:05.00\00:20:06.76
And as a result of this, she got
victory, she didn't get healing,
00:20:06.80\00:20:11.80
she got victory over her
infirmity, and as a result
00:20:11.83\00:20:14.23
of that, the blessing that
she has been to so many millions
00:20:14.26\00:20:18.33
of people.
00:20:18.36\00:20:19.48
You must have something
that you need to share.
00:20:19.52\00:20:21.55
In looking at chapter 4 of
Philippians verse 19 and it says
00:20:21.59\00:20:27.00
"But my God shall supply
all your need according to
00:20:27.10\00:20:33.10
His riches in glory
through Christ Jesus. "
00:20:33.20\00:20:34.70
So my needs are
different than yours, because
00:20:34.80\00:20:39.80
I had a longer way to come
and God had to really rebuild me
00:20:39.90\00:20:44.90
from scratch and...
Praise the Lord for that!
00:20:44.93\00:20:48.86
He provided my needs to riches
and glory in Jesus Christ.
00:20:48.90\00:20:52.40
But the miracle was exactly
the same in supplying your needs
00:20:52.45\00:20:56.45
through His
riches in Jesus Christ!
00:20:56.48\00:20:59.95
Isn't the need a sort
of generic, In other words,
00:21:00.00\00:21:02.72
He takes us where we are,
because your need was to put
00:21:02.75\00:21:06.92
full dependence
and confidence in Him.
00:21:06.95\00:21:08.98
My need wasn't any different.
00:21:09.01\00:21:12.01
Obviously, I was not a
drug addict and drunkard,
00:21:12.80\00:21:15.80
but I was in a mess in my
life and I had bad options,
00:21:15.90\00:21:19.90
and that was to get
nearer to Him or give up on Him.
00:21:20.00\00:21:24.10
Because that's the
only two ways you can go!
00:21:24.60\00:21:27.13
You can either get
near or you will not!
00:21:27.16\00:21:28.97
Think of the fact that
our listening audience today,
00:21:29.00\00:21:33.81
there may be
people who have hatred,
00:21:37.10\00:21:38.07
for something that's
happened in their past and
00:21:38.08\00:21:40.70
their prayer life is
really confused by that hatred.
00:21:40.80\00:21:45.20
They may have anxiety,
they may have depression,
00:21:45.30\00:21:48.45
they may have wondered,
"What am I going to do?"
00:21:48.48\00:21:51.60
When you think about Elijah
and his fit of depression,
00:21:51.80\00:21:57.25
when you think about
David and his fit of depression,
00:21:57.28\00:21:59.37
I mean these men were
men just like all of us and
00:22:01.00\00:22:05.60
their needs were
like all of our needs.
00:22:05.70\00:22:10.20
And I think they're
given as examples to show
00:22:10.30\00:22:12.50
the power of God to
take over in a persons life
00:22:12.60\00:22:17.00
if we surrender our lives.
00:22:17.50\00:22:19.32
and I am not
proud of my life style.
00:22:19.35\00:22:26.70
I wish that I could say,
"I've never been these things. "
00:22:28.10\00:22:34.10
But on the other hand,
I'm proud of what God can do.
00:22:34.20\00:22:38.70
Amen.
00:22:38.73\00:22:40.20
In our lives, no matter
what our need is, whether I need
00:22:40.30\00:22:42.81
to be more loving to my
neighbor whose dog comes over
00:22:42.84\00:22:47.80
and who's plants
stuff in my yard.
00:22:47.83\00:22:49.39
Lord, give me the patience that
I need to deal with my children.
00:22:49.42\00:22:56.28
Lord, I don't know how to be
a father, but Lord, if You will
00:22:57.40\00:23:00.17
just intervene and be
the Father to these kids!
00:23:00.20\00:23:05.03
These are Holy Spirit fruit;
00:23:06.60\00:23:09.56
these are character, these
are virtues we're asking for.
00:23:09.60\00:23:12.60
He never, never denies
us this kind of prayer.
00:23:12.63\00:23:14.50
This is what we're
asking for and this is what
00:23:15.65\00:23:16.62
He will bring around
so that it can happen.
00:23:16.63\00:23:18.71
But it may be a different way.
00:23:18.74\00:23:20.19
We have an old time saying
"there is more than one way
00:23:20.22\00:23:23.32
to skin a cat."
00:23:23.36\00:23:24.33
And He skins many cats
in many different ways!
00:23:24.34\00:23:27.78
If we'll come from the heart and
say, "Oh, God, change my kids!"
00:23:27.81\00:23:36.28
Well, maybe that will
take a while, but He can change
00:23:36.31\00:23:39.50
you really fast.
00:23:39.53\00:23:40.64
So as soon as I'm changed,
then it'll appear my kids
00:23:41.30\00:23:43.23
are changed.
00:23:43.26\00:23:44.23
So the burden of this program
is that let's cast all our cares
00:23:44.40\00:23:50.89
on Him, but let's not just say,
"This is the way You got to do
00:23:50.92\00:23:55.66
it for me. "
00:23:55.69\00:23:56.66
Let's take a problem up to Him,
00:23:56.67\00:23:59.92
but let's not insist that
He's got to do it this way,
00:24:00.60\00:24:03.95
He's got to do
it in this amount...
00:24:03.98\00:24:05.20
because He'll do it better.
00:24:05.23\00:24:06.94
He'll do it deeper, He'll do
it wider and He'll do it higher.
00:24:08.26\00:24:11.41
"I can do all things through
Christ who strengthens me. "
00:24:11.44\00:24:15.20
Is there time for this poem?
00:24:15.23\00:24:16.20
That's out of the
church hymnal please read that,
00:24:16.21\00:24:19.69
It was written by E.D.Chenny.
00:24:20.40\00:24:26.90
At first I prayed for
light could I but see the way.
00:24:27.00\00:24:30.46
How gladly, swiftly would
I walk to everlasting day!
00:24:30.50\00:24:34.00
And next I prayed for strength
that I might tread the road with
00:24:34.03\00:24:37.50
firm, unfaltering feet and
win the heaven's serene abode.
00:24:37.53\00:24:42.50
And then I asked for
faith. Could I but trust my God?
00:24:42.60\00:24:46.05
I'd lived enfolded in His
peace, though foes all abroad.
00:24:46.08\00:24:49.50
but now I pray for
love, deep love to God and man
00:24:49.53\00:24:55.06
A living love that will not fail
00:24:55.09\00:24:57.26
however dark His plan.
00:24:57.29\00:24:59.07
And light and strength and
faith are opening everywhere.
00:25:00.40\00:25:03.90
God waited patiently until
I prayed the larger prayer. "
00:25:03.93\00:25:07.40
Praise the Lord!
That's beautiful!
00:25:07.50\00:25:10.50
You've heard the illustration,
about if you say to a child
00:25:10.60\00:25:14.15
some day and say, if you
want me to give you $5 today or
00:25:14.18\00:25:17.27
you want to see me next
year and I'll give you $100,
00:25:17.30\00:25:20.01
the child will
probably take the $5.
00:25:20.04\00:25:22.01
because I thought to myself,
00:25:22.04\00:25:26.96
"Our prayers
could be $5 prayers. "
00:25:27.00\00:25:29.46
Where God wants to do something
big for us, He wants to do
00:25:29.50\00:25:32.00
something that's
really life-changing and
00:25:32.03\00:25:33.62
many times we want Him
to just take away the pain,
00:25:33.65\00:25:36.20
Just give me a Tylenol God.
00:25:36.23\00:25:38.97
But many times we don't
want to address the deep issues.
00:25:39.00\00:25:42.44
As he said, "Give
me a new option. "
00:25:43.33\00:25:45.10
I pray, "Give me a new mind. "
00:25:45.13\00:25:47.01
Amen.
00:25:47.04\00:25:48.50
Give me brain surgery Lord.
00:25:48.54\00:25:50.33
A new mind.
00:25:50.36\00:25:51.83
You mean, new electricity.
00:25:51.86\00:25:55.30
This is the challenge and I
don't know if it's a form of
00:25:55.80\00:26:01.80
what we said today,
"How should I pray?"
00:26:01.83\00:26:07.26
I think that we all
should get back and think,
00:26:07.30\00:26:09.26
"What am I praying about?
What am I asking God to do?"
00:26:09.30\00:26:12.76
Am I this kind of boxing in me,
am I giving Him only one option?
00:26:12.80\00:26:16.10
Or am I going deep?
00:26:16.14\00:26:17.65
You know maybe in your work
in regeneration, you talk about
00:26:17.69\00:26:21.45
doing a fearless inventory.
00:26:21.49\00:26:23.04
I think that as we pray,
we need to do a fearless,
00:26:23.08\00:26:27.71
honest inventory of
what are real needs,
00:26:27.75\00:26:31.13
not what our apparent
needs our most visible needs
00:26:31.16\00:26:34.52
but what are
those deeper things.
00:26:34.56\00:26:37.05
What do I need
to surrender to God?
00:26:37.08\00:26:39.53
What do I need to let go of?
00:26:39.57\00:26:41.12
Oh, yes.
00:26:41.15\00:26:42.12
That's where we
need to go, I think.
00:26:43.00\00:26:44.92
And also where we need to end.
00:26:46.03\00:26:47.70
Don't you think?
00:26:47.73\00:26:48.70
We've come to that point again.
00:26:48.71\00:26:49.78
It swiftly flies away on
fleeing wings, doesn't it.
00:26:49.82\00:26:55.01
I appreciate you being here.
00:26:55.05\00:26:58.00
You have this way of stimulating
one another and I pray that
00:26:58.03\00:27:05.70
our viewers are
stimulated as well to think are
00:27:05.73\00:27:08.66
the things in your life that you
need to surrender to the Lord.
00:27:08.70\00:27:12.60
I know there is in mine, it's
a constant process, isn't it?
00:27:12.70\00:27:17.16
And there are things in our life
in which the Lord might say,
00:27:17.20\00:27:19.70
"Give me another option!"
00:27:19.73\00:27:22.16
I want to do something
bigger and better for you.
00:27:22.20\00:27:25.20
Amen.
00:27:25.23\00:27:26.20
And as we go out, please
pray for us as we pray for you.
00:27:26.21\00:27:30.20
Dick, will you pray for us?
00:27:30.30\00:27:31.30
Heavenly Father, we thank
for that You don't laugh at us,
00:27:31.40\00:27:37.00
You don't mock at us even when
we ask You for crazy things.
00:27:37.10\00:27:40.40
But teach us to pray the bigger
prayer, the deeper prayer,
00:27:40.43\00:27:43.68
the long range prayer.
00:27:43.72\00:27:45.12
That we're not asking for $5
today, but we can actually wait
00:27:45.20\00:27:51.43
for the big blessings that
You have for us down the line.
00:27:51.47\00:27:55.61
We are thankful that
You are our heavenly Father
00:27:55.65\00:27:59.39
we are thankful
that we can be...
00:27:59.42\00:28:01.21